Thanks to revenue largely generated in the city’s outlying neighborhoods, cash flow to the private company running the city’s parking meter system is stronger than expected. The firm plans to increase revenue even further by stepping up enforcement on the 36,000 meters in the second half of 2010, according to new documents reviewed by the Chicago News Cooperative.

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Outrage Aside, Drivers Fuel High Parking Meter Profits

Canopy to be erected to catch pigeon poopUPI.comKANSAS CITY, Mo., July 28 (UPI) — Community leaders in Kansas City, Mo., say they will suspend a fabric [...]

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WASHINGTON — Congress is getting ready to pass tough new aviation safety measures that were developed in response to a deadly commuter plane crash in western New York in early 2009, a key lawmaker said Wednesday.

Rep. James Oberstar, D-Minn., the chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, said in an interview that he was introducing a bill with the safety improvements on Wednesday. He said he expects House passage on Thursday and Senate passage soon afterward.

Besides the safety measures, the bill extends authority for Federal Aviation Administration programs through Sept. 30, the end of the current budget year. Without that extension, the FAA would have to shutdown on Sunday when current program authority expires.

There is strong support in Congress for the safety measures, which were added to a broader aviation bill that lawmakers have been struggling for nearly four years to pass. With that bill stalled over disagreements involving other issues, House and Senate lawmakers have reached a consensus that the safety provisions should be passed separately from the broader measure, Oberstar said.

The impetus for the safety measures was the crash of Continental Connection Flight 3407 near Buffalo-Niagara International Airport. All 49 people aboard and one man in a house were killed. A National Transportation Safety Board investigation faulted errors by the flight’s two pilots and deficiencies in pilot hiring and training by Colgan Air Inc., the regional carrier that operated the flight for Continental Airlines.

The bill “takes a big step forward in improving the safety of our skies,” Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., chairman of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, said in a statement.

The investigation also revealed the accident was the byproduct of a financially strapped industry seeking to cut costs by farming out short-haul flights to regional carriers. Those carriers often hire inexperienced pilots at low wages, assign them exhausting schedules and look the other way when they commute long distances to work because they can’t afford to live in the cities where they are based.

The last six airline accidents in the United States all involved regional air carriers.

Friends and family members of the victims of the Colgan crash have been lobbying Congress relentlessly for passage of the safety provisions. As a group, they have made more than 30 lobbying trips to Washington at their own expense over the past 17 months. They’ve met with dozens of senators and House members or their staffs, and attended every congressional hearing with any connection to aviation safety. They’ve also pressed their case in private meetings with President Barack Obama, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt.

The safety measures Congress is preparing to pass are “everything we asked for,” said Kevin Kuwik, a spokesman for the families who lost his girlfriend, Lorin Maurer, in the accident. “The bill cuts right to the core of what caused Flight 3407 to crash.”

The bill would require that the minimum flight experience for first officers be raised from 250 hours to 1,500 hours – the same level as captains. That could force regional airlines to hire more experienced pilots and indirectly raise salaries. FAA would also be required to update rules governing how many hours airlines may require a pilot to fly before the pilot is permitted rest, and airlines would have to put in place fatigue risk management plans – programs that use scientific research on fatigue to assess pilot hours and alert airlines to schedules that are likely to induce fatigue.

Other provisions address pre-employment screening of pilots, create mentoring programs between experienced pilots and newly hired pilots and provide remedial training for pilots who have performed poorly on skills tests.

Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., made a last-ditch effort Wednesday to persuade senators to pass the broader aviation bill, including the safety measures, before the end of the week. The heart of the bill is a blueprint for FAA’s $40 billion program to modernize the nation’s air traffic control system.

The key issue holding up the bill, Dorgan said, is whether airlines should be allowed to fly an additional 16 flights a day from Reagan National Airport near Washington to destinations beyond a 1,200-mile “perimeter” imposed years ago to reduce airport noise and encourage development at the larger Dulles International Airport, which is farther away from the city and less convenient for lawmakers.

“I’ve just had a bellyful of the intransigence that exists in this chamber,” Dorgan said in a speech on the Senate floor. “It’s just fine to represent your interest and your region, but it’s … just not fine to block this bill.”

___

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Flight 3407 Memorial: http://www.3407memorial.com/

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Congress Readies Stricter Aviation Safety Legislation

WASHINGTON — Congress is getting ready to pass tough new aviation safety measures that were developed in response to a deadly commuter plane crash in western New York in early 2009, a key lawmaker said Wednesday.

Rep. James Oberstar, D-Minn., the chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, said in an interview that he was introducing a bill with the safety improvements on Wednesday. He said he expects House passage on Thursday and Senate passage soon afterward.

Besides the safety measures, the bill extends authority for Federal Aviation Administration programs through Sept. 30, the end of the current budget year. Without that extension, the FAA would have to shutdown on Sunday when current program authority expires.

There is strong support in Congress for the safety measures, which were added to a broader aviation bill that lawmakers have been struggling for nearly four years to pass. With that bill stalled over disagreements involving other issues, House and Senate lawmakers have reached a consensus that the safety provisions should be passed separately from the broader measure, Oberstar said.

The impetus for the safety measures was the crash of Continental Connection Flight 3407 near Buffalo-Niagara International Airport. All 49 people aboard and one man in a house were killed. A National Transportation Safety Board investigation faulted errors by the flight’s two pilots and deficiencies in pilot hiring and training by Colgan Air Inc., the regional carrier that operated the flight for Continental Airlines.

The bill “takes a big step forward in improving the safety of our skies,” Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., chairman of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, said in a statement.

The investigation also revealed the accident was the byproduct of a financially strapped industry seeking to cut costs by farming out short-haul flights to regional carriers. Those carriers often hire inexperienced pilots at low wages, assign them exhausting schedules and look the other way when they commute long distances to work because they can’t afford to live in the cities where they are based.

The last six airline accidents in the United States all involved regional air carriers.

Friends and family members of the victims of the Colgan crash have been lobbying Congress relentlessly for passage of the safety provisions. As a group, they have made more than 30 lobbying trips to Washington at their own expense over the past 17 months. They’ve met with dozens of senators and House members or their staffs, and attended every congressional hearing with any connection to aviation safety. They’ve also pressed their case in private meetings with President Barack Obama, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt.

The safety measures Congress is preparing to pass are “everything we asked for,” said Kevin Kuwik, a spokesman for the families who lost his girlfriend, Lorin Maurer, in the accident. “The bill cuts right to the core of what caused Flight 3407 to crash.”

The bill would require that the minimum flight experience for first officers be raised from 250 hours to 1,500 hours – the same level as captains. That could force regional airlines to hire more experienced pilots and indirectly raise salaries. FAA would also be required to update rules governing how many hours airlines may require a pilot to fly before the pilot is permitted rest, and airlines would have to put in place fatigue risk management plans – programs that use scientific research on fatigue to assess pilot hours and alert airlines to schedules that are likely to induce fatigue.

Other provisions address pre-employment screening of pilots, create mentoring programs between experienced pilots and newly hired pilots and provide remedial training for pilots who have performed poorly on skills tests.

Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., made a last-ditch effort Wednesday to persuade senators to pass the broader aviation bill, including the safety measures, before the end of the week. The heart of the bill is a blueprint for FAA’s $40 billion program to modernize the nation’s air traffic control system.

The key issue holding up the bill, Dorgan said, is whether airlines should be allowed to fly an additional 16 flights a day from Reagan National Airport near Washington to destinations beyond a 1,200-mile “perimeter” imposed years ago to reduce airport noise and encourage development at the larger Dulles International Airport, which is farther away from the city and less convenient for lawmakers.

“I’ve just had a bellyful of the intransigence that exists in this chamber,” Dorgan said in a speech on the Senate floor. “It’s just fine to represent your interest and your region, but it’s … just not fine to block this bill.”

___

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Flight 3407 Memorial: http://www.3407memorial.com/

More on Airlines

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Congress Readies Stricter Aviation Safety Legislation

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OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma Republicans rejected anti-Washington sentiment on Tuesday, selecting a two-term congresswoman as their nominee for governor rather than a tea party-backed conservative who once called for the creation of a new state militia to protect state sovereignty.

U.S. Rep. Mary Fallin of Oklahoma City defeated state Sen. Randy Brogdon and two other candidates and would be the state’s first female governor if elected Nov. 2. Democrats chose between Attorney General Drew Edmondson and Lt. Gov. Jari Askins.

Fallin gave up her congressional seat to seek an office being vacated by Democratic Gov. Brad Henry, who cannot run for re-election because of term limits. Brogdon put up a pesky fight and accused Fallin of making a “liberal compromise” by voting in 2008 for President George W. Bush’s plan to bail out the nation’s financial industry.

With two-thirds of the state’s precincts reporting unofficial returns, Fallin had 58 percent of the vote and Brogdon had 36 percent.

Voters also decided nominees in races for U.S. Senate and Congress, state House and Senate, and eight statewide posts, including five open seats.

Fallin was unable to vote for herself after being called back to Washington for a vote on a supplemental funding bill for the war in Afghanistan. She planned to return to Oklahoma City on Tuesday night to address supporters.

“She never fought this primary with both fists out,” said University of Oklahoma political science professor Keith Gaddie. “She’s absorbed some blows from a primary opponent, but it has not endangered her nomination.”

Fallin was the state’s first woman and first Republican to serve as lieutenant governor, a post she held for 12 years before being elected to Congress from the Oklahoma City area in 2006. She previously served two terms in the state House.

Retired Department of Defense worker James Sieber, 65, said he was most concerned about the economy as he voted for Fallin in the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore.

“It is the economy and the direction this economy is going and the need to change that direction,” Sieber said.

Donnie Andrews, 49, a Moore police officer, expressed a similar sentiment and also voted for Fallin.

“I was planning on retiring, but not with the economy the way it is,” he said.

Brogdon told The Associated Press in April that he backed the creation of a new state militia to address what he called an “overreaching federal government.” He retreated after a public backlash and said he was speaking only about a National Guard-style militia to aid the state during civil emergencies.

Also in the Republican race Tuesday were Oklahoma City-area businessmen Robert Hubbard and Roger Jackson.

Edmondson and Askins gave up relatively safe seats to try and keep the governor’s mansion in Democratic hands.

Edmondson is a Vietnam veteran who served four terms as attorney general. His father is a former U.S. congressman, his uncle was elected governor in 1958, and his brother is chief justice of the Oklahoma Supreme Court.

Edmondson has raised the most money among all the candidates, amassing nearly $2.6 million in contributions through July 12, according to the most recent campaign finance reports.

Askins served as a special district judge in Stephens County, as a member of the pardon and parole board and for 12 years in the Statehouse before defeating then-House Speaker Todd Hiett for lieutenant governor in 2006. Askins enjoyed a last-minute endorsement from former University of Oklahoma football coach Barry Switzer, a state icon who backed Henry in 2002.

In the U.S. Senate primary, incumbent Republican Tom Coburn defeated primary challengers Evelyn Rogers of Tulsa and retired teacher Lewis Kelly Spring of Hugo. Coburn will face Democratic nominee Jim Rogers of Midwest City, who beat political newcomer Mark Myles. Two independents also await Coburn in the Nov. 2 general election.

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In Oklahoma Governor Primary, Voters Reject Anti-Establishment Sentiment

WASHINGTON — A faulty electronic circuit that caused a deadly Metro crash last summer was symptomatic of an “anemic safety culture” at the D.C. area’s transit agency, the National Transportation Safety Board said Tuesday.

Eight passengers and a train operator were killed in June 2009 when a Metrorail train rear-ended a second train stopped near the Fort Totten station on the city’s northeastern outskirts.

As expected, the NTSB concluded that the collision occurred because Metro’s signaling system failed to detect the stopped train and automatically slow the approaching train down.

The NTSB urged Metro and other transit systems that use the same signaling components to remove them. Those systems include Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Philadelphia and Cleveland.

The American Public Transportation Association, which is made up of public transit agencies across the country, will convene a panel of experts to review the board’s recommendations and prepare a response to interpret them for its members, association spokesman Mantill Williams said. Several of the systems, reached individually, had no immediate comment.

More broadly criticising the Washington system, the NTSB said Metro ignored repeated warning signs and fostered a culture of indifference to chronic safety issues. The agency was warned about deficiencies in its safety department for 15 years before the crash, NTSB chairwoman Deborah Hersman said.

“If they don’t listen this time, I’m not sure what else can be done here,” she said. “There’s got to be some action.”

Since the accident, Alstom Transport, the company that now owns the supplier of the faulty signaling components, has been worked with Metro on testing and evaluating the 1970s-era equipment and developing remedial measures for the train control system, Alstom spokesman Tim Brown said. The company is also working with the other agencies that use the part.

The board also recommended that Metro remove or retrofit its oldest subway cars, which date to the 1970s, as soon as possible. The train that collided with the stopped train was composed entirely of the older cars, which are more susceptible to collapsing into one another in a collision. Metro has already awarded an $886 million contract to replace the old cars but has said it cannot take them out of service immediately. The new cars won’t arrive until 2013.

The NTSB has no regulatory or enforcement powers, but a failure by Metro to comply with its recommendations could cause federal and state governments to curtail the transit agency’s funding. The board wields similar influence over transit agencies around the country.

Richard Sarles, the interim general manager of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, said the NTSB’s recommendations were tough but necessary. However, he said: “This does not get changed overnight.”

The NTSB faulted Metro’s board of directors for failing to actively monitor safety issues. The track signaling system failed to recognize trains 3,000 times a week, but the issue was deemed a minor nuisance, the NTSB said.

In opening remarks, Hersman said the Fort Totten station crash was not the first time Metro’s safety system was compromised. Previous accidents, some of which killed employees, foreshadowed the deadlier crash.

“You are going to hear a lot about WMATA’s anemic safety culture today,” Hersman said. Later, she added: “Because the necessary preventive measures were not taken, the only question was when would Metro have another accident – and of what magnitude.”

Kenneth Hawkins, whose brother Dennis was killed in the crash, said he was pleased by the strength of the NTSB’s recommendations, but because the board lacks regulatory power, he wasn’t expecting much change.

“It’s not going to change our lives,” he said. “The damage has been done to us.”

Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., described the NTSB’s findings as “both chilling and very sad.” She called on Metro to fully implement the recommendations and said Congress should authorize the U.S. Department of Transportation to establish and enforce safety standards for transit systems.

If Metro’s track circuits – simple electronic devices meant to detect stopped trains on the tracks – had been working properly, the approaching train would have been slowed automatically.

Instead, the approaching train continued to travel at 55 mph until the operator saw the train ahead of her. She pulled the emergency brake, but was still traveling at more than 40 mph at the moment of the collision.

NTSB staff member Ruben Payan said Metro had been aware that the track circuits were known to fail. Five days before the accident, technicians tested the circuit that malfunctioned, but used an old test that didn’t detect the failure. An up-to-date test, Payan said, likely would have caught the problem.

Metro says it now tests circuits twice a day, has stopped mixing train control components from different manufacturers and established a new test to find circuits susceptible to problems. Immediately after the crash, Metro switched to manual operation of trains instead of automatic, a change that remains in effect.

This was not Metro’s only deadly accident in recent years. Two Metro workers were crushed to death on tracks in January when a maintenance truck backed into them. Last year, two more Metro workers were killed in separate incidents.

There was also a close call in December, when several independent safety inspectors were nearly hit.

___

Associated Press writers Matthew Barakat, Lauren Sausser, Jessica Gresko and Ben Nuckols in Washington, and Brian Witte in Annapolis, Md., contributed to this report.

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Fatal D.C. Metro Crash Symptomatic Of ‘Anemic Safety Culture,’ Federal Inspectors Say

NEW YORK — The city of New York has agreed to pay more than $7 million to settle a civil lawsuit stemming from the fatal 50-bullet police shooting of an unarmed man on his wedding day.

The settlement filed in Brooklyn federal court on Tuesday pays $3.25 million to the estate of Sean Bell, who was killed in 2006 outside a strip club in Queens while leaving his bachelor party. As part of the settlement, the city agreed to pay $3 million to Joseph Guzman and $900,000 to Trent Benefield, both of whom were wounded in the shooting that killed their friend.

The lawsuit had accused the city of wrongful death, negligence, assault and civil rights violations.

“We hope that all parties can find some measure of closure by this settlement,” the city’s attorney, Michael A. Cardozo, said in a statement.

An attorney for the plaintiffs, Scott Rynecki, said the settlement was hard-fought over two days and that the plaintiffs felt it was the best outcome possible.

“I think it was all about closure at this point,” Rynecki told The Associated Press in a phone interview.

Three police officers were acquitted of manslaughter and other charges in 2008. Federal authorities in February declined to bring civil rights charges against them.

The officers remain on modified duty and are facing departmental charges that could result in their dismissal.

The Bell settlement follows other multimillion-dollar payouts in high-profile civil lawsuits involving the police department.

In June, the city agreed to pay a record for a civil rights lawsuits when it agreed to settle for $9.9 million with Barry Gibbs, an innocent man who spent 19 years in prison after being framed by a police detective.

In 2001, the city and police union agreed to pay $8.7 million to Abner Louima, who was beaten and sodomized with a broomstick in a police precinct by officers. After legal fees, Louima was left with about $5.8 million.

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New York City Settles Sean Bell Lawsuit For $7 Million