Friday Digest: July 20, 2012

Transportation funding is spent on everything from mass transit to building new bridges to painting the white lines on the side of the road. The Tri-State Transportation Campaign has a new report showing how each state allocates its federal transportation dollars. Read more at The Atlantic Cities.

New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has announced they are once again selling advertising on their MetroCards. They have previously sold advertisements on the back of their cards, but now they welcoming ads on the front of the cards. They believe this will be a great marketing/PR tool, seeing as millions of New Yorkers carry these cards with them everyday and use them constantly. These ads would go in the space above the magnetic strip, and although prices have not been determined they are expected to charge a premium. Would you want to see advertisements on your Port Authority tickets? Read more at The Transit Wire.

This week, District of Columbia Department of Transportation (DDOT) announced a milestone in the development of a new tramway network. DDOT has awarded the contract for operation and maintenance for the first planned tramline in Washington, D.C. The line will be 2.2 miles long and include seven stations, serving the northeast part of D.C. It is expected to be running by the end of 2013. This is the first piece of D.C.’s transportation expansion into a new tramway system. Read more at Mass Transit Mag.