Administrative Law › Transportation Law

Changes Ahead For The Texas Railroad Commission?

The Texas Railroad Commission is going through the Sunset review required every 10 years for all state agencies. If approved, the pending legislation (House Bill 2166) would...more

EU-ETS : Has The Clock Really Been Stopped?

This article examines the consequences for operators (in particular business aircraft operators) of the "Stop The Clock" decision on the EU-ETS....more

Interesting Valuation Dispute in Caltrans Eminent Domain Battle

The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and the owner of Silveira Ranch are involved in an interesting valuation dispute stemming from Caltrans' acquisition of part of the ranchland needed for Highway 101...more

Eminent Domain to Be Used for I-80 and I-680 Interchange

California continues to move forward with more infrastructure improvement projects. According to an article in the Daily Republic, Agency starts eminent domain proceedings for I-80/680 project, the Solano Transportation...more

More Infrastucture Coming Your Way California

As we mentioned in our recent 2012 Eminent Domain Year in Review, we've seen a boom of infrastructure projects in California -- a trend we expect to continue into the near future. So what exactly are we talking about? ...more

Major Construction Scheduled to Begin on Interstate 5/Ortega Highway Interchange

As recently reported in the San Clemente Times, Caltrans is scheduled to begin construction on the Interstate 5/Ortega Highway Interchange project in mid-February. ...more

Massachusetts 2013 – 2014 Legislative Session Preview

The 188th Massachusetts Legislature began the 2013 – 2014 legislative session on January 2. This alert identifies the key public policy issues that will likely emerge in the current session and offers insight into their...more

Pennsylvania's P3 Implementation Manual: An Overview

On January 9, 2013, the Pennsylvania Public-Private Transportation Partnership Board (P3 Board) approved the Implementation Manual for Solicited and Unsolicited Projects (Implementation Manual), which provides highly...more

Energy and Environment Update -- January 6, 2013

In This Issue: Energy and Climate Debate; Congress; Department of Energy; Department of Interior; Department of Transportation; Environmental Protection Agency; Federal Trade Commission; Nuclear Regulatory Commission;...more

New FMC Commissioner Could Lead to Continuing Reforms of U.S. International Ocean Transportation System

On Tuesday, the United States Senate confirmed William P. Doyle, of Pennsylvania, to be a Federal Maritime Commissioner for the term expiring June 30, 2013. Commissioner Doyle joins Chairman Richard A. Lidinsky, Jr., Michael...more

2013 California Construction Law Update

More than 4,000 bills were introduced in the California State Legislature during the 2011-2012 legislative session. Of these bills, 996 made it to Governor Brown’s desk, of which 876 were signed into law, and 120 were...more

Agenda Setting - Olympia’s new faces must address transportation infrastructure funding

January brings many new faces to Olympia. A new governor and an unusually large number of new members in the State House of Representatives and State Senate who have both volunteered and been elected to assume the mantle of...more

The Delightfully Brief, Pithy and Wholly Idiosyncratic Video Newsletter - January 2013, Vol. 1, Edition 1

A Billion Here or There - Now that the President has another four years and the budget chasm is before the country. The so-called fiscal cliff comes. Of the many ways to save money, the Congress has chosen the meat...more

How Does the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Help Families After Airplane Accidents?

The aftermath of an airplane accident involves action by numerous organizations, including the involved airline, federal, state and local agencies, and volunteer associations. In addition to ensuring that survivors receive...more

Maine Voices: Bad roads will lead Maine nowhere - We can wait for a disaster like Sandy to force us to improve our infrastructure,...

Originally published in the Portland Press Herald on 12/23/12. Superstorm Sandy wasn't a direct hit to Maine, but areas of New Jersey and New York were devastated. This recent natural disaster is one reason that the new...more

Spirit Airlines v. U.S. Dep’t of Transportation

Brief Of Amici Curiae CATO Institute And The National Federation Of Independent Business Small Business Legal Center In Support...

It is axiomatic that the freedom of speech is vitally important to our democratic society and that being able to criticize the government is at the core of this freedom. Yet government officials are constantly inventing new...more

Positive Train Control Still on the Front Burner

In 2008, Congress mandated the installation of positive train control ("PTC") communications and signaling technology on many passenger and freight rail lines by the end of 2015. 49 U.S.C. § 20157. Congress tasked the...more

Legislative Update Report No. 2012-23 -- Dec 15, 2012

In This Article: Federal Government; Alberta; British Columbia; Manitoba; New Brunswick; Newfoundland; Northwest Territories; Nova Scotia; Nunavut; Ontario; Prince Edward Island; Québec/Quebec; Saskatchewan; and...more

Putting the Brakes on San Diego’s Transportation Plan

The first “Sustainable Communities Strategy” adopted to guide long-range land use and transportation planning under SB 375 now has the distinction of being the first such plan set aside for failing to comply with the...more

Combating Loss Of Life From Commercial Vehicle Wrecks

Recently we blogged about the tightening of controls around medical exams for commercial vehicle drivers across the country set to being in May 2014. In accordance with this same aim to increase the safety of lives on the...more

PHMSA Inspections to Focus on Integrity Management Program Evaluations

Effective immediately, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) inspections will emphasize the review of operator methods for integrity management (IM) program evaluations, the agency said in an Advisory...more

Disadvantaged and Minority Business Certification in South Carolina

In South Carolina there are several programs designed to benefit those businesses owned and controlled by “disadvantaged” individuals. The key to obtaining certification or designation under all these programs is...more

Jones Act Compliance for Publicly Traded Companies

Following a much publicized investigation of Trico Marine Services, Inc., a publicly traded Jones Act-company, and its compliance with the 75% U.S. citizen ownership and control requirements for coastwise operations, which...more

Up in the air – the suspension of the aviation EU ETS for non-EU airlines: UPDATE

Since our client alert last week, the European Commission has published a draft Decision and ‘Questions and Answers’ (“Q&As”), elaborating on its proposal to ‘stop the clock’ on the international aviation elements of the EU...more

Legislative Update Report No. 2012-21 -- Nov 15, 2012

In This Issue: Federal Government; Alberta; British Columbia; Manitoba; New Brunswick; Newfoundland; Northwest Territories; Nova Scotia; Nunavut; Ontario; Prince Edward Island; Québec/Quebec; Saskatchewan; and...more