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PTP Blog / Rapid City Journal / SdDot (05/21/2013)
Heartland Expressway: Highway 385 work near Oelrichs, SD begins May 22 ... The S.D. Department of Transportation is advising motorists that crews will begin paving operations on the final phase of the Heartland Expressway Project on Highway 385 in Fall R  ...more

Dallas Morning News (05/20/2013)
Editorial: Texas highway funding gets crumbs in budget deal... The 2013 lawmaking session was supposed to be different. Gov. Rick Perry, House Speaker Joe Straus and Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst said early and often that paying for transportation needs would   ...more

Western Energy Alliance (05/16/2013)
Interior Department Releases Updated Fracing Rule: Regulatory uncertainty continues to threaten jobs and economic growth ... In response to the second release of the hydraulic fracturing (fracing) rule from the Department of the Interior (DOI), Western Ene  ...more

USA Today (05/15/2013)
AAA: Fatal motor vehicle crash costs $6 million ... The emotional toll for Americans who lose a friend or loved one in a motor vehicle crash has a steep financial counterpart — an average $6 million per fatal accident, according to auto club AAA…  ...more

Waco Tribune (05/14/2013)
Opinion: Transportation solutions vital for Texas ... Have you been stuck in traffic lately? The answer is probably yes, even if you live in some rural parts of Texas. Transportation infrastructure in urban areas of the state continues to struggle to ke  ...more

PTP Blog / ERCB / Edmonton Journal (05/12/2013)
Alberta’s Oil Production and Reserves Increase ... The latest edition of the Energy Resources Conservation Board (ERCB) publication ST-98 Alberta's Energy Reserves 2012 and Supply/Demand Outlook 2013-2022, shows a 14 per cent increase in production and 9  ...more

Denver Post (05/10/2013)
U.S. decision on Keystone XL pipeline seen dragging past summer... The Obama administration is unlikely to make a decision on the Canada-to-Nebraska Keystone XL pipeline until late this year as it painstakingly weighs the project's impact on the environme  ...more

PTP Blog / Havre Daily News (05/10/2013)
Problems with border hours again: Canada extends Wild Horse summer hours, U.S. side doesn’t... Once again the international committee trying to upgrade operations at a border port north of Havre is faced with an hours problem — each side of the port is ru  ...more

PTP Blog / Texas Tribune (05/09/2013)
Texas: Bill to Increase Vehicle Registration Fee Dies in House... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance appreciates the efforts of Representative Drew Darby in highlighting the cost of doing nothing to provide long term transportation funding in Texas. It is disa  ...more

Move Colorado (05/09/2013)
Kullman of Move Colorado – Transportation Funding Today & Tomorrow... Recently, at the 2013 APWA Colorado Management + Conference, Move Colorado President Jeff Kullman made an in-depth presentation on transportation funding following the implementation o  ...more

Oil & Gas Financial Journal (05/07/2013)
The fight to limit Bakken shale flaring... Bakken gas flaring is still close to 30% of production. At the end of April the North Dakota State Assembly passed legislation providing tax incentives for producers to reduce flaring by finding alternative uses  ...more

PTP Blog (05/06/2013)
4th Annual Ports-to-Plains Alliance Energy Conference Attended by Eleven Congressional Offices ... U.S. Representative Cory Gardner (CO) headlined the 4th Annual Ports-to-Plains Energy Conference in Washington DC on April 26, 2013. Gardner highlights the  ...more

PTP Blog (05/05/2013)
Twenty Leaders Support Ports-to-Plains Alliance at Washington DC Fly-in from April 22-26, 2013 ... Transportation and energy were on the table as the Ports-to-Plains Alliance delegation attended 24 Senate and U.S. House of Representatives office meetings  ...more

PTP Blog (04/16/2013)
Economic Developers Association of Alberta Awards Alberta HUB Communities ... The Economic Developers Association of Alberta (EDA) presented its annual Awards of Excellence during the Minister’s Dinner & Awards Banquet at the Delta Kananaskis Lodge. Thes  ...more

Dickinson Press (04/13/2013)
Highway 85 concerns move south ... Traffic concerns in the Oil Patch are well known to the people living and working in western North Dakota. Worries about how the Bakken energy boom is now affecting or could, in the future, affect roadways have now spr  ...more

Heartland Expressway Association / Scottsbluff Star Herald (04/08/2013)
Annual Heartland Expressway meeting April 17 ... Project leaders will present the latest news and answer questions about the Heartland Expressway during the annual meeting Wednesday, April 17. The meeting to discuss the federal high priority corridor wi  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (04/08/2013)
Heartland South Working Group Meeting in Brush on April 11 ... Years ago a group was formed called HEARTLAND SOUTH that met to keep the Colorado section of the Ports-to-Plains Alliance Corridor and the surrounding feeder highways in the forefront of plan  ...more

WacoTrib.com (04/07/2013)
Business has good reason to worry about Texas highways ... Texas is big. Really big. Whether you look at square miles, number of residents or the size of the economy, the Lone Star State is right up there at the top of the rankings of states (and even mo  ...more

Liveability (04/05/2013)
Del Rio and Acuña Economics... It’s been called a well-kept secret, but the burgeoning partnership between Del Rio and the Mexican city of Acuña is getting increased attention as more and more companies and manufacturers learn of its advantages. And its  ...more

Adams County Economic Development / PTPBlog (04/04/2013)
Economic Development Council of Colorado Awards Adams County for Excellence ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance would like to congratulate its member organization, Adams County Economic Development, on receiving the award as the "Large Community of the Year"  ...more

Forbes (04/03/2013)
What Are The Top Five Facts Everyone Should Know About Oil Exploration? ... Forbes April 3, 2013 My top 5 oil industry facts: 1) Oil is important. Shockingly, sometimes horrifically important. The world economy has been developing with oil as its lif  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (04/01/2013)
Ports-to-Plains Participates with Colorado Governor Hickenlooper on Colorado-Alberta Energy Mission ... Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper and Consul General of Canada, Marcy Grossman led the Colorado Energy Mission to Alberta on March 26-29, 2013. In   ...more

Duane Nickull (03/30/2013)
Why I may quit Greenpeace and Open Minds: Interesting perspective from a Candidate in the British Columbia, Canada Election ... I must disclose that I have been a Greenpeace member for most of my life. I am an environmentalist and regularly write on this  ...more

Governor of Coahuila, MX (03/30/2013)
Acuña y Piedras Negras Serán El Centro Del Ports To Plains.- Gobernador | Acuña and Piedras Negras will be the center of the Ports To Plains ... The Governor Rubén Moreira Valdez said that with the construction of the Road San Pedro-Cuatro Ciénegas, Coah  ...more

Bismarck Tribune (03/28/2013)
Bakken ripples into Black Hills, Minn. river towns ... The Black Hills gold rush could turn into a latter-day sand rush aimed at the Bakken oil fields in North Dakota. South Dakota is the latest of states that may turn its quartz sand deposits into cash   ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (03/24/2013)
Call to Action: Community and Economic Leaders Signing Comment Letter on Keystone XL Pipeline Findings... The comment period on the Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for the Keystone Pipeline is open and Ports-to-Plains will be commenting in sup  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (03/22/2013)
Sequestration impacting border crossings ... The impact of the federal budget cuts that were part of the sequestration are already impacting Texas –Mexico border crossings with reports of drastically increased wait times at Del Rio / Acuna and Eagle Pass  ...more

Move Colorado (03/21/2013)
Ports-to-Plains Takes Center Focus at Colorado Capitol... Joe Kiely, Vice President of Operations for Ports-to-Plains Alliance, provided a joint session of the Colorado Senate and House transportation committees with an in-depth presentation on the Port-t  ...more

Amarillo Globe News (03/21/2013)
Increased oil production leading to more traffic accidents in Texas Panhandle ... Driving always brings risks, but where oil and natural gas production is booming in the northeast Texas Panhandle, the risks became 13 percent more deadly in 2012. “We’ve g  ...more

American Society of Civil Engineers (03/20/2013)
2013 ASCE Report Card for America’s Infrastructure: Roads graded D Nationally... Forty-two percent of America’s major urban highways remain congested, costing the economy an estimated $101 billion in wasted time and fuel annually. While the conditions hav  ...more

Washington Post (03/20/2013)
PORTER: The earth-shaking promise of shale ... The rapid development of hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” to produce domestic shale gas and oil should make America a much stronger player on the global energy scene. Our shale revolution has made us the  ...more

Transportation Advocates of Texas (03/19/2013)
Texas: Highway Project Funding to Plummet Under Current Law  ...more

The Hill's Transportation Report (03/19/2013)
Shuster: Gas tax increases could be included in broad reform package ... Increases in taxes paid on gasoline purchases could be included in a broader tax reform deal, House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) said Tue  ...more

NBCNews.com (03/18/2013)
Power shift: Energy boom dawning in America ... Randy Foutch calls it a renaissance, but when you listen to the veteran Texas oilman and others describe America’s nascent energy boom, it sounds more like a miracle. Politicians have been warning for deca  ...more

PTP Blog (03/10/2013)
February 2013 Update from the Ports-to-Plains Alliance in Washington DC ... Despite some winter weather issues in the Ports-to-Plains region, Duffy Hinkle, Joe Kiely, Cal Klewin and Marlin Johnson were able to get to Washington DC and participated in 12   ...more

Department of State  (03/01/2013)
Briefing on U.S. State Department's Release of the Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact State for Keystone XL... But with this preliminary analysis, we find in this draft that the approval or denial of any one crude oil transport project, including th  ...more

National Journal Energy Experts Blog (02/26/2013)
Keystone XL and Jobs, Energy Security ... President Obama went to Cushing, Okla., nearly one year ago. He stood in front of neat rows of pipe and promised Americans his administration would pursue an all-of-the-above approach to energy. Approving the Key  ...more

Austin Business Journal (02/26/2013)
Transportation links to Mexico key for Texas trade ... The importance of transportation links to Texas’ ports was highlighted at the inaugural meeting of the House Committee on International Trade and Intergovernmental Affairs. Legislators this session   ...more

City of San Angelo (02/22/2013)
Michael Reeves Presentation at Ports-to-Plains Alliance Southern Work Group Meeting in San Angelo, TX, February 14, 2013   ...more

City of San Angelo (02/22/2013)
Daniel Valenzuela Presentation at Ports-to-Plains Alliance Southern Work Group Meeting in San Angelo, TX, February 15, 2013   ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (02/22/2013)
Ports-To-Plains Names Cathy Shull to Board of Directors ... Ports-To-Plains — a coalition of communities and alliances, who work to improve transportation infrastructure and business networks by ensuring adequate funding levels so that communities can su  ...more

PTP Blog / Government of Alberta (02/21/2013)
Alberta: Quest talks Keystone XL with Ports-to-Plains Alliance Board of Directors ... trathcona-Sherwood Park MLA Dave Quest represented the province at a recent meeting in Texas to discuss a transportation corridor between the U.S. and Alberta’s oilsand  ...more

San Angelo Standard Times (02/20/2013)
DANIEL VALENZUELA: San Angelo can be key player in Ports-to-Plains Corridor ... The good fortunes everyone anticipates with the development of the Cline Shale could not be better timed for San Angelo — or for how we can be of benefit to the Ports-to-Plai  ...more

Popular Mechanics (02/19/2013)
The Environmental Dangers of Not Building Keystone XL ... Opponents of the proposed Keystone XL pipeline worry that if the crude coming down from Canada's oil sands were to spill, it could be an ecological disaster for areas of the Midwest through which   ...more

Dallas Morning News (02/19/2013)
Texas’ other major transportation funding challenge: fixing roads damaged by oil and gas development ... Much has been made of the Texas Department of Transportation’s broad funding challenges and especially the $4 billion-a-year boost the agency says it  ...more

The Hill Transportation Blog (02/13/2013)
Obama proposes 'Fix It First' road repair program in State of the Union ... President Obama called in his State of the Union address for a "Fix it First" program to encourage public-private partnerships to fund transportation improvements in the country.   ...more

CNN Money (02/12/2013)
The high cost of America's bad roads and bridges ... President Obama once again called for billions more in federal spending on roads, bridges, rail and other infrastructure projects in his State of the Union address Tuesday night. He's not likely to ge  ...more

Reuters News (02/05/2013)
Raise the federal gas tax ... The average driver pays about $96 a year in federal gas taxes. ... Members of Congress approved spending $198 billion during fiscal years 2012 and 2013 on the war in Afghanistan, according to the Center for Strategic and Inte  ...more

Stateline (Pew Center on the States) (02/01/2013)
Gas Tax Loses Favor as Governors Look for New Transportation Money ... In the search for more transportation money, governors and state lawmakers are largely avoiding one of the most obvious and straightforward funding sources: state gasoline taxes. Vot  ...more

Dallas Morning News (01/30/2013)
Texas’ top transportation lawmakers pick vehicle sales tax as preferred way to boost highway fund ... Texas’ top transportation lawmakers have now made official their preferred method for infusing the Texas Department of Transportation’s highway fund wit  ...more

Governing Magazine (01/29/2013)
Who May be the Next U.S. Transportation Secretary? ... Now, a favorite guessing game among transportation wonks has become who would be LaHood's replacement if he does, in fact, step aside. Governing takes a look at some of the candidates whose names hav  ...more

PTP Blog / Lincoln Journal Star (01/28/2013)
Nebraska Transportation Funding: Lincoln senator would repeal roads funding through sales tax ... While discussions around the United States are focused on increasing transportation funding to address the need to maintain and expand transportation infras  ...more

USA Today (01/25/2013)
New tax hikes eyed for roads, transit ... Two articles from USA Today addressing the discussions around the nation about the need to have adequate revenue to maintain and expand the transportation infrastructure  ...more

Associated Press (01/24/2013)
State Transportaion Funding: Indiana and Missouri... What are State Leaders Saying? ... "You put that all together, and you've got a big problem that's going to come upon us. And, to me, we need to be ahead of the curve in solving this problem rather tha  ...more

PTPBlog / FuelFix.com (01/24/2013)
53 senators push Obama to approve Keystone XL ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance appreciates the support shown for approving the Keystone XL Pipeline. Every state through which the pipeline passes is included in the letter urging President Barack Obama to  ...more

Senator Max Baucus / PTPBlog (01/24/2013)
Baucus Says Keystone Pipeline is About Jobs ... Includes video ... Montana’s senior U.S. Senator Max Baucus today doubled down his efforts to get the Keystone XL pipeline built following Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman’s approval of the route through Neb  ...more

Edmonton Journal (01/24/2013)
Texas economist says U.S. approval for Keystone XL is logical ... If logic prevails in the United States, the northern leg of the Keystone XL pipeline from Alberta to Houston should be approved, a Texas economist and energy consultant told local industry  ...more

San Angelo Standard Times (01/23/2013)
Good transportation in Texas costs money, but who should pay? ... The Texas Legislature will be dealing with a larger revenue stream than last term, and by all accounts, we will see even higher numbers next biennium — a good thing. We do not see 200,000   ...more

Bismarck Tribune (01/23/2013)
Theodore Roosevelt Expressway Expansion Beginning: New look for Highway 85 will stretch DOT ... Turning Highway 85 between Watford City and Williston into a four-lane highway will be the biggest state Department of Transportation project in its history a  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (01/23/2013)
PTP supports Heineman Keystone XL Pipeline Decision ... ...Below is a news release addressing the approval by Nebraska Governor Heineman and includes a thank you sent to the Governor that includes the original letter and its more than 125 local elected o  ...more

American Society of Civil Engineers (01/15/2013)
Failure to Act: The Impact of Infrastructure Investment on America’s Economic Growth ... The purpose of the Failure to Act report series is to provide an analysis of the economic implications for the United States of continuing its current investment tre  ...more

Truckinginfo.com (01/10/2013)
GAO Suggests Mileage Fees for Trucks ... Congress might want to consider a mileage fee for trucks and electric vehicles when it looks for ways to strengthen highway funding, says the Government Accountability Office. GAO said that while privacy concerns  ...more

Lubbock Avalanche Journal (01/09/2013)
Heavy traffic from the West Texas oil boom is taking a toll on roadways ... Trucks hauling tons of oil drilling equipment, water tankers and other industrial rigs are vital to the oil boom across West Texas, but can be too much for some area roads — espe  ...more

Washington Post (01/08/2013)
McDonnell proposes eliminating Virginia's gas tax ... Gov. Robert F. McDonnell proposed Tuesday an ambitious overhaul of how Virginia pays for roads, rail and transit, including eliminating the gas tax and replacing it with an increase in the sales tax.   ...more

National Journal: Energy Experts Blog (01/07/2013)
Energy in the Next 4 Years ... Over the next four years, energy development will face challenges both from the Obama Administration’s regulatory agenda, as well as from Congress. Additionally anti-development forces are ramping up efforts to block energy  ...more

Amarillo Globe News (01/06/2013)
Dusting off projects: Wind tax credit renewal aids region... The U.S. Congress helped the wind energy industry start the new year with hopes of continued expansion by passing a tax incentive in legislation meant to keep the country from going over the fi  ...more

Landline.com (01/04/2013)
Could Wyoming's fuel tax be on the rise?... An effort is underway at the Wyoming statehouse to boost transportation revenues. The Legislature’s interim transportation panel filed a bill for consideration during the upcoming session that would increase th  ...more

The Hill’s Transportation Blog (01/03/2013)
Shuster lays out agenda for House Transportation Committee ... New House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) said this week that the panel will make sure transportation is a high priority in the 113th Congress. In a  ...more

Denver Post (01/03/2013)
A gust of fresh air on wind tax credits: Washington got something right this week, extending tax credits for wind power production — good news for Colorado... Just when we thought there was little positive to be said about the wretched process that produc  ...more

Roll Call (01/02/2013)
Shuster: Strengthen Our Transportation Network… An efficient infrastructure allows U.S. businesses to be competitive in the global marketplace I am honored that my colleagues selected me to serve as chairman of the Transportation and Infrastructure Commit  ...more

USA Today (12/30/2012)
Trains carry more oil across U.S. amid boom ... Energy companies behind the oil boom on the Northern Plains are increasingly turning to an industrial-age workhorse — the locomotive — to move their crude to refineries across the U.S., as plans for new pip  ...more

San Angelo Standard Times (12/29/2012)
Life in the faster lane: Passing routes being built: $15.8M plan set for U.S. 277 in Texas ... Motorists traveling south on U.S. 277 from San Angelo to Sonora will experience some delays in the coming months as a $15.8 million safety improvement project   ...more

Bond Buyer (12/24/2012)
Transportation Sector Seeking Revenue Amid Chaos ... The transportation sector will spend next year looking for opportunities to achieve limited legislative goals, while hoping to stay out of the way of lawmakers who may have to slash funds in ongoing ef  ...more

The Hill (12/19/2012)
Industry poll: Majority of Americans want more infrastructure funding ... A large majority of U.S. residents what Congress to spend more money on transportation infrastructure, according to poll conducted on behalf of the Association of Equipment Manufac  ...more

FuelFix (12/19/2012)
Study: Texas leads nation in unconventional oil and gas jobs…CO, ND and OK in Top 10 ... Texas accounts for almost half the nearly 1.3 million industry jobs associated with unconventional oil and gas production in the 16 producing states this year, accor  ...more

Bloomberg (12/14/2012)
Miles Driven Seen as Fair Way to Pay for Highways: Taxes ... Replacing the $54.5 billion raised for highway and transit projects from fuel taxes and other sources would require an average vehicle-miles tax rate of about 1.8 cents a mile, according to dat  ...more

Western states look to capitalize on energy boom (12/09/2012)
Western states look to capitalize on energy boom ... Petroleum producers in southeastern New Mexico are on track to pump out 80 million barrels of oil this year — numbers that haven’t been seen since the 1970s. In Texas and North Dakota, the oilfields a  ...more

San Antonio Express-News (12/07/2012)
Eagle Ford to see $28 billion in investment ... The oil and gas industry will continue zeroing in on the Eagle Ford Shale, investing an estimated $28 billion in the South Texas region next year. The field has emerged as among the hottest in the nation f  ...more

National Journal Transportation Experts Blog (12/06/2012)
A Difficult Lift? Or Exciting Times for Transportation? ... This week’s blog asks a number of questions. Let me take them one at a time. What should committee members be focusing on next year when it comes to transportation? There are a number of meas  ...more

PTP Blog (12/06/2012)
Transportation: You know the Facts… but does your neighbor? ... When it comes to transportation facts, you know the details. The history of transportation revenue … the use details …the role of transportation in the economy… Of course you do! The real   ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (12/04/2012)
Community Leaders throughout PTP Region Back KXL ... The Keystone XL Pipeline is important to our regional economy and national energy security more than 125 local elected officials and other local leaders from ten states in the Ports-to-Plains Alliance re  ...more

Colorado Department of Transportation (12/04/2012)
Transportation Matters: The Thread Connecting the Things We Love About Colorado (Video) ... There are many things to love about Colorado, but what we often forget is that transportation is the thread that connects these things. Learn about how CDOT is f  ...more

Farm Journal (12/04/2012)
A Yellow Brick Road to Prosperity: Ports-to-Plains corridor is on a roll ... Any farmer from a rural western town knows a thing or two about self-reliance and hope. The endless sweeping vistas are a simple reminder that it’s a long way to a market. A   ...more

Consumer Energy Alliance (12/03/2012)
Can a person be pro-environment and pro-energy? ... David Holt takes the time to answer important energy questions from consumers across the country. Sue M. asked, "As a small business owner, I often find myself stuck in the middle of the environmentalis  ...more

Bond Buyer (12/03/2012)
Incoming House Transportation Panel Chair to Focus on Finding Revenue ... Transportation experts and lobbyists believe the newly anointed chairman of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, Bill Shuster, will make financing issue a bigg  ...more

Denver Post (11/30/2012)
Fiscal cliff: How Colorado transportation will be affected ... No alarms are being sounded at the Colorado Department of Transportation about the fiscal cliff and the possibility of federal funds being severed from the agency. At least not yet. But chec  ...more

Business Insider (11/30/2012)
STUDY: Every $1 Of Infrastructure Spending Boosts The Economy By $2... A recently published working paper from the San Francisco Fed shows that the fiscal multiplier of infrastructure spending is much larger than the typical government spending multiplie  ...more

Politico (11/28/2012)
Some say add fee to energy production ... With pencils being sharpened on a debt deal, all eyes are on the gas tax as a possible savior for transportation spending. But another option that may cause lawmakers less heartburn is being obscured by the gas t  ...more

PTP Blog (11/28/2012)
Shuster Selected Chairman of the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee ... Today, Congressman Bill Shuster was selected by the House Republican Conference to be the next Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Shuster  ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (11/26/2012)
Nebraska : Export Trading Relationships in the Ports-to-Plains Region ... By 2015, Nebraska’s domestic exports by truck to states in the Ports-to-Plains region are projected to grow 68% from 2002 reaching a value of $8.1 billion. Texas ($2.8 billion), S  ...more

Austin Statesman (11/25/2012)
Texas: Highway leader says time to turn away from debt for roads... The Texas Department of Transportation will spend 10 percent of its next two-year budget on debt payments, the legacy of a several-year borrowing binge — conceived by the Legislature and  ...more

FuelFix (11/22/2012)
Wind power sweeps Texas into higher green spot ... Texas is the third-friendliest state for renewable energy, rising in the biannual Ernst & Young ranking because of improvements to transmission lines that carry wind-generated power across the state. Te  ...more

Leduc Rep (11/22/2012)
Trains, planes and automobiles in Leduc, AB ... The Leduc area is home to an endless amount of activity, and with the activity comes the need for good transportation. That was part of the discussion at the Leduc Nisku Economic Development Authority (EDA  ...more

The Economist: Free Exchange (11/19/2012)
Markets, broad and deep ... ECONOMISTS love free trade. Their enthusiasm for it often seems to perplex outsiders. This may be due to the fact that "comparative advantage" isn't the most intuitive idea at first brush. Or it might also be a result of econo  ...more

The Hill’s Floor Action Blog (11/17/2012)
Bipartisan group of senators requests meeting with Obama on Keystone XL pipeline ... Well stated! Letter signed by 18 Senators including seven from the Ports-to-Plains Alliance region including John Hoeven (R-N.D.) , Max Baucus (D-Mont.), John Barrasso   ...more

YourRanchNews.com (11/16/2012)
Less fuel tax revenue is causing Texas-size transportation problems ... A dwindling transportation budget is affecting the way Texas funds its roadways, including parts of the Grand Parkway. When the number of miles driven increases 238 percent while th  ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (11/15/2012)
Ports-to-Plains Alliance comments on USDOT Interim Guidance on state freight plans and state advisory committees ... U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) requested comments related to the interim guidance on state freight plans and state advisory comm  ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (11/15/2012)
Statement on TBD Colorado Recommendations on Transportation ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance appreciates the recognition of the citizens of Colorado and TBD Board of Directors that transportation is critical to the state’s economy. They recognized that t  ...more

Denver Business Journal (11/13/2012)
Hickenlooper joins push for extending wind tax credit ... Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper is one of a bipartisan group of governors urging Congress Tuesday to swiftly pass an extension of the federal production tax credit for wind energy. Hickenlooper,   ...more

Bloomberg News (11/08/2012)
Obama’s Next Transportation Chief Faces Highway-Funding Quandary ... The next U.S. Transportation secretary -- whether it’s Ray LaHood or someone else -- will confront a highway system starved for cash and financed by a gasoline tax almost no one wants t  ...more

The Globe and Mail (11/08/2012)
Editorial: President Obama, it’s time to approve the Keystone pipeline ... Last January, President Barack Obama rejected TransCanada Corp.’s proposal to build a pipeline carrying Canadian bitumen from the Alberta oil sands to refineries in the United Sta  ...more

Politico.com (11/08/2012)
More gridlock for transportation? ... Many with a stake in federal infrastructure spending had a reason to celebrate on election night: Democrats kept the keys to the White House. President Barack Obama has championed high price tag spending for infrast  ...more

PTP Blog / Government of Alberta (11/07/2012)
Redford offers congrats to Obama-now it's time to move forward on border policies & transportation with renewed vigor ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance appreciates this encouragement and commitment of the Government of Alberta to working together to stren  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (11/05/2012)
Northern Working Group Strategic Plan ... Members of the Ports-to-Plains Alliance, organizations and individuals from North Dakota, Montana, Alberta and Saskatchewan met in Regina on October 10 and 11, 2012 to develop a northern plan to enhance the Ports  ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (11/05/2012)
Photos: Wild Horse Border Committee Meeting on October 4, 2012 ... Additional Photos from the 15th Annual Ports-to-Plains Alliance Conference Medicine Hat, Alberta Photos from Wild Horse Border Committee Meeting on October 4, 2012  ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (11/05/2012)
Photos: October 4, 2012 General Sessions ... Additional Photos from the 15th Annual Ports-to-Plains Alliance Conference Medicine Hat, Alberta Photos from October 4, 2012 General Sessions  ...more

MySanantonio.com (11/04/2012)
Drillers drawn to rocks around Eagle Ford, too ... The company in 2009 had started drilling exploratory wells on 130,000 acres north of Laredo, and Hart's attitude about the other geologic bands of rock that lie atop the Eagle Ford was this: They were st  ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (11/03/2012)
Photos: October 3, 2012 General Sessions ... Additional Photos from the 15th Annual Ports-to-Plains Alliance Conference Medicine Hat, Alberta  ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (11/02/2012)
Photos: Opening Reception at Madelta Pottery, October 2, 2012 ... Additional Photos from the 15th Annual Ports-to-Plains Alliance Conference Medicine Hat, Alberta   ...more

Colorado Energy News (11/02/2012)
On Point: One Size Doesn’t Fit All — The Real Impacts of Increased Oil and Gas Setbacks ... A diverse group of stakeholders have released a fact sheet regarding the real impacts of increased setbacks in regards for oil and gas activity. The current grou  ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (11/01/2012)
Photos: Ports-to-Plains Alliance Board of Directors Meeting, October 2, 2012 ... Additional Photos from the 15th Annual Ports-to-Plains Alliance Conference Medicine Hat, Alberta  ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (11/01/2012)
Photos: Business to Business Meeting, October 2, 2012 Additional Photos from the 15th Annual Ports-to-Plains Alliance Conference Medicine Hat, Alberta   ...more

McKenzie County Farmer (10/31/2012)
NDDOT begins talks on four-laning of U.S. 85 ... While the four-laning of the heavily traveled stretch of U.S. Highway 85 between Watford City and Williston could still be several years in the future, the North Dakota Department of Transportation (NDDOT)  ...more

Politico / Barbara Hale, President of Building America’s Future (10/31/2012)
Opinion: Our infrastructure needs investment ... Not surprisingly, the first three debates of the presidential campaign focused on pocketbook issues — boosting the economy, creating jobs and reducing the federal deficit. Only in the final minutes of the   ...more

PTP Blog / Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) (10/30/2012)
Keystone XL Pipeline: NDEQ Releases Pipeline Draft Evaluation Report ... The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) has completed its Draft Evaluation Report for Keystone’s proposed Nebraska Reroute of the Keystone XL Pipeline. This report i  ...more

Gering Citizen (10/25/2012)
Ports-to-Plains Alliance unifies Heartland Expressway partners ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance recently held their 15th annual meeting in Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada. This was the first time the conference was held outside the United States. There wer  ...more

Denver Business Journal (10/24/2012)
Colorado’s wind-power capacity seen growing by 26% in 2012 ... The amount of electricity Colorado can generate from the wind is expected to grow by 26 percent before the year ends. That will boost the state’s total capacity for wind power by 467 megawat  ...more

Denver Business Journal (10/24/2012)
Metro Denver EDC: Colorado high in economic outlook, but near bottom in education funding ... Colorado ranks among the top 10 states for employment growth and economic outlook, but continues to rank near the bottom in terms of education funding, accordin  ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (10/20/2012)
Lubbock Engineer Honored by TxDOT ... Steve Warren, P.E., Lubbock District transportation, planning and development director (TP&D), has been honored with the Gibb Gilchrist Award at the 86th Annual Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) Short-Course  ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (10/19/2012)
TxDOT Energy Sector Task Force to Meet in Amarillo ... Task force focused on finding solutions for long-term funding challenges Taking business on the road, the Texas Department of Transportation and its partners are holding the next Task Force on Texas  ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (10/17/2012)
South Dakota: Export Trading Relationships in the Ports-to-Plains Region ... This data is designed to give a measurable picture of the role the Ports-to-Plains Corridor plays in the movement of freight to Mexico and Canada and domestically north through   ...more

Myhighplains.com (10/17/2012)
Udall Celebrates Completion of NM Ports-to-Plains Corridor ... "Today we are celebrating a success story," said Udall. "I was proud to cosponsor legislation in the House to officially designate the US 64/87 Ports-to-Plains Corridor, and I am proud to be   ...more

Texas Tribune (10/16/2012)
Fee Hike a Leading Contender to Raise Money for Roads ... Texas lawmakers are mulling ways to raise more money for roads during next year’s legislative session and two proposals are drawing the strongest interest. The Texas Association of Business has t  ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (10/10/2012)
Beyond the Canadian Wheat Board – The Future of Agricultural Trade ... The Canadian government’s decision to end the Wheat Board’s monopoly fundamentally shifted agriculture trade in North America. Hear how this decision will impact our rural, ag-based e  ...more

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal (10/09/2012)
Transmission project using area wind power set for completion in 2013 ... Hundreds of miles of high-voltage transmission lines are set to be placed and powered up next year as part of a $7 billion statewide project to transmit West Texas’ renewable energ  ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (10/09/2012)
Border Cooperation…Expanding Alternatives ... Border crossings are a key component of trade. They serve as essential checkpoints, ensuring the safety and security of people and truck loads entering our countries and driving on our highways. They can also  ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (10/09/2012)
Exploring Opportunities and Barriers to Greater Trade and Prosperity between Canada and the United States ... An overview of the current state of play in trade between the two countries - what is working, where there are barriers, the role of politics in  ...more

Consumer Energy Alliance (10/08/2012)
Energy and Jobs Forum ... On behalf of David Holt, President of the Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA), and everyone at our newest regional chapter—CEA-Texas, I would like to invite you to attend our Energy and Jobs Forum in Houston being held on Wednesday,   ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (10/08/2012)
Taking advantage of the Ports-to-Plains Corridor – Economic Development Successes ... You have heard about the Ports-to-Plains Alliance Corridor and the opportunities for growth and prosperity it brings. Learn first-hand how communities are taking advant  ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (10/08/2012)
Economic Impact Beyond the Oil Sands ... The Alberta oil sands are obviously an economic boom for Fort McMurray and the surrounding area, but the economic impact stretches much further than that. Suppliers to oil sands development are located throughout   ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (10/07/2012)
Transportation Challenges – How are Ports-to-Plains Alliance Jurisdictions Addressing the Issues? ... The Ports-to-Plains region fuels North America with Alberta, home of the world’s third largest proven oil reserves, and 7 of the top 10 oil producing US  ...more

PTP Blog / Ports-to-Plains Alliance (10/06/2012)
Updates from Ports-to-Plains Alliance Corridors Associations ... Presentations from the 15th Annual Ports-to-Plains Alliance Conference in Mdicine Hat, AB, October 2-4, 2012  ...more

Medicine Hat News (10/05/2012)
Port-to-Plains conference deemed large success ... More than 220 delegates left Medicine Hat on Thursday as the 15th annual Ports-to-Plains Trade alliance meetings wrapped up and organizers are calling the three-day gathering as one of the most successfu  ...more

Medicine Hat News (10/04/2012)
Eastern Alberta open for business ... In the goal of connecting Fort McMurray to Texas, as well as all points in between with each other, eastern Alberta can provide a front door, an international group heard on Wednesday in Medicine Hat. The Ports-to-  ...more

PTP Blog (09/11/2012)
Acuna Mexico opens $22 million Manufacturing Facility ... InterMetro has two manufacturing facilities located in Mexico Ciudad Acuña, Coahuila, September 10, 2012 - Executives of Emerson firm based in the United States and its subsidiary InterMetro Indus  ...more

PTP Blog (09/11/2012)
Montana: Export Trading Relationships in the Ports-to-Plains Region ... This is the fourth of nine articles that provide a state by state look at the exports by truck along the Ports-to-Plains Corridor. This data looks at the state of Montana. Montana d  ...more

PTP Blog (09/10/2012)
North Dakota: Export Trading Relationships in the Ports-to-Plains Region ... This is the second of nine articles that provide a state by state look at the exports by truck along the Ports-to-Plains Corridor. This data looks at the state of North Dakota.  ...more

PTP Blog (09/10/2012)
Colorado: Export Trading Relationships in the Ports-to-Plains Region ... This is the third of nine articles that provide a state by state look at the exports by truck along the Ports-to-Plains Corridor. This data looks at the state of Colorado. Colorado  ...more

PTP Blog (09/07/2012)
Texas: Export Trading Relationships in the Ports-to-Plains Region ... This data is designed to give a measurable picture of the role the Ports-to-Plains Corridor plays in the movement of freight to Mexico and Canada and domestically north through the oth  ...more

PTP Blog (09/05/2012)
The Value of Truck Trade in the Ports-to-Plains Region: The Summary ... With $78.2 billion in goods exported domestically to the nine states in the Ports-to-Plains region by truck leading the way, the highway corridors are critical to the regional econom  ...more

Lincoln Journal Star (09/05/2012)
TransCanada nails down preferred route ... TransCanada has refined and narrowed its proposed route for the Keystone XL pipeline through Nebraska. TransCanada President Russ Girling said the adjustments provided for review by the Nebraska Department of E  ...more

PTP Blog / VOTE ENERGY News (09/04/2012)
Oklahoma: Oil, gas surge boosts manufacturing in state ... Oklahoma has lost thousands of manufacturing jobs over the past decade. The closing of the Oklahoma City General Motors plant brought that reality home to many of our neighbors. But a new report  ...more

Face the Facts USA (08/31/2012)
Pump prices climb, but gas tax stays flat ... As 33 million of us hit the road for Labor Day weekend (AAA estimate), consider that although gasoline prices have tripled since 1993, the federal gas tax hasn’t budged one cent. It’s remained a flat 18.4 ce  ...more

AASTHO Journal (08/31/2012)
Congressional Budget Office Releases Updated Highway Trust Fund Estimates ... Based on its mid-year review of the federal budget, the Congressional Budget Office published its latest projection of the Highway Trust Fund between 2012 and 2022. CBO estima  ...more

EnergyTomorrow Blog (08/30/2012)
Real Fracking Numbers ... The use of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) to safely and responsibly develop energy from shale has delivered on its promise of jobs and economic growth for communities across the nation. And the industry is committed to working  ...more

PTP Blog / Huffington Post (08/28/2012)
Wind Energy a Lifeline for Drought-Stricken Farms ... It is rare to find me agreeing with a representative of NRDC on any subject, but this article tells about the economic effect on the production end of the wind industry. As a supporter of extending t  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (08/22/2012)
Plains Alliance Webinar on MAP-21 ... with a Focus on Rural Transportation ... Jack Schenendorf, Ports-to-Plains Transportation Consultant in Washington, D.C., gives a full report on the recently passed MAP21 (Transportation Reauthorization Bill.) Mr. Sch  ...more

Oil Patch Dispatch (08/20/2012)
New truck route relieves congestion in Williston ... Truck traffic kept interrupting a press conference here Monday that marked the opening of a new truck bypass, and that couldn’t have made Williston Mayor Ward Koeser any happier. Each truck that takes  ...more

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal (08/16/2012)
Lynn County to benefit from new wind projects ... A 17-turbine wind farm in southeastern Lynn County is on track for its scheduled late fall completion, development officials said Thursday. The Cirrus project is one of two wind ventures under developmen  ...more

Energy Information Administration (08/15/2012)
North Dakota crude oil production continues to rise ... North Dakota's oil production averaged 660 thousand barrels per day (bbl/d) in June 2012, up 3% from the previous month and 71% over June 2011 volumes. Driving production gains is output from the Ba  ...more

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal (08/14/2012)
Texas transportation committee leader advocates focus on infrastructure ... State Representative Drew Darby, R-San Angelo, chose a road trip across Texas and through Lubbock to focus on roads, bridges and the state transportation system he says is in nee  ...more

Apex Engineering Group (08/14/2012)
US Highway 85 - Watford City to US Hwy 2 ... Please be advised that the North Dakota Department of Transportation, in cooperation with the Federal Highway Administration, is proposing a roadway improvement on US Highway 85 from approximately 4 miles west  ...more

San Antonio Express-News (08/12/2012)
Highway bill shortchanges border trade ... Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, and Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, have introduced legislation that would enable federal-state and public-private cooperation on such projects. If Congress is unable to appropriate fund  ...more

PTP Blog (08/03/2012)
Texas: Expansion Project on U.S. Highway 87 North of Dalhart Complete ... Ribbon Cutting for the completion of the 4 lane expansion project on US Highway 87 North of Dalhart, TX. Event held July 10, 2012. Several local elected officials, representatives   ...more

PTP Blog / CDOT (08/02/2012)
Colorado Ports-to-Plains Strategic Project Completed ... “CDOT has reconstructed 24 segments of U.S. 40/287 between the Oklahoma border and Limon since 1991 (see attached corridor map below). Those reconstructions, in most instances, have consisted of r  ...more

PTP Blog (08/01/2012)
Grand Opening of the Ports-to-Plains Corridor in Colorado  ...more

PTP Blog / FHWA (08/01/2012)
FHWA MAP-21 Summary  ...more

North Dakota Governor (07/15/2012)
North Dakota: $2.5 Billion Statewide Infrastructure Plan ... Providing more than $1 billion in additional funding for the new “Enhanced Road and Highway Fund,” a source for one-time investments in extraordinary state highway maintenance projects; for tru  ...more

Bismarck Tribune (07/15/2012)
It’s not just an oil boom, it’s an industrial revolution ... Last week I had the opportunity to visit the Bakken oil fields north and west of Belfield with Ron Ness of the North Dakota Petroleum Council and Blaine Hoffman of the Whiting Oil and Gass Corp  ...more

Material Handling & Logistics News (07/02/2012)
Nearsourcing Credited for U.S. Manufacturing’s Rise ... Several factors are challenging the conventional wisdom that manufacturing will continue to be outsourced to Low Cost Countries (LCCs) for the foreseeable future. According to analysts at BMO Capital  ...more

PTP Blog (06/30/2012)
Transportation Reauthorization Passed… Awaiting President’s Signature ... Both the House and Senate have approved MAP-21 as agreed upon by the Conference Committee. Passed the House by a vote of 373 to 52. Senate passed by a vote of 74 to 19 (with one Sen  ...more

PTP Blog (06/29/2012)
MAP-21 Addresses Ports-to-Plains Alliance Recommendations…And they listened to our common voice ... The Congressional delegations throughout the Ports-to-Plains region have heard the recommendations of the Ports-to-Plains Alliance… And they listened.   ...more

TxDOT (06/28/2012)
Commission Adopts Rural Transportation Plan ... Today, the Texas Transportation Commission adopted the Texas Rural Transportation Plan 2035 (TRTP), putting in place a rural component of the state’s broader long-range planning efforts and providing a blue  ...more

Area Development / PTPBlog (06/28/2012)
Area Development’s Leading Locations: Every Ports-to-Plains Alliance MSA made the top 100 list ... IT’S CERTAINLY NOT NEWS THAT TIMES HAVE BEEN TOUGH ACROSS AMERICA’S CITIES IN RECENT YEARS. The Great Recession may be officially over, but many communities  ...more

Reuters (06/25/2012)
Senators optimistic deal close on transport bill ... Senators involved in marathon talks on a two-year deal for funding U.S. road, bridge and rail projects said on Monday they were close to a compromise with House Republicans, although they might need to  ...more

Generation Hub (06/19/2012)
Tri-State: combination of greenhouse rule and MATS a coal killer... The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s proposed greenhouse gas rule for new power plants does provide an “alleged concession” for Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association an  ...more

San Angelo Standard Times (06/19/2012)
OUR OPINION: Time to reconsider Canadian pipeline... In January, President Barack Obama refused to sign off on the Keystone XL pipeline from the Canadian province of Alberta to the Gulf Coast, saying the proposed route warranted more study. There were t  ...more

Denver Post Beltway Blog (06/18/2012)
Hick: Hydraulic fracturing has gotten a bad rap... Hydraulic fracturing for natural gas has gotten a needlessly bad reputation and gas will create jobs in Colorado and the nation if it is embraced, Gov. John Hickenlooper said at a renewable energy summit   ...more

The Hill's Transportation Report (06/17/2012)
Highway spending bill running out of gas, as House, Senate negotiations stall ... Advocates for a new federal transportation bill think even bumping negotiations up to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) may  ...more

Bismarck Tribune (06/16/2012)
Permits for oversize, overweight trucks increase ... The number of oversize and overweight trucks using county roads and bridges in North Dakota's oil patch has more than doubled in three years, and while counties are collecting millions of dollars in pe  ...more

Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City (06/14/2012)
Main Street Economist: Rebuilding Rural Manufacturing ... Since the turn of the century, rural America has struggled with the erosion of its manufacturing base. During the past two years, however, rural manufacturing has rebounded with a vengeance. This   ...more

Scottsbluff Star Herald (06/14/2012)
OPINION: Heartland Expressway: Progress ... A few things jumped out when the Nebraska Department of Roads and other sponsors showed up to discuss progress on the Heartland Expressway. One was the cost to finish it: about $540 million. It’s no secret tha  ...more

San Angelo Standard Times (06/12/2012)
OUR OPINION: Highway bill faces more bumpy roads ... The Surface Transportation Act, called the highway bill for short, is the basic measure funding the nation's roads, bridges and mass transportation systems. Typically, the bill lasts for four to six ye  ...more

Official Blog of Clover Global Solutions (06/12/2012)
Eagle Ford Shale – A Key Driver in the South Texas Economy ... Discovered in 2008, the Eagle Ford Shale play is one of the largest discoveries of new oil reserves in the United States since Prudhoe Bay, Alaska in 1968, and extends over 23 South Texas cou  ...more

Orlando Sentinel (06/10/2012)
Wind: Vestas CEO sees U.S. market down 80 percent in 2013 ... The head of the world's biggest wind turbine maker, Vestas, said on Sunday that the U.S. wind turbine market is likely to fall by 80 percent next year because of the expected expiry of an impo  ...more

PTPBlog / NDOR (06/07/2012)
Heartland Expressway Corridor Development and Management Plan - June 7, 2012 - Meeting Presentation ... Four scenarios were examined that assumed different levels of traffic in the corridor. These scenarios included: The traffic levels if only Heartlan  ...more

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal (06/02/2012)
Squeezing the Shale ... The Ports-to-Plains region is truly North America’s energy heartland with a diverse portfolio of resources ranging from traditional oil and gas producers to renewable sources such as wind and biofuels. Recent technological...   ...more

Vote4Energy.org (06/02/2012)
Energy Impact In Your State ... A Vote 4 Energy is a vote for more jobs, higher government revenues and greater energy security.  ...more

Canadian Free Press (05/30/2012)
Our Northern Neighbor Moves to Cut Energy Taxes/Regulation to Boost Its Economy, But Not the U. S. ... The United States should start taking lessons from Canada regarding oil development and its relationship to a pro-growth regulatory and tax structure.   ...more

Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) • U.S. Department of Transportation (US DOT (05/29/2012)
March 2012 Surface Trade with Canada and Mexico Highest on Record Exceeding $85 Billion for First Time ... Trade using surface transportation between the United States and its North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) partners, Canada and Mexico, was   ...more

The Dickinson Press (05/29/2012)
Theodore Roosevelt Expressway: Highway 85 west of Dickinson sees 124 percent increase ... The North Dakota Department of Transportation wants to get a better understanding of traffic patterns in the Oil Patch, officials said Friday, especially after find  ...more

Washington Times (05/28/2012)
HORVATH: Cheap and clean energy … Natural gas sparks U.S. manufacturing renaissance ... As Washington debates energy-related is- sues such as fracking, offshore drilling and the Keystone XL pipeline, we’re missing a much bigger story unfolding across the  ...more

Bloomberg (05/28/2012)
Congress’s Trade Policy Is Increasingly Delusional ... In a speech two weeks ago, Senator John McCain delivered a blistering assessment of President Barack Obama’s trade policy. “The United States has been sitting on the sidelines, and Asia is sprinting  ...more

Minot Daily News (05/27/2012)
214: Another record for N.D. oil patch ... North Dakota has reached an all-time high of 214 rigs actively drilling in the oil patch. Lynn Helms, director of the North Dakota Department of Mineral Resources in Bismarck, reported the new record in his May  ...more

San Antonio Express-News (05/24/2012)
Texas isn't ready for Panama Canal windfall, officials say ... The state's transportation infrastructure is not ready to handle the shipping windfall many anticipate after an expanded Panama Canal opens for business in 2014, port officials and transporta  ...more

KGOS-AM/KERM-FM (05/22/2012)
Work on Hwy 26/85 bypass still waiting to start ... A major highway project designed to ease congestion from train traffic will change the city’s look and keep cars and trucks moving. The Wyoming Department of Transportation plans to demolish the former  ...more

ConnectAmarillo.com (05/22/2012)
What is the future of the Ports to Plains Corridor? ... The Ports to Plains corridor is back in the news. Texas Department of Transportation officials met in Austin on Monday to make plans for the next few years. They're considering long range efforts   ...more

Lubbock Online (05/21/2012)
Ports-to-Plains Alliance gets no fight from TxDOT on rural projects ... The Texas Department of Transportation discussed rural roads on Monday but there was no opposition to any of the projects the agency is developing for West Texas and other rural area  ...more

The Hill’s Transportation Blog (05/21/2012)
The week ahead: Highway talks move into week three ... Negotiations in Congress about a new federal transportation bill are moving into their third week. Lawmakers who are participating in the 47-member conference committee expressed optimism about the   ...more

The Globe and Mail (05/21/2012)
Rail makes big inroads in oil transport ... The crude oil flows thick and black, pouring like hot coffee sludge into a rail tanker on the Saskatchewan prairie. The tracks it sits on bisect a snow-covered tableau of wheat fields and grain elevators and o  ...more

Panhandle Area Development District  (05/18/2012)
Public Meeting on Heartland Expressway Corridor Management Study on June 7 ... The Nebraska Department of Roads (NDOR) will hold a public information open house regarding preliminary findings of the Corridor Development and Management Plan study process   ...more

Panhandle Area Development District  (05/18/2012)
Chadron Mayor Comments on Heartland Expressway ... Chadron Mayor Karin Fischer and public works director Milo Rust attended a meeting in Lincoln with other area representatives to discuss the Heartland Expressway. Fischer said she felt it was important t  ...more

San Antonio Express-News (05/17/2012)
Eagle Ford oil levels expected to soar ... The development of the Eagle Ford Shale continues to prompt dazzling assessments and predictions from experts, who said at an energy symposium Wednesday that in four years, the oil-rich formation could become the  ...more

Lubbock Online (05/16/2012)
Some legislators say rural roads need rehabing to improve economy in West Texas ... Monday is a big day for rural roads in West Texas and across the state. The Texas Department of Transportation will discuss the details of the Texas Rural Transportation  ...more

PTP Blog/Visual Capitalist (05/15/2012)
The Keystone XL Pipeline: A Crash Course Infographic ... Check out this Infographic that gives you a crash course on the Keystone XL pipeline, designed and created by the Visual Capitalist.  ...more

Chicago Tribune (05/15/2012)
Pipeline eyed to ease oil gridlock on North Dakota roads ... The McKenzie County Sheriff Department has a map of the narrow grid of two-lane highways coming out of an oil-rich corner of North Dakota, each rutted route lined with dozens of red stick pins   ...more

Amarillo Globe-News (05/13/2012)
Experts optimistic about wind energy lines ... State energy experts are optimistic about the economic impact of a $7-billion, 1,800-mile transmission project that runs more than 500 miles through the Texas Panhandle to carry wind energy to bigger cities   ...more

Politico / U.S. Chamber of Commerce Opinion (05/13/2012)
Transportation Reauthorization: Long-term funding needs to hit the road, Jack ... The two commissions created by Congress in the 2005 highway, transit and safety law reached a shared conclusion: The next transportation reauthorization bill needs to incre  ...more

PTP Blog (05/12/2012)
Call to Action: Draft Texas Rural Transportation Plan 2035 ... TxDOT continues to recognize the importance of rural transportation to the economy of Texas and the Ports-to-Plains Region and provides planning leadership in reaching out to rural communitie  ...more

Ausin Statesman / Associated Press (05/09/2012)
Study: Booming Eagle Ford shale created 48,000 South Texas jobs ... An oil and gas bonanza in South Texas supported nearly 48,000 jobs last year while creating overnight boom towns cashing in on a $25 billion economic windfall from the liquid-rich Eagle   ...more

Politico (05/09/2012)
Keystone backers want bill more than pipeline ... Senior Democrats backing the Keystone XL pipeline and some of its labor allies really want to see the pipeline built, but they appear to want a surface transportation bill more. Senate Finance Committee   ...more

Recharge (05/09/2012)
October start seen for Texas wind turbine research facility ... Sandia National Laboratories and its academic and private partners expect to have a state-of-the art wind turbine research facility in operation in October in the Texas Panhandle, Stephanie   ...more

PTP Blog / National Journal / Free Enterprise (05/09/2012)
Say What? Sierra Club shows its true colors ... Sierra Club again demonstrated its true beliefs. Stopping new coal fired electrical generation was not enough. The cost of closing or converting existing coal electrical generation to natural gas was stil  ...more

Forbes (05/08/2012)
Why Anti-Fracking Groups Are Shifting Their Story From Water To Air Quality ... Mark Twain said “never let the truth stand in the way of a good story.” A common hydraulic fracturing narrative is that the technology pollutes water supplies. The story goes  ...more

The Hill's Transportation Blog (05/08/2012)
Highway conference gets off to slow start ... The committee of lawmakers appointed to negotiate a new federal highway bill met for the first time Tuesday, with members of the panel pledging bipartisanship but not straying far from their party’s starting   ...more

Politico (05/07/2012)
Transportation conferees begin talks ... The transportation conference committee will meet for the first time on Tuesday. Here are five things to watch as negotiations get started: Leadership involvement, Keystone, Pay-fors, What’s within the scope of t  ...more

Williston Herald (05/05/2012)
Call to Action: DOT seeks input on amendment - Proposed four-laning of U.S. Highway 85 between Williston and Watford City ... "NDDOT is encouraging people visit the current view an environmental document on the project on its website, www. dot.nd.gov. To  ...more

AASTHO (05/04/2012)
CBO Report Finds Proposed Fuel Economy Standards Could Add to Highway Trust Fund Shortfall ... A Congressional Budget Office report released earlier this week highlights what transportation industry experts have worried about for years. The federal surf  ...more

Energy Tomorrow (05/04/2012)
Facts, Not Excuses, Should Guide Decision on Re-Routed Keystone XL ... It’s good to hear that TransCanada has submitted its new application for a presidential permit to build the Keystone XL pipeline. The application comes just weeks after the Nebraska l  ...more

Economic Alliance of Southeast Alberta (05/04/2012)
Unmanned Vehicle Systems News and Updates ... Medicine Hat consulting company employs unmanned aerial vehicles for environmental projects | MicroPilot offers an inexpensive alternative to the agriculture sector | U.S. Expands UAV Coverage Along U.S.-Cana  ...more

Edmonton Journal (05/03/2012)
Redford wants to make Highway 63 twinning a priority: Alberta premier considers accelerated schedule after fatal crash ... Premier Alison Redford said Wednesday she will ask her new transportation minister to make twinning of Highway 63 a priority. Her   ...more

PTP Blog (05/01/2012)
Hoeven named to transportation conference committee ... Senator John Hoeven is a member of the Ports-to-Plains Alliance Caucus supporting rural transportation and economic development. The Alliance is pleased to see him appointed to this critical confer  ...more

Denver Post (05/01/2012)
CDOT plan for I-70 viaduct calls for dropping road below ground level ... This portion of Interstate 70 is a critical economic link for Colorado. This portion of the Ports-to-Plains Corridor is the major gateway to Interstate 25 and to the mountains by   ...more

Star-Telegraph/Associated Press (05/01/2012)
Highway bill enters legislative homestretch ... Defying expectations, Congress has reached the homestretch on a major overhaul of federal transportation programs that is critical if the nation is to avoid steep cutbacks in highway and transit aid. The b  ...more

PTP Blog (04/30/2012)
Updates on Keystone XL Pipeline Process ... Keystone process moves to forefront; Refiling for U.S. permit 'imminent' ... TransCanada Submits Keystone XL Pipeline Reroute to Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality  ...more

CCI's Legislative Report (04/30/2012)
Resolution Addresses Transportation Funding Shortfall in Colorado ... A joint resolution (SJR12-37) introduced last week in the Senate urges the Governor, the Colorado Transportation Commission and the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) to work  ...more

Bloomberg (04/29/2012)
Drivers Pay Secret Road Tax in $15 Billion for Car Repair ... Every time we see a car that comes in from the district, you can see that its suspension is torn up,” said Giro, the owner of Gili’s Automotive in Rockville, Maryland, outside Washington. “It’  ...more

Edmonton Journal (04/28/2012)
Alberta: Area officials react angrily to deadly state of Highway 63 ... The Friday crash northeast of Edmonton that killed seven people, including two children, has once again raised anger and criticism about the lack of twin-lanes on the notorious Highw  ...more

PTP Blog (04/28/2012)
Presentations from Ports-to-Plains Alliance Energy Summit: April 20, 2012 ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance had a great week in Washington DC during the week of April 16-20, 2012 for its annual Fly-In Event. This year the Fly-in was punctuated by our firs  ...more

PTP Blog (04/28/2012)
Upcoming Webinar on Trucking Industry Economics and Trends ... The U.S. Department of Transportation and AASHTO, along with the other members of the Trucking Industry Mobility & Technology Coalition, are sponsoring a free webinar in which economic expert  ...more

PTP Blog (04/27/2012)
Transportation Logistics for the Oil & Gas Industry | June 5-6, 2012 ... You are invited to the only event bringing together the Oil & Gas industry with railroads, trucking and barge operators to address the logistical bottlenecks of getting materials in  ...more

The Hill Transportation Blog (04/27/2012)
Highway bill conference committee schedules first meeting ... The panel of lawmakers tapped to hammer out an agreement on a new federal transportation bill will hold its first meeting next month, a key member of the committee said Thursday. Sen. Barbara  ...more

PTP Blog (04/26/2012)
House of Representatives Names Transportation Reauthorization Conferees ... T&I Conferees: Mica (R-FL), Young (R-AK), Duncan (R-TN), Shuster (R-PA), Capito (R-WV), Crawford (R-AR), Herrera Beutler (R-WA), Bushon (R-IN), Hanna (R-NY), Southerland (R-FL), L  ...more

Transportation Issues Daily (04/26/2012)
RIP, 2012 Federal Transportation Bill ... We may well look back upon this day as the one in which we realized once and for all that no transportation bill would be enacted in 2012. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced a few hours ago that he woul  ...more

Real Clear Politics (04/25/2012)
Oil Prices & Supply ... When the Associated Press recently released a "Fact Check" analysis reviewing 36 years of data showing no statistical correlation between what U.S. consumers pay for gasoline and the amount of oil being pumped out of the ground he  ...more

PTP Blog (04/23/2012)
Surface Transportation Reauthorization Status Report ... House passed H.R. 4348, with three amendments, by a vote of 293 to 127.  ...more

San Angelo Standard Times (04/23/2012)
San Angelo, TX: City councilman goes to Washington to lobby for Ports to Plains ... San Angelo City Council member Dwain Morrison hit the road last week for the nation's capital to lobby for the Ports-to-Plains highway corridor.  ...more

Transportation Issues Daily (04/22/2012)
House Passes Transportation Bill ... The House passed a transportation bill, 293-127, setting up negotiations with the Senate. 69 Democrats ignored a veto threat from the White House to join all but 14 Republicans to support the bill. Negotiators (aka,  ...more

AASTHO Journal (04/13/2012)
Transportation Remains Major Issue as Congress Returns to Washington Next Week ... When Congress returns from its Easter recess next week, the fate of the surface transportation program is expected to be high on its agenda. Transportation Weekly and Po  ...more

The Vindicator - Vindy.com (04/10/2012)
U.S. House must clear up bottleneck over transportation ... The rightward-tilting U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the leftist-leaning American Federation of Labor/Congress of Industrial Organizations typically make very strange bedfellows. Rarely can they s  ...more

Tulsa World (04/10/2012)
ONEOK Partners to build 1,300-mile pipeline from North Dakota to Cushing hub ... Tulsa-based natural gas transporter ONEOK Partners LP announced Monday that it plans to enter the crude oil business by building a 1,300-mile pipeline from the Northern Grea  ...more

Recharge (04/10/2012)
US governors add support for extension of wind tax incentives ... A group representing US governors has called on Congress to approve a medium-term extension of federal tax credits for renewable energy and to include investment in the first 3GW of offsho  ...more

Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University (04/09/2012)
Shale of the Century: Small Towns Dazed by Eagle Ford Influx ... Technology has a way of humbling those brave enough to forecast our energy future. In an April 1977 speech, President Jimmy Carter declared, “The oil and natural gas we rely on for 75 perce  ...more

Medicine Hat News (04/04/2012)
Wildhorse set to begin extended hours ... The Port of Wild Horse will switch to extended summer hours on Thursday, marking the second-straight year the border crossing will be open longer hours in the spring. It also marks a synchronized effort between   ...more

Montana Department of Commerce (04/02/2012)
The Western Energy Corridor ... The energy resources concentrated along the Rocky Mountains and northern plains in Canada and the United States (U.S.) are world class, as measured by their diversity, magnitude, and longevity. This area, informally refer  ...more

Bloomberg News (04/02/2012)
Pickens Reviving Plans for Texas Wind Power at Smaller Scale ... Billionaire T. Boone Pickens is building a 377-megawatt wind farm in Texas, three years after shelving plans for a project about ten times as big that would’ve been the world’s largest. Me  ...more

PTP Blog / Politico / Bloomberg (03/29/2012)
Stay Tuned: The Transportation Reauthorization Saga Continues Today ... Extension … Senate Bill … Conference Committee … Shutdown … Here are a few articles summarizing the significant of today. With the House scheduled to leave Washington DC tonight, it  ...more

PTP Blog / Government of Alberta (03/29/2012)
U.S. Economic Impact Oil Calculator ... Canada is the largest supplier of oil to the U.S. When the U.S. imports oil from Canada, the spin-off economic benefits are substantial. North America’s largest oil reserves are in Canada’s oil sands. The interac  ...more

Bismarck Tribune (03/28/2012)
North Dakota: Construction full speed ahead in oil patch ... The state’s plan to extend the passing lanes on Highway 85 between Watford City and Williston this summer will lead to converting the highway to a four-lane. The 42 miles of highway are some o  ...more

Politico (03/27/2012)
Highway vote punt complicates Hill timing ,,, The House is once again at a standstill on the highway bill, just days before federal funding would be shut off and Congress skips town for its two-week recess. Republicans yanked a 60-day extension of highw  ...more

Senator Mark Udall (03/26/2012)
Bennet and Udall Call for Passage of Senate Energy Bill to Extend Wind Energy Tax Credit ... Senators Mark Udall and Michael Bennet today urged their Senate colleagues to pass a bill that would extend the wind energy production tax credit (PTC), along wi  ...more

The Hill Floor Action Blog (03/26/2012)
Tuesday: House tries again on transportation extension ... The House meets at noon for legislative work, and will try again to pass a bill authorizing the short-term extension of federal highway programs. GOP leaders were prepared to vote on the extensi  ...more

The White House Blog (03/24/2012)
Weekly Address: President Obama Says House Must Pass Bipartisan Transportation Bill ... President Obama is calling on the House of Representatives to pass a bipartisan transportation bill that would repair crumbling roads and bridges and support construc  ...more

Bloomberg (03/23/2012)
Texas Tops Finds From Brazil to Bakken as Best Prospect: Energy ... Energy companies in search of oil riches rivaling the biggest finds from Brazil to Angola are flocking to Texas shale, where new wells have triggered a 230- fold increase in crude output  ...more

PTP Blog / Politico.com (03/22/2012)
Transportation Reauthorization Bill Status Report ... S. 1813, the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP 21), passed the Senate on March 21, 2012, by a vote of 74-22. The bill, which is a revenue measure, is still being held in the Senat  ...more

Journal of Commerce (03/21/2012)
NAFTA Trade Value Hit Record High in 2011 ... NAFTA imports rose 13.8 percent last year, while exports increased 14.8 percent. U.S. surface trade with Canada increased 14 percent to $537 billion. Surface trade with Mexico rose 14.6 percent to $367.1 bill  ...more

Rand Corporation (03/21/2012)
A Federal Role in Freight Planning and Finance ... Congestion within the U.S. freight system has increased dramatically in the past few decades, costing travelers, consumers, and businesses billions of dollars each year. A federal policy is offered to a  ...more

Amarillo Globe-News (03/20/2012)
Texas Panhandle: TxDOT prepares for $20-million highway project ... The Texas Department of Transportation is preparing to begin a $20-million highway project in the Texas Panhandle. The project will add passing lanes along U.S. Highway 87 between Dumas  ...more

PTP Blog / PoliticoPro (03/19/2012)
GOP paves way for states to retake road funding ... Congress may be on the road to re-upping the transportation bill, but there’s still a cadre of lawmakers who say it’s not too late to get the federal government out of the road-building and gas tax busi  ...more

KUHF-Houston (03/19/2012)
Roads Killed: Texas Adds Up Damages from Drilling ... Drilling for oil and gas has surged in Texas. That's good for the economy, of course, but it's also costing "local governments" and "the State of Texas." Just about everyone I talked to for this stor  ...more

Politico (03/16/2012)
Staffers: House won't pass highway bill this month ... The House will not take up the Senate’s transportation bill and its own version won’t hit the floor until mid-April at the earliest, Transportation and Infrastructure Committee aides told industry of  ...more

TXDOT (03/16/2012)
2012 Texas Unified Transportation Program Revision Input Requested ... The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) will host a statewide open-house style public meeting to solicit comments and input on revisions to the 2012 Unified Transportation Prog  ...more

PTP Blog / InfoCast (03/16/2012)
Transportation Logistics for the Oil & Gas Industry: Houston, TX ... Many oil and gas companies are putting themselves in a much better position competitively by working closely with the trucking, barging and railroad industries, which in turn are increa  ...more

KAVU (03/15/2012)
Road Damage from Eagle Ford Shale Big Rigs ... South Texas roads are suffering from a threat that is causing pot holes, drop offs and more; all the while becoming more common thanks to the Eagle Ford Shale. All of those big rigs are hitting roads which   ...more

Platts (03/15/2012)
Bipartisan US Senate bill would extend wind tax credits by two years ... Seven US Republican and Democratic senators on Thursday introduced a bill that would extend for two years the federal production tax credit for wind energy that is set to expire at   ...more

Wharton@Knowledge (03/14/2012)
Beyond the Gas Price Blame Game, a Thorny Case of Supply vs. Demand ... It's not even summer driving season yet and gas prices are already climbing. Prices at the pump have increased 52 cents this year, and now stand at an average of $3.81 a gallon, surp  ...more

The Hill Transportation Blog (03/14/2012)
Senate approves $109B highway bill, raising pressure on House ... The Senate approved a $109 billion transportation bill on Wednesday that would fund road and transit projects for the next two years. The bipartisan 74-22 vote puts pressure on the Speak  ...more

San Angelo Standard Times (03/14/2012)
Duncan hits road to address issues: State budget tops concerns for projects: Progress has been made in the Ports-to-Plains corridor ... State Sen. Robert Duncan has been making the rounds, hitting the West Texas roads in District 28 to answer constituent  ...more

Bakken Oil (03/09/2012)
North Dakota Becomes Third Largest Oil-Producing ... The state of North Dakota recently surpassed California in oil production, becoming the third biggest oil producer in the country. In the production totals that were released, North Dakota produced a t  ...more

Politico.com (03/08/2012)
Senate sends message to Obama on Keystone ... Thursday’s squeaker of a Senate vote on the Keystone XL pipeline serves both as a warning to President Barack Obama that a majority of both houses of Congress supports the pipeline and as encouragement to Rep  ...more

San Angelo Standard Times (03/04/2012)
TxDOT to hold public meeting about proposed rural roadway projects ... The future of rural transportation is making its way to San Angelo. The Texas Department of Transportation is holding a come-and-go public meeting from 4 to 7 p.m. Tuesday at the TxD  ...more

Consumer Energy Alliance (03/01/2012)
Keystone and energy independence ... Tell the Federal Government to approve the Keystone XL Pipeline that will create 20,000 American jobs in Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas...  ...more

Huffington Post (02/28/2012)
Keystone XL: Obama's Critics May Be Muffled By Pipeline Construction ... A Canadian company's decision on Monday to proceed with part of a U.S. pipeline might end up muffling one of the Republicans' loudest arguments in this election year: that President  ...more

Dallas Morning News / PTP Blog (02/28/2012)
Texas exports spike higher on energy goods ... Texas exports of fuels, computers and other goods soared by $43 billion last year to reach $249.9 billion, far ahead of exports from any other state, the U.S. Commerce Department’s International Trade Admini  ...more

Denver Post / PTP Blog (02/28/2012)
Colorado Governor: Hickenlooper's spiel in oil, gas ad irks environmentalists ... Environmental groups on Monday urged Gov. John Hickenlooper to yank ads paid for by the Colorado Oil and Gas Association in which he claims there has been no contamination   ...more

Texas Department of Transportation (02/26/2012)
TxDOT Anticipates Future Funding Opportunities and Plans for Priority Projects Around the State ... TxDOT said today that it is planning on leveraging as much as an additional $2 billion over the next two years to facilitate construction on some of the s  ...more

San Angelo Standard Times (02/25/2012)
MATTHEW WALLER: Trading future with Canada bright ... Canada isn't the first country I associate with international travel and Texas. Mexico holds that place. At the West Texas Trade Summit this week, participants learned a little more about our northern  ...more

The Hill (02/24/2012)
Boehner may scale back highway bill amid Republican opposition ... House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) may significantly scale back his signature transportation bill in the face of opposition from conservative and centrist members of his own party. A Bo  ...more

National Journal Transportation Blog (02/22/2012)
Putting the National Interest First ... This week’s question focuses on some of the challenges--such as partisan politics and parochial interests--facing Congress and the Administration as they attempt to enact a multi-year surface transportation bill. Al  ...more

PTP Blog (02/20/2012)
Disappointed but not discouraged … Ports-to-Plains University Transportation Center Application ... Texas Tech University, University of New Mexico and South Dakota School of Mines and Technology had submitted an application for a Tier I University Trans  ...more

Scottsbluff Star Herald (02/19/2012)
OPINION: Pipe down ... For something as long and straight as the Keystone XL has attempted to be, the project took a couple of twists and turns in recent weeks. After the Obama administration decided to postpone the project’s approval, using Nebraska’s   ...more

PTP Blog (02/16/2012)
West Texas Trade Summit, San Angelo, TX, February 22-24, 2012  ...more

The Wall Street Journal (02/13/2012)
Texans Are Baffled by the Keystone Decision: China will get the oil from Canada that could have come to the U.S. ... Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper was in Beijing recently signing an agreement and touting his country's growing energy partnership   ...more

PTP Blog / Fuel Fix (02/13/2012)
Obama budget would boost renewables, nix oil and gas tax break... President Barack Obama called today for boosting funding for pipeline safety and renewable energy while again proposing to roll back several tax breaks for the oil and gas industry. In his  ...more

Edmonton Journal (02/10/2012)
TransCanada cleared in Keystone review ... An internal investigation into the U.S. State Department's handling of an environmental study of the Keystone XL oilsands pipeline has found "no evidence" that Calgary-based TransCanada Corp. improperly influenc  ...more

AASTHO Journal (02/10/2012)
Senate Votes 85-11 to Begin Full Debate on Surface Transportation Reauthorization ... The Senate voted 85-11 Thursday afternoon to proceed to a full debate on legislation that would reauthorize federal surface transportation programs through September 2  ...more

Transportation Daily (02/08/2012)
Senate and House to Debate Transportation Bills Next Week ... Who would have predicted this last January 1? Other than Senator Barbara Boxer and Representative John Mica, Chairs of the primary transportation committees in their Chamber, that is. The   ...more

Denver Business Journal (02/07/2012)
Most Colorado Congress members back wind tax-break extension ... Six of Colorado’s seven U.S. House of Representatives members and both of its U.S. senators have signed a letter calling for the extension of the federal wind production tax credit, or “P  ...more

TheHill.com (02/07/2012)
Committee finds $9.6 billion for $109B Senate transportation bill ... The Senate Finance Committee approved a $9.6 billion package of funding offsets Tuesday night for the chamber's $104 billion surface transportation bill it intends to counter a House R  ...more

Austin Statesman (02/06/2012)
Stop dallying and approve pipeline for economy's sake ... More than three years ago, the U.S. State Department began a lengthy and comprehensive environmental study of the Keystone XL pipeline a project that would deliver more than 700,000 barrels of o  ...more

PTP Blog / Black Hills Pioneer / AP (02/05/2012)
Ports-to-Plains Members introduce their experiences along the Theodore Roosevelt Expressway to large Belle Fourche audience ... Armed with their experiences in their own communities along the Theodore Roosevelt Expressway, members of the Ports-to-Plains   ...more

PTP Blog (02/04/2012)
A look at the Transportation Reauthorization Bills passed this week by House Committees ... Links to the various bills, amendments and summaries from Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure, Ways and Means and Natural Resources.  ...more

Politico (02/01/2012)
Rebuilding transportation is key ... Transportation is essential to our nation's competitiveness and economy. Congress has the opportunity in the coming weeks to put job creation and economic development in the fast lane with the American Energy and Infr  ...more

Cleaner Safer Trucking Inc. via Western States Transportation Alliance (01/31/2012)
Congress should restore authority to the states to make decisions about which roads are suited for more productive trucks including longer combination vehicles (LCVs.) In 1991 Congress passed a provision that stripped the states of their authority to regu  ...more

American Trucking Associations (01/31/2012)
ATA Leaders Say House Highway Bill Will Improve Safety, Infrastructure ... Leaders of American Trucking Associations praised Chairman John Mica, and other House leaders, for their work to craft a surface transportation bill that will not only make needed  ...more

Politico (01/30/2012)
Transportation bills: House and Senate versions have major differences ... With two months remaining to get a long-term surface transportation bill done, the House and Senate are racing this week to mark up several portions of their dueling legislation.   ...more

News day (01/28/2012)
Opinion: Manufacturing jobs can come back ... Rep. Steve Israel is a Democrat from Dix Hills. Jim D'Addario is chief executive of Farmingdale-based guitar-string maker D'Addario & Co. Over the last decade, we've read hundreds of obituaries for America  ...more

PTP Blog (01/27/2012)
A brighter energy future? It may be better than you think... Together, these two articles address the latest data on the United States energy future. Both point to a future that is better and more secure. Both indicate the opportunities that Canadian oi  ...more

AASTHO (01/27/2012)
Transportation Reauthorization: 3 House Committees Will Mark Up 5-Year, $260 Billion Bill Next Week ... Three House of Representatives committees will mark up next week a five-year, $260 billion highway and transit reauthorization bill. The key policy le  ...more

The Energy Channel (01/27/2012)
The Myth of Oil & Gas Industry Subsidies, Credits & Grants: Understanding Oil & Natural Gas Industry Tax Deductions ... Many people think the oil and natural gas industry receives tax subsidies, which is simply not true. API Tax Policy Advisor Brian John  ...more

Consumer Energy Alliance / PTP Blog (01/27/2012)
U.S. Senator Rick Santorum Confirms Attendance at Colorado Election Energy Summit ... Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA), has partnered with the Colorado Oil and Gas Association and Colorado Farm Bureau to host the upcoming 2012 Colorado Election Energy Summ  ...more

Del Rio News Herald (01/26/2012)
Ports-to-Plains Alliance: Commercial Traffic Rising Del Rio ... Commercial traffic into Mexico from Del Rio continued to increase last year, a sign that the maquiladora industry in Cuidad Acuña has held onto its momentum. However, the number of personal  ...more

Washington Post (01/26/2012)
Senate moves toward agreement on transportation bill ... As House Republicans prepared to release a spending proposal intended to overhaul the federal transportation system, Senate Democrats on Thursday rushed to complete a bipartisan effort to end a sta  ...more

Consumer Energy Alliance (01/25/2012)
CEA Applauds President’s New Dedication to U.S. Energy Policy ... "All of the Above" Strategy Needed, but Federal Agencies Remain Fixated on Blocking US Oil and Gas Production. HOUSTON, TX - In response to the President's third State of the Union addres  ...more

U.S. Senator Mark Udall (01/25/2012)
Senator Mark Udall: Congress, Renew the Production Tax Credit ... As Congress goes back to work this week, I'm renewing my call to extend the critical renewable energy tax credits, like the production tax credit for wind, set to expire at the end of 2012  ...more

KSAT (01/24/2012)
Del Rio economy booming: Border city credits improved image, more jobs for growth ... DEL RIO, Texas - It might not look like much when you first get to town, but Del Rio is on the rise. "We've had a pretty big recent boom for the past year and a half,"  ...more

Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, United States House of Representatives (01/24/2012)
Transportation Reauthorization: Summary of American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act ... The American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act is a reauthorization and reform of federal transportation programs, combined with an expansion of domestic energy p  ...more

PTP Blog (01/23/2012)
Ports-to-Plains Webinar on January 20, 2012 (Video) ... Federal Update ... Senate Transportation Reauthorization Bill ... House Transportation Reauthorization Bill ... Details on Washington D.C. Spring Fly-In ... Transportation Advocates of Texas Update  ...more

PTP Blog (01/21/2012)
Ports-to-Plains Alliance Supports Transportation Advocates of Texas ... Transportation Advocates of Texas is a coalition of businesses, individuals, associations, chambers of commerce, economic development entities and local governments from across the s  ...more

PTP Blog (01/21/2012)
Modular Construction & Prefabrication North America: The Only Modular Construction Event in North America Dedicated to the Energy Sector ... The province of Alberta remains at the forefront of the modular and prefabrication frontier with industry profess  ...more

El Siglo De Torreón (01/20/2012)
Retrasan nueva autopista / Delay new highway ... La autopista Durango-Mazatlán estará terminada a finales de este año, pero la conexión entre el Pacífico y la frontera de Coahuila con Estados Unidos quedará incompleta porque no ha iniciado la vía San Ped  ...more

Washington Post (01/18/2012)
Obama administration to reject Keystone pipeline ... The Obama administration will announce this afternoon it is rejecting a Canadian firm’s application for a permit to build and operate a massive oil pipeline across the U.S.-Canada border, according to   ...more

The Oklahoman Editorial (01/18/2012)
President Obama will be sending a clear message with Keystone XL decision ... OKLAHOMANS should hope President Barack Obama eventually comes to his senses and gives the go-ahead to construction of TransCanada Corp.'s Keystone XL pipeline, because it will  ...more

U.S. Representative Cory Gardner (01/18/2012)
Rep. Gardner puts pressure on Obama Administration to approve Keystone XL Pipeline ... It's been three years since the application was filed which would create a pipeline that extends from the oil sands in Alberta to the gulf coast, bringing significant   ...more

PTP Blog (01/17/2012)
Wyoming Trade through Ports-to-Plains Region – 2004-2010 ,,, The purpose of this report to provide a picture of the trade, specifically by truck and rail associated with the state of Wyoming, which is using the current transportation system to move goods  ...more

Houston Chronicle (01/14/2012)
Steffy: Oil in, gasoline out, and U.S. benefits ... For the first time in six decades, the U.S. is exporting more gasoline and diesel fuel than it imports. That, if you believe the critics, shows that the Keystone XL pipeline, which would ship crude oil  ...more

Medicine Hat News (01/13/2012)
The Trans-Canada Highway through Medicine Hat is a thorn in the side of the Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) and its 4,500 carriers coast to coast. In December, the CTA placed the need for a ring road around Medicine Hat on its list of areas of national i  ...more

PTP Blog (01/12/2012)
Texas Trade through Ports-to-Plains Region – 2004-2010 ... The purpose of this report to provide a picture of the trade, specifically by truck and rail associated with the state of Texas, which is using the current transportation system to move goods thr  ...more

U.S. Chamber of Commerce (01/12/2012)
The State of American Business 2012 -- Address by Thomas J. Donohue President & CEO, U.S. Chamber of Commerce  ...more

PTP Blog (01/11/2012)
South Dakota Trade through Ports-to-Plains Region – 2004-2010 ... The purpose of this report to provide a picture of the trade, specifically by truck and rail associated with the state of South Dakota, which is using the current transportation system to   ...more

PTP Blog (01/11/2012)
Time to reassess our national transportation program ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance finds this an interesting article addressing national transportation needs and possible funding. Several comments are certainly supported. “Thinking local is not enou  ...more

Senator John Hoeven  (01/11/2012)
Hoeven: Pipeline Will Transport Bakken Crude More Safely and Efficiently, Provide Greater U.S. Energy Independence ... Senator John Hoeven was joined today by TransCanada’s President (Energy and Oil Pipelines) Alex Pourbaix and MDU Resources President an  ...more

Dickinson Press (01/11/2012)
Building tomorrow's roads today: Legislators to learn about design-build… Cal Klewin, Theodore Roosevelt Expressway Association executive director, has been making his way around the state to educate officials on design-build, a method of construction th  ...more

Modular Construction & Prefabrication North America (01/10/2012)
Harmonizing Large Transport Standards Across Canada and Modular's Role in Future Construction (Podcast) ... Len Mitzel, Member of Legislative Assembly, Constituency of Cypress-Medicine Hat, Alberta, Parliamentary Assistant for Transportation, and board m  ...more

PTP Blog (01/10/2012)
Oklahoma Trade through Ports-to-Plains Region – 2004-2010 ... The purpose of this report to provide a picture of the trade, specifically by truck and rail associated with the state of Oklahoma, which is using the current transportation system to move goo  ...more

The Globe and Mail (01/10/2012)
TransCanada steps up Keystone PR campaign ... TransCanada Corp has stepped up its publicity campaign for the politically charged Keystone XL pipeline, releasing a detailed breakdown of where the $7-billion project would create 20,000 jobs in the United S  ...more

High Plains Journal (01/09/2012)
Keep the lights on ... But what about the big picture boys and girls? As our lawmakers are grandstanding and whining and complaining about the other side of the aisle before Christmas in regard to saving the working class Americans' money, the real hit   ...more

PTP Blog (01/09/2012)
North Dakota Trade through Ports-to-Plains Region – 2004-2010 ... The purpose of this report to provide a picture of the trade, specifically by truck and rail associated with the state of North Dakota, which is using the current transportation system to   ...more

The Atlantic Cities (01/09/2012)
The Best Ways to Pay for Our Failing Infrastructure ... …suggested that infrastructure banks might be the best way to fund our failing highways and public transit systems. …calls on drivers to pay their share. …proposed public-private partnerships…  ...more

PTP Blog (01/08/2012)
New Mexico Trade through Ports-to-Plains Region – 2004-2010 ... The purpose of this report to provide a picture of the trade, specifically by truck and rail associated with the state of New Mexico, which is using the current transportation system to move  ...more

PTP Blog (01/05/2012)
Nebraska Trade through Ports-to-Plains Region – 2004-2010 ... The purpose of this report to provide a picture of the trade, specifically by truck and rail associated with the state of Nebraska, which is using the current transportation system to move goo  ...more

Fuel Fix (01/05/2012)
Economic Opportunity and Energy Security — Not False Choices ... Last week the newly appointed head of the Sierra Club, Michael Brune, penned a scathing opinion piece that claimed the Keystone XL pipeline would “cost the American people far more than we   ...more

Fox News (01/05/2012)
Colorado Takes the Lead in Fracking Regulation .. With a top government scientist calling for more research into the possible health effects of hydraulic fracturing, Colorado has enacted the toughest fracking disclosure rules in the country…  ...more

PTP Blog (01/04/2012)
Montana Trade through Ports-to-Plains Region – 2004-2010 ... The purpose of this report to provide a picture of the trade, specifically by truck and rail associated with the state of Montana, which is using the current transportation system to move goods  ...more

Denver Post (01/03/2012)
Editorial: Highway funding stuck in slow lane: While state and U.S. roads wait for upgrades and repairs, the government keeps ignoring reforms... News that Colorado has lost out on a federal grant to make needed highway improvements across the state — inc  ...more

PTP Blog / Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality / Fort Worth Star-Telegram/Associated Press (01/03/2012)
Keystone XL Pipeline Updates ... The bill that was signed into law which temporarily extended the payroll tax cut included a Republican-written provision compelling the President to make a speedy decision on whether to build the pipeline. Below are two a  ...more

PTP Blog (01/03/2012)
Colorado Trade through Ports-to-Plains Region – 2004-2010 ... The purpose of this report to provide a picture of the trade, specifically by truck and rail associated with the state of Colorado, which is using the current transportation system to move goo  ...more

Energy Tomorrow (01/03/2012)
Photos and Context on Oil Sands ... From a post on the Climate Progress website (cross-posted on Grist), on the environmental effects of Canadian oil sands production: “Extraction of Alberta's energy-intensive tar sands has expanded steadily in recent y  ...more

OKNews The Oklahoman (12/30/2011)
The lessons behind the North Dakota miracle (Opinion) ... What exactly is causing the miracle of North Dakota? The state's economy has proved profoundly resilient. While the rest of the country is still mired in recession, the Roughrider State has built  ...more

Energy Tomorrow Blog (12/29/2011)
More Energy Charts … Hope we didn’t sound irked last week because The Atlantic’s best charts of the year didn’t include any of ours or, for that matter, any showing America’s energy abundance. In fact, Carpe Diem’s Mark J. Perry points out that America’s  ...more

Rapid City Journal (12/29/2011)
Belle Fourche to host regional Oil Patch update ... "The North Dakota oil patch is moving our direction," Belle Fourche Chamber of Commerce executive Teresa Schanzenbach said. "Will we be prepared for it?" She is inviting Black Hills and Northwest South  ...more

Globe and Mail (12/29/2011)
Canadian companies flock to N. Dakota’s Bakken oil play ... Kim Lindsay looks up at the gleaming steel of Precision Drilling Corp.’s Rig 560, dusted in snow and towering above the North Dakota prairie, and smiles. “This is hot off the press – been out a  ...more

The Hill Transportation Blog (12/29/2011)
Senate plans swift action on long-delayed transportation bill ... Senate Democrats expect to pass a long-delayed surface transportation bill soon after they return to Washington next month. Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), chairwoman of the Environment an  ...more

American Wind Energy Association (12/28/2011)
Wind power poises for a busy year: Five trends to watch in 2012 ... Industry will be pushing for PTC extension, expanding reach and holding costs steady A big year is in store for the wind power industry in 2012, both in the policy arena and out in the   ...more

Great Falls Tribune (12/27/2011)
Outlook for federal transportation funding foggy ... Montana's roads and public transportation systems might be affected by congressional action — or inaction — in 2012. But figuring out what will happen is no easy task, especially given recent debate  ...more

KFYR-TV (12/27/2011)
State Leaders React to EPA`s Oversight of ND Oil Patch Issues (Video) ... In the midst of North Dakota`s oil boom, the Environmental Protection Agency is looking at regulatory changes that could significantly impact the energy industry. And state leaders  ...more

PTP Blog / Scottsbluff Star Herald (12/22/2011)
Study? Is there a connection between Expanded Roadways and the Economy? ... It is always amazing to see the outcome of studies. The Scottsbluff Star Herald has done a good job of responding to the study done by University of Nebraska, Lincoln and both t  ...more

U.S. Global Investors (12/21/2011)
Calculating the Impact of the Keystone Pipeline ... In this week’s edition, Mauldin shared his thoughts regarding the Keystone Pipeline that I thought you might find interesting. He begins with a short discussion from his book, Endgame, on the budget ba  ...more

PTP Blog (12/20/2011)
Energizing Christmas Dreams and New Year’s Hopes ... Over the past two weeks, as I respond to social media comments on the Keystone XL Pipeline, I have responded with three key points about the importance of North American energy. Energy is critical to o  ...more

Colorado Energy Coalition (12/19/2011)
Resource Rich Colorado: Colorado’s National and Global Position in the Energy Economy ... The Colorado Energy Coalition (CEC), an affiliate of the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation (Metro Denver EDC), today published its annual study measurin  ...more

ABC News (12/17/2011)
AP Interview: CEO Says Pipeline Debate May Persist ... The chief executive of a company trying to build a pipeline to carry oil through six states from Canada to Texas said the national debate over the plan has "gone off on tangents" that touch on larger  ...more

Great Falls Tribune (12/16/2011)
$10 million grant for Shelby train facility could leverage hundreds of jobs ... The Northern Express Transport Authority in Shelby has secured an almost $10 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to complete an intermodal facility that   ...more

Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) (12/15/2011)
Building a Better Gas Tax: How to Fix One of State Government’s Least Sustainable Revenue Sources ... A first of its kind, 50-state report reveals that state governments are losing out on over $10 billion in transportation revenue every year, contributin  ...more

Federal Reserve (12/13/2011)
Small Business and Entrepreneurship during an Economic Recovery (Conference Presentations) ... On November 9-10, 2011 the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System hosted a forum entitled Small Business and Entrepreneurship during an Economic Reco  ...more

Senator Max Baucus (12/13/2011)
Baucus Announces $10 Million Grant to Boost Montana Trade, Transportation, Jobs ... Montana's senior U.S. Senator Max Baucus today announced a nearly $10 million grant through the federal Department of Transportation (DOT) to complete a centralized freig  ...more

PTP Blog (12/08/2011)
Expansion of Ports-to-Plains: U.S. 287: Colorado, Oklahoma and Texas Projects Continue ... It was a great encouragement to see the progress of expanding the Ports-to-Plains Corridor continues as I traveled from Limon, CO to Amarillo, TX along U.S. Highwa  ...more

Transportation Issues Daily (12/08/2011)
Senate Republicans Outline How to Pay for Transportation Bill ... The Senate’s proposed highways/transit bill is about $12 billion short of being fully funded, due to declining gas tax revenue. Some combination of spending cuts, funds transfer, or tax/f  ...more

The Manufacturers Alliance for Productivity and Innovation (MAPI) and The Manufacturing Institute (12/08/2011)
The Structural Costs of Manufacturing in the United States, 2011 ... The trade-weighted average structural cost burden (which includes corporate tax burden, employee benefits, tort costs, pollution abatement compliance, and energy costs) of U.S. manufact  ...more

U.S. Chamber of Commerce (12/07/2011)
U.S. and Canadian Chambers Applaud New Vision for Border, Regulatory Cooperation ... The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Canadian Chamber of Commerce welcomed today’s long-awaited announcement by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and President Barack Obama   ...more

Washington Post (12/06/2011)
Experts struggle to express direness of infrastructure problem to a wary public ... Alaska’s bridge to nowhere is so seared in the minds of voters as the epitome of wasteful federal spending that experts say hardly anyone is willing to pay more to revita  ...more

San Angelo Standard Times (12/06/2011)
Expansion of Ports-to-Plains: TxDOT lays out plans for local work next year ... The Texas Department of Transportation is set to spend tens of millions of dollars on road projects in the Concho Valley, including a section of the Ports-to-Plains Corridor,  ...more

PTP Blog (12/05/2011)
Call to Action: Senator: Extension of the Renewable Energy Production Tax Credit is Important to Our Local Economy ... The US Senate is currently working on tax legislation intended to pass before the end of this year, so we are asking you to contact yo  ...more

University of Colorado, Leeds School of Business, Business Research Division (12/05/2011)
2012 Colorado Business Economic Outlook ... This forecast analyzes changes that have taken place in all economic sectors during the past year, and looks at the events and activities that will shape the changes in our population, employment, and overall e  ...more

AASTHO (12/02/2011)
House Pushes Highway & Transit Reauthorization Bill Back to 2012 ... House Republican leadership has postponed introduction and consideration of a surface transportation reauthorization bill until next year, House Transportation and Infrastructure Commit  ...more

Shopfloor.com (12/01/2011)
Sen. Lugar Introduces Bill to Require Decision on Keystone XL ... Yesterday Senator Lugar (R-IN) introduced S. 1932, North American Energy Security Act, which would require the President to issue a permit for the Keystone XL project within 60 days and a  ...more

Institute for Energy Research (12/01/2011)
The New North Dakota: Shale Oil Takes Off in Colorado ... The shale oil and shale gas revolution is coming to Colorado, which already ranks tenth among the states in oil production. Thanks to new shale production in the Wattenberg Field, the Centennial S  ...more

PTP Blog (11/30/2011)
Ports-to-Plains Alliance Video of Webinar on November 30, 2011 ... Featuring Jack Schenendorf, Covington & Burling and Cal Klewin, Theodore Roosevelt Expressway Association Topics Include: Federal Update Senate Transportation Reauthorization Bill Hou  ...more

MyWestTexas.com (11/30/2011)
Expansion of Ports-to-Plains: TxDOT announces 349 widening project ... State Highway 349 will become a four-lane road between Midland and Lamesa by 2015, the executive director of the Texas Department of Transportation announced Wednesday. "We're excite  ...more

Great Falls Tribune (11/28/2011)
Highway Bill moves U.S. life blood, should pass (Opinion) ... Leaders in transportation have long understood that there are no such things as Republican or Democratic bridges, just as there are no Democratic or Republican roads. This fundamental underst  ...more

Bob Beauprez (11/28/2011)
Oil and Gas Boom: Obama keeps trying to kill it, but it just won’t stay dead (Opinion) ... Moratoriums, permitting bans, cancelling leases, Wild Land designations, EPA regulations on steroids, and tens of billions in DOE loans and subsidies for the alter  ...more

KELOland TV (11/21/2011)
Belle Fourche Traffic Result of ND Oil Bonanza (Video) ... Highway 85 runs through the heart of Belle Fourche; it's also a major route to the North Dakota oil fields. "We have seen a definite increase in traffic on Highway 85, especially in the traffic   ...more

CNN (11/19/2011)
Five myths about your gasoline taxes ... …In reality, cutting the gas tax exacts a steep cost on the entire economy. The gas tax funds a broad range of economy-bolstering transportation projects across the country and it is already too low to meet curren  ...more

PTP Blog (11/18/2011)
Real Energy Policy with a Side of Jobs, Wealth and Reduced Reliance: It’s All Right Here ... The opportunity for energy security from North American oil continues to grow along the Ports-to-Plains Region … Eagle Ford and Permian in Texas … The Williston   ...more

Progressive Railroading (11/18/2011)
House Republicans announce plans for transportation reauthorization bill ... Yesterday, House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman John Mica (R-Fla.) joined Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) at a press conference to announce plans for a long-  ...more

PTP Blog / Speaker John Boehner (11/17/2011)
Speaker Boehner, GOP Committee Leaders Highlight American Energy Production & Infrastructure Jobs Bill ... At a press conference today, House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH), Transportation & Infrastructure Committee Chairman John Mica (R-FL), Natural Resour  ...more

PTP Blog (11/17/2011)
Governor Support Extension of Wind Production Tax Credit ... Governors from 23 states sent a letter to Congressional Leaders to support the extension of the federal tax incentive for the wind industry. From the Ports-to Plains region support came from C  ...more

Edmonton Journal (11/15/2011)
Nebraska agrees to finance studies for new pipeline route ... Nebraska and TransCanada Corp., reached a deal Monday on finding a new route for the stalled Keystone XL pipeline that would steer clear of environmentally sensitive lands in the state…  ...more

Denver Post (11/15/2011)
Xcel sets world record for wind power generation ... Early on the morning of Oct. 6, Xcel Energy set a world record for electricity from wind power. Between 4 a.m. and 5 a.m. on that day, 55.6 percent of the electricity consumed by Xcel's 1 million custo  ...more

CTV-Canada (11/14/2011)
CTV News Channel: Michael Reeves, Ports to Plains Alliance ... The president of the Ports to Plains Alliance discusses the impact of Keystone the pipeline on jobs, trade, and energy security. He says the Keystone pipeline is viewed as beneficial because   ...more

PTP Blog (11/11/2011)
Eastern Alberta Corridor Initiative Introduced ... On November 3-5, 2011 Ports-to-Plains Alliance joined the communities making up the Eastern Alberta Trade Corridor, including three Regional Economic Development Associations, Alberta HUB, Battle River A  ...more

PTP Blog (11/11/2011)
Punting on the Keystone XL ... The following two articles describe well the current decision making process on the Keystone XL Pipeline. The Release from U.S. Representative Lee Terry is specifically interesting.  ...more

PTP Blog / AWEA (11/10/2011)
Ports-to-Plains Alliance Signs Letter to Congress Supporting Renewable Energy Production Tax Credit (PTC): Has Your Organization? ... Ports-to-Plains received the following message from the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA). Energy, renewable and tr  ...more

PTP Blog / Platte Institute (11/09/2011)
Nebraska and the Keystone XL Pipeline ... As the Nebraska legislature debates the siting of the Keystone XL Pipeline through Nebraska, it is important to note Nebraska voices that question its actions and the opposition to the pipeline. The Platte Instit  ...more

AASTHO (11/09/2011)
Senate EPW Committee Unanimously Approves 2-Year Highway Reauthorization ... The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, in a unanimous 18-0 vote this morning, approved a two-year reauthorization of federal highway programs at current funding leve  ...more

Bloomberg Businessweek (11/08/2011)
Mexican Trucks Stay Home After 17-Year Push to Open U.S. Border ... It took 17 years and $2.4 billion in trade tariffs to get the U.S. Transportation Department to let a Mexican long-haul truck cross the border last month. It’s unlikely that many more wi  ...more

PTP Blog / Grand Forks Herald (11/08/2011)
ND and MT: Can Highway Improvements Wait 35 Years? ... Both the state and federal DOT’s and often elected officials look to the past to determine highway expansion. This opinion piece shows the importance of vision. Looking to future and the opportunit  ...more

PTP Blog (11/05/2011)
Remember Rural Transportation: Draft Senate Transportation Bill Released ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance will be evaluating this bill with an eye toward rural connectivity and freight movements. Rural highways are the primary movers of the nation’s eco  ...more

AASTHO Journal (11/04/2011)
Boehner: House Will Move Multiyear Bill by Year's End ... House Republicans will introduce a multiyear surface transportation reauthorization bill "in the coming weeks" and "hope to move the legislation through the House before the end of the year," Hou  ...more

PTP Blog (11/04/2011)
Nebraska LB84 Priorities include Heartland Expressway ... The Heartland Expressway Association strongly supported the passage of LB84 by the Nebraska Unicameral. This week the ten year priority list, with input from Governor Heineman, was made public by t  ...more

North American Windpower (11/03/2011)
New Legislation Keeps Hope Alive For Wind Energy PTC Extension ... U.S. Reps. Dave Reichert, R-Wash., and Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., members of the tax-writing House Committee on Ways and Means, have introduced the American Renewable Energy Production Tax   ...more

Western Energy Alliance (11/02/2011)
Blueprint for Western Energy Prosperity ... Western independent oil and natural gas producers are able to help solve some of our nation's most pressing economic and energy security challenges, but bureaucratic red tape, redundant and burdensome governmen  ...more

Rock Center: MSNBC.COM (10/31/2011)
Boomtown: High-paying jobs, no experience required (Video) ... Rock Center's Harry Smith traveled to Williston, N.D., where jobs are aplenty and workers are in high demand.  ...more

PTPBlog (10/31/2011)
CALL TO ACTION: Senate Set to Markup Transportation Reauthorization Bill ... The Senate Environmental and Public Works Committee is scheduled to markup the surface transportation bill being referred to as Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MA  ...more

San Angelo Standard Times  (10/25/2011)
Trains to jump in speed, numbers: Oil field development spurs change ... Texas Trains will take a more prominent role in San Angelo's economy and daily life with the completion of a $25 million set of improvements to the South Orient rail line. Since the   ...more

Washington Post (10/24/2011)
Federal transportation funding mandates the coming Capitol Hill battle ... Calibri (Body)  ...more

Politico (10/24/2011)
Transportation's future a rocky road ... Transportation experts said the federal highway and transit program needs two big changes — major systemic reforms and a large increase in funding. Problem is, you can’t have one without the other. As Congress lo  ...more

PTPBlog (10/24/2011)
Presentations: 14th Annual Ports-to-Plains Alliance Conference held in San Angelo, TX  ...more

KFDA-TV (Amarillo, Texas) (10/24/2011)
Major panhandle wind project underway ... Construction has started on 2,300 miles of Competitive Renewable Energy Zones transmission lines that would help carry wind power across the Texas Panhandle and to the southern parts of the state. "Texas is alrea  ...more

Abilene Reporter News (10/22/2011)
Ports-to-Plains plan could benefit communities on route, such as Big Spring: Abilene area sits on list of projects ... West Texas could become a prime spot for businesses to relocate and a center of economic activity as the long-planned Ports-to-Plains c  ...more

Ports-to-Plains commitment boosts city's trade hub hopes (10/21/2011)
Ports-to-Plains commitment boosts city's trade hub hopes ... City leaders and economic development officials who visualize San Angelo as a key hub along a burgeoning transportation corridor are beginning to see the fruits of an endeavor they took on abou  ...more

San Angelo Standard Times (10/18/2011)
Ports-to-Plains project focus of talks: Conference aims to plan infrastructure ... Construction crews are starting to beat the ground as the development of a major artery through America's heartland takes shape with progress on the Ports-to-Plains projec  ...more

San Angelo Standard Times (10/18/2011)
MICHAEL REEVES: Ports-to-Plains vital for rural commerce ... Transportation projects are long-term propositions. Between environmental and engineering studies, right-of-way acquisition and then waiting for funding to become available, it takes several ye  ...more

San Angelo Standard Times (10/18/2011)
Ports-to-Plains: New TxDOT leader: Corridor a priority ... On day four of his tenure as executive director of the Texas Department of Transportation, Phil Wilson hailed the Ports-to-Plains Corridor as a “tremendous opportunity” for the state and said he’  ...more

Colorado Livestock Association (10/17/2011)
WE WON ON DUST! ... Notch one up for Agriculture. This morning, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a copy of a signed letter by EPA Administrator, Lisa Jackson, disclosing that the EPA is proposing to retain, with no revisions, the curren  ...more

CTPost.com (10/14/2011)
GE to build solar panel factory in Colorado ... General Electric Co. will build the largest solar factory in the U.S. near Denver. The Fairfield, Conn.-based company, which had announced in April it would build the factory, said Thursday it had selected  ...more

Best of the TxDOT Podcast (10/14/2011)
AAA Report Explores the Hidden Costs of Driving ... AAA Report Explores the Hidden Costs of Driving - With gasoline prices on the rise for the fifth straight week, we're all feeling a pinch at the pump. But what does it really cost to drive your car? The  ...more

Nebraska Department of Roads (10/13/2011)
Presentation from October 13, 2011, Heartland Expressway Meeting ... The Nebraska Department of Roads held a public meeting in Gering, NE on October 13th. NDOR and its consultants were looking to update the public on the developing Corridor Development a  ...more

Amarillo Globe-News / FoodNavigator-USA.com (10/11/2011)
Milk production is growing in the Ports-to-Plains Alliance region ...   ...more

National Journal: Expert Blogs … Energy and Environment (10/11/2011)
Hard Facts Compel Keystone Approval ... …The Keystone XL pipeline truly has the ability to unite all Americans along our common goals – more American jobs, lower gas prices, a stronger economy and increased security for the United States. This is why CEA  ...more

PTP Blog (10/10/2011)
North Dakota Traffic: Trucks are Joined by Tourists ... Summer is the time when not only is the energy business booming with construction equipment, water haulers, drilling equipment, oil tankers, etc. but the tourists arrive in North Dakota. It creates  ...more

Consumer Energy Alliance (10/10/2011)
Keystone XL Receives Support from More than 450,000 Americans ... Today Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA), the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), the American Trucking Associations (ATA) and the Ports-to-Plains Alliance announced that they have su  ...more

Amarillo Economic Development Corporation (10/07/2011)
National Wind Technology Center in Boulder, CO & Texas Tech University Wind Science & Engineering Research Center in Lubbock, TX Partners in Wind Project ... Alstom and several prominent US-based research institutions, including Texas Tech University, ha  ...more

TxDOT (10/07/2011)
Statement by Texas Transportation Commission Chair Ted Houghton ... "I’d like to thank Governor Perry for his trust in me to continue TxDOT down a path of responsiveness, change and modernization. I look forward to leading the department as it becomes a   ...more

CBC … As It Happens (10/05/2011)
Ports-to-Plains Alliance: Michael Reeves Interview on Keystone XL Pipeline... Both sides of the Keystone XL pipeline debate ramp up their campaigns before Friday's final hearing in Washington. We'll hear from the yay-sayers.  ...more

PTPBlog (10/05/2011)
Kimball Reliever Route opens on Heartland Expressway in Nebraska Panhandle  ...more

Washington Post: Ezra Klein’s Wonkblog (10/03/2011)
Can’t Congress agree on highways, at least? ... To hear Eric Cantor tell it, the president’s jobs bill is dead and rotting in the House — at least in its current form. But that doesn’t mean Obama’s ballyhooed jobs speech last month was totally ineffectiv  ...more

Wall Street Journal (10/01/2011)
How North Dakota Became Saudi Arabia ... Harold Hamm, the Oklahoma-based founder and CEO of Continental Resources, the 14th-largest oil company in America, is a man who thinks big. He came to Washington last month to spread a needed message of economic o  ...more

PTPBlog (10/01/2011)
Media Coverage of Texas Funding for Ports-to-Plains  ...more

Wall Street Journal (10/01/2011)
How North Dakota Became Saudi Arabia ... Harold Hamm, the Oklahoma-based founder and CEO of Continental Resources, the 14th-largest oil company in America, is a man who thinks big. He came to Washington last month to spread a needed message of economic o  ...more

AASTHO (09/30/2011)
House Leaders Looking for Extra Revenue to Avoid Slashing Highway & Transit Programs ... House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman John Mica, R-Florida, has been given a green light from House Republican leadership to seek additional reve  ...more

CNBC (09/29/2011)
SD Gov. Daugaard says he supports oil pipeline ... South Dakota Gov. Dennis Daugaard said Thursday he supports the construction of a proposed TransCanada Keystone XL pipeline that would cross the state as part of a project to deliver oil from Canada to t  ...more

Texas Department of Transportation (09/29/2011)
Phil Wilson Selected to Lead Texas Department of Transportation ... During their regular monthly meeting Thursday, the Texas Transportation Commission selected Phil Wilson as the Texas Department of Transportation’s (TxDOT) 19th executive director, effecti  ...more

Nebraska Department of Roads (09/29/2011)
Information Open House October 13 for Heartland Expressway Corridor Plan ... he Nebraska Department of Roads will hold an Information Open House Thursday, October 13, regarding preparation of a Corridor Development and Management Plan (CDMP) for the Heartl  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (09/29/2011)
TxDOT approves more than $230 million in Ports-to-Plains Projects ... The Texas Transportation Commission approved more than $230 million in funding for projects on the Ports-to-Plains Corridor at their meeting in Austin today.  The projects were among $1.  ...more

KTVU.com-Billings, MT (09/28/2011)
Montana: Keystone Pipeline meeting ... Approximately 1,000 people were expected at the TransCanada Keystone XL Pipeline public meeting with the U.S. Department of State, but in reality only about 300 people filed into the Dawson Community College gymnasiu  ...more

Petition to White House Supporting the Keystone XL Pipeline (09/27/2011)
There's a petition on the White House website to approve the Keystone XL pipeline. It needs 150 signatures to be publicly searchable, and 5,000 to get an official response. Sign on, share with friends, and like this post if you support Keystone XL.  ...more

Consumer Energy Alliance (09/27/2011)
CEA: Keystone XL Will Benefit Nebraska ... The State Department will hold a public hearing in Lincoln, Nebraska, today to give the public an opportunity to voice their opinions on the Keystone XL Pipeline project. In advance of the hearing, Consumer Energy  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (09/27/2011)
Keystone XL Letter by Elected Officials and Board of Directors  ...more

Bloomberg Business (09/27/2011)
Gas Tax Should Yield to Mile Fee as Cars Evolve: James M. Whitty ... For 80 years the U.S. has relied on motor-fuel taxes to pay for road repairs, transit systems and highway construction. This system needs an overhaul because soaring fuel efficiency and  ...more

Inside Climate News (09/27/2011)
With Tax Credit in Doubt, Wind Industry Ponders if It Can Stand on Its Own ... Some fear the momentum that has been building in the U.S. wind sector could come to a halt if the tax credit is allowed to expire at the end of next year. Minnesota wind deve  ...more

Beaumont Enterprise (09/26/2011)
Massive crowd show at Keystone XL meeting in Port Arthur ... Absent were the celebrities and environmental protesters seen at the White House over the summer. Instead, the job hungry came en mass Monday to the Robert A. "Bob" Bowers Civic Center in Port A  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (09/24/2011)
Ports-to-Plains Alliance Webinar on September 19, 2011 ... Ports-to-Plains updates it membership with a Federal Update by Jack Schenendorf of Covington & Burling, along with information on the Keystone XL Pipeline, the TxDOT Unified Transportation Plan an  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (09/20/2011)
TxDOT UTP and STIP ...   ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (09/18/2011)
America needs the Keystone XL pipeline ... he Keystone XL pipeline will be a valuable piece of infrastructure, creating thousands of jobs and increasing our energy and national security. By providing refineries along the Texas Gulf Coast with more than 700  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (09/14/2011)
Transportation Funding Status Report ... Jack Schenendorf, Covington and Burling, summarizes the current status of Federal Transportation Reauthorization with a focus on Highways. Jack wades through the many layers and tries to simplify a new and changing   ...more

Detroit Free Press (09/14/2011)
Editorial: Transportation disinvestment costs jobs, damages economy ... he aging and neglected hardware that binds, sustains and connects this nation is falling apart -- a victim of myopic politicians who can't see beyond the next election cycle. After dwi  ...more

DC.StreetsBlog (09/13/2011)
House Passes Transportation Extension Unanimously ... Well, that wasn’t so hard. The GOP-led House just approved a six-month extension of the transportation law. After about 45 minutes of debate, the chair called for a voice vote, and no one objected. In t  ...more

Lincoln Journal Star (09/13/2011)
Guest View: A last desperate effort against Keystone XL ... Last month, the federal government released yet another report showing what many of us have known for a long time: the Keystone XL pipeline, which will deliver crude oil from oil fields in Montana  ...more

U.S. House of Representatives (09/11/2011)
Draft Bill to Extend SAFETEA-LU for Six Months  ...more

The White House (09/09/2011)
President Obama’s American Jobs Act  ...more

New York Times (09/06/2011)
Wind Industry Lobbies for Tax-Credit Extension ... So far 2011 has been a good year f0or wind energy projects. Installations in the first six months of 2011 were almost double what they were in the comparable period in 2010 in terms of total megawatts (2,1  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (09/06/2011)
Drought Creates Opportunities in Ports-to-Plains Region ... Drought has clearly impacted agriculture operations in Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Kansas. Hay is in very short supply. "Right now there is no pasture, no hay and no end in sight," Texas Agri  ...more

El Paso Times (09/04/2011)
Texas traffic fatalities on rural roads lead nation ... Texas ranks sixth in the nation in the traffic death rates on its rural, non-interstate roads and first in the nation in the number of deaths on such roads, according to the TRIP report released this   ...more

The Hill Transportation Blog (09/04/2011)
Cantor’s infrastructure funding plan offers olive branch to White House ... Congressional Republicans may be opposed to President Obama’s call for new infrastructure spending, but House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) is pushing an idea that he says wo  ...more

AASTHO Journal (09/02/2011)
TRIP Report: Rural Connections: Challenges and Opportunities in America’s Heartland ... America's rural roads are facing tremendous challenges including deteriorating conditions and a higher fatality rate than other roads and highways, according to a new r  ...more

Journal of Commerce (09/01/2011)
Chamber Calls for Multi-Year Transport Bill: Business group repeats call for increase in federal fuel tax ... The U.S. Chamber of Commerce on Thursday called on Congress to act more boldly to pass a new long-term transportation funding bill, saying Preside  ...more

FuelFix (08/31/2011)
Steven Chu: Canadian oil is better choice for U.S. ... Energy Secretary Steven Chu is making waves with recent comments that suggest the Obama administration is on track to approve the controversial proposed Keystone XL pipeline that would deliver Canadian  ...more

Williston Herald (08/31/2011)
What’s next for Hwy 85? Theodore Roosevelt Expressway Association holds annual meeting ... Regional and state leaders gathered, some making their way through construction on U.S. Highway 85, to discuss the very corridor they had just traveled on. A crowd   ...more

Theodore Roosevelt Expressway Association (08/30/2011)
Trucks Waiting To Go North On US Highway 2 In Williston. NOT RUSH HOUR! Just a normal day of driving in Williston, ND. BOOMTOWN USA!!!  ...more

U.S. Department of State  (08/28/2011)
Keystone XL Pipeline Project   ...more

PTPBlog (08/23/2011)
Montana communities consider joining Ports-to-Plains Alliance ... Last week, Joe Kiely, Vice President of Operations for the Ports-to-Plains Alliance, hosted by Bob Sivertsen, President of the Highway 2 Association, traveled 950 miles around Montana loo  ...more

Chicago Tribune (08/22/2011)
Opinion: Fracking and the road to energy independence ... Spectacularly vast stores of natural gas — by some estimates a staggering 837 trillion cubic feet — trapped in shale formations thousands of feet below our nation's surface could endow America wit  ...more

San Angelo Standard-Times (08/22/2011)
JAY AMBROSE: Don't be alarmed, fracking isn't a public health threat ... Jay Ambrose is former Washington director of editorial policy for Scripps Howard newspapers… The misinformation was so great in a recent guest op-ed in the Denver Post that it coul  ...more

Transportation Issues Daily (08/19/2011)
Sen. Boxer Plans a Four-month Extension of SAFETEA-LU ... The Senate Environment & Public Works Committee (EPW) will take up a four-month extension of SAFETEA-LU on September 8th. Committee Chair Boxer relayed this to some stakeholders late Thursday, a  ...more

Havre Daily News (08/18/2011)
Push continues on Hwy. 2: Alliance says improving Highway 2 is key to economic development ... A representative of a group trying to improve transportation infrastructure and stimulate trade in a 10-state region including Montana said during a meeting of  ...more

Politico (08/17/2011)
Grover Norquist: I'm OK with extending gasoline tax ... Anti-tax activist Grover Norquist says it's fine with him if Congress extends the soon-to-expire gasoline tax for now - a statement that may allow room for lawmakers to defuse a brewing confrontatio  ...more

Time.com (08/17/2011)
Why Dropping the Gas Tax Would Be a Disaster ... In the wake of last month's game of chicken/debt deal compromise, the country was almost paralyzed again by another fiscal dispute—this time over funding for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Cong  ...more

New York Times (08/15/2011)
Judge Nixes Tighter U.S. Oversight of Oil and Gas Operations ... A federal judge threw out Obama administration efforts Friday to increase environmental oversight of oil and gas development on federal land…  ...more

Billings Gazette (08/10/2011)
WYDOT's 2012 roadway projects list focuses on maintenance ... The Wyoming Department of Transportation’s draft improvement program lists nearly $330 million in projects for the 2012 federal fiscal year. The document also lists engineering and environmen  ...more

Progressive Railroading (08/09/2011)
Bipartisan coalition calls for major investment in U.S. infrastructure ... Yesterday, Building America's Future Educational Fund, a bipartisan and national infrastructure coalition, released a report that examines the economic challenges posed by the Uni  ...more

The Infrastructuralist (08/08/2011)
Have We Seen the Last of the Federal Gas Tax? ... Politico recently brought to our attention the possibility that lawmakers may let most the 18.4-cent federal gas tax expire at the end of September. Now it reports that this possibility has real legs — so  ...more

Denver Post by Rep. Doug Lamborn, R-Colorado Springs, chairs the House Natural Resources Subcommitte (08/05/2011)
Guest Commentary: Energy in the West key to economic recovery ... As many Colorado families continue to lose jobs, homes, or even hope for a brighter future, they may not realize that one key to our nation's economic recovery lies right beneath them. Col  ...more

CNN Money (08/04/2011)
Gas tax may be next Tea Party target ... You may want to consider investing in some good shock absorbers for your car this fall. Fresh from blocking any new tax increases during the debt ceiling debacle, some lawmakers in Congress may now oppose renewin  ...more

Energy Policy Research Foundation, Inc. (08/03/2011)
The Bakken Boom: An Introduction to North Dakota’s Shale Oil ... Like unconventional shale gas, unconventional shale oil is now becoming more and more conventional. The technology used to first extract natural gas from shale rock in the Marcellus and oth  ...more

Bureau of Transportation Statistics (08/02/2011)
May 2011 Surface Trade with Canada and Mexico Rose 15.7 Percent from May 2010 ... Trade using surface transportation between the United States and its North American neighbors, Canada and Mexico, was 15.7 percent higher in May 2011 than in May 2010, tota  ...more

Argus Leader (08/01/2011)
Wind 'corridor' could speed projects ... The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is working on a plan to fast-track wind energy projects within a 200-mile-wide corridor down the center of the country, including much of South Dakota. The catch: As proposed, t  ...more

Transportation Issues Daily (08/01/2011)
How Might Transportation Funding be Impacted by Debt Deal? ... Whether by the hands of the new fiscal commission or through the alternative automatic cuts, federal transportation funding is going to decline dramatically compared to recent years. The Sen  ...more

REMI (08/01/2011)
REMI Webinar: Transportation and the Economy (a Three-Part Series) ... REMI (Regional Economic Models, Inc.) cordially invites you to join us for a three-part webinar series on the demographic, economic, and fiscal impacts in transportation. We will exam  ...more

CE News (08/01/2011)
Proposed reforms a good start to reauthorization policy debate ... As Congress works to reauthorize federal transportation funding before the current program expires on Sept. 30, 2011, an important debate has revived over the role of the federal governme  ...more

PTP Blog (07/28/2011)
Ports-to-Plains: Ribbon cutting celebrates completion of US 87 overpass in Dumas ... Ribbon cutting celebrates completion of US 87 overpass in Dumas Travelers on the Ports-to-Plains Corridor in Dumas, TX can welcome improved safety and mobility with the  ...more

Canada's New World (07/27/2011)
Who Do You Trust? Canada or Overseas Oil Producers? ... For Canadians well aware of outgoing Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach’s less than fierce demeanor, the image being used to promote a strategic NAFTA trade corridor to Congress and the American public is pa  ...more

E2Wire (07/26/2011)
House passes bill to force Obama decision on Canada-Texas pipeline ... House Republicans approved legislation Monday to force the Obama administration to make a decision in the coming months on a controversial proposed pipeline project that would carry o  ...more

Houston Chronicle (07/25/2011)
Texas oil, gas jobs rebound: Crude regains the No. 1 spot from natural gas ... Employment in Texas' oil and gas industry rebounded to its pre-recession highs while oil production solidified its return to the top of the fossil fuel ladder for the first ti  ...more

Reuters  (07/25/2011)
Infrastructure woes take toll on US economy-engineers ... Failing infrastructure will cost the United States billions of dollars in lost productivity, income and trade in coming decades, according to a civil engineering report released on Wednesday that   ...more

Scottsbluff Star-Herald (07/25/2011)
Heartland Expressway: Kimball interchange: The new four-lane link will bring economic opportunities ... The opening of traffic on the new interchange at Kimball, which will give Scottsbluff an unbroken four-lane expressway connection to Interstate 80, is  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (07/25/2011)
Ports-to-Plains Alliance holds board meeting in Clayton ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance Board of Directors met for their quarterly meeting on Wednesday, July 20, 2011 in Clayton, New Mexico. Prior to Wednesday’s board meeting, a presentation was given   ...more

The Hill’s Transportation Blog (07/22/2011)
Road builders: Highway bill not like other 'government spending' ... With lawmakers in the Senate discussing their version of a new federal surface transportation, the American Road & Transportation Builders Association is out with a new ad arguing that   ...more

The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc. (07/22/2011)
America’s national surface transportation network is in crisis, writes Jack L. Schenendorf, of Counsel, Covington & Burling LLP. Without additional transportation investment, the United States economy will suffer. While raising motor fuel taxes, which comp  ...more

CNN Money (06/22/2011)
How free trade deals create U.S. jobs ... It's time to put politics aside and focus on the positive economic impact of free trade agreements. The benefits provided by free trade should not be held hostage to maneuvering over the Trade Adjustment Assistan  ...more

The Oklahoman (06/22/2011)
Study shows Oklahoma's energy sector booming ... A study commissioned by the oil and gas industry shows Oklahoma's energy sector continues to boom and has added back nearly one-third of the jobs it lost during the recession. The economic study by resea  ...more

Forbes (06/21/2011)
Ten Things to Know About Fracking ... Fracking is under fire, as we know, from those who insist that it does or can cause huge problems to the surrounding environment. If this were true then it would be very important. For it’s exactly fracking that is   ...more

Colorado Department of Transportation (06/20/2011)
Another Highway 40/287 Project Begins ... Work is underway on a four- mile reconstruction of U.S. 40/287, just east of Hugo. The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) project includes rebuilding the highway in concrete, beginning at mile point 39  ...more

Journal of Commerce (06/20/2011)
Agreements signed for Canada’s largest windfarm ... What could become Canada's largest operating wind energy project moved closer to reality after the signing of major agreements. … The windfarm is located in Southern Alberta in Vulcan County, near the  ...more

High Plains Economic Development District (06/19/2011)
Energy on the Rocks: Learn about the Niobrara Oil Play ... "Energy on the Rocks" is this year's theme of the Rocky Mountain Section of American Association of Petroleum Geologists (RMS-AAPG) annual meeting at Little America in Cheyenne, Wyoming. The RMS  ...more

The Spokesman-Review (06/17/2011)
ITD board drops 10-minute rule for future megaloads ... Idaho’s top transportation officials voted unanimously Thursday to eliminate the state’s 10-minute limit on traffic delays from oversized loads traveling Idaho roads, including megaloads. The Idaho  ...more

Senator Ben Nelson (06/17/2011)
Nelson to Co-Chair Rural Transportation Group ,,, Today, Nebraska’s Senator Ben Nelson and three colleagues filed to organize the bipartisan Ports-to-Plains Caucus, which will advocate for rural transportation and economic development in Congress. Nelson  ...more

PTPBlog/Edmonton Journal (06/15/2011)
It's not just about Alberta: Oilsands generate thousands of jobs, billions in taxes across continent ... When the Canadian Energy Research Institute (CERI) released its sixth-annual oilsands update in May, it highlighted the bright investment future of t  ...more

San Angelo Times-Standard (06/11/2011)
Martifer makes a milestone: Company completes its first wind turbine tower ... SAN ANGELO, Texas — High-flying sparks and bright bursts illuminate the noisy clamor throughout the 170,000-square-foot megafacility on the outskirts of San Angelo. The bustl  ...more

Oil and Gas IQ (06/09/2011)
Canadian Oil Sands Infrastructure Summit ... Canadian Oil Sands industry verging on massive expansion – IQPC’s Canadian Oil Sands Infrastructure Summit brings together industry experts to address strategic need to build infrastructure and engage local com  ...more

Oil and Gas IQ (06/09/2011)
The Northwestern Transport Corridor – The Key to Oil Sands Expansion? (Podcast) ... In this podcast, Michael Reeves, President of the Ports to Plains Alliance USA, discusses the need to facilitate the development of the Canadian oil sands industry throug  ...more

Regina Leader-Post (06/09/2011)
CP Rail unveils future site of intermodal facility in Regina ... REGINA - Canadian Pacific Railway took a giant step toward relocating its freight yards out of downtown Regina on Friday. With a literal trainload of VIPs, civil servants, business executi  ...more

The Hill’s Congress Blog (06/08/2011)
Rural America's roller coaster ... Things were going well in rural America. The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City credited smalltowns, specifically farming communities, with leading the country’s recession recovery in 2010. Farm household incomes  ...more

Politicio (06/08/2011)
Public pays price for privatization (Opinion) ... There is a dignity in the Hoover Dam, a massiveness that speaks to a grand national purpose. A country — our country — decided to build it. As the Hoover Dam was constructed, in the middle of the Great De  ...more

Fort Morgan Times (06/07/2011)
Colorado agriculture exports up 32% in Q1 ... The value of Colorado’s agriculture exports increased by 31.8 percent in the first quarter, or $68.8 million more than the same period a year earlier, the state Department of Agriculture said Tuesday…  ...more

Tulsa World  (06/01/2011)
Inhofe predicts transportation bill will fall short ... U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe, despite what another key player called a breakthrough on the next major transportation bill, predicted that effort will fall far short of a much-delayed six-year measure. "It  ...more

Texas is main gate for Mexico freight (06/01/2011)
Texas is main gate for Mexico freight ... As the United States and Mexico edge toward a new cross-border trucking arrangement, the volume of U.S.-Mexico freight passing through Texas is setting records as the U.S. economy recovers from the severe 2007-09  ...more

El Paso Times (05/29/2011)
NAFTA: Mexican truckers to drive cargo into US interior ... As the Obama administration prepares to honor a 17-year-old treaty with Mexico allowing that country's long-haul trucks into the U.S. heartland, emotions are again at fever pitch as businesses o  ...more

St. Louis Post Dispatch (05/29/2011)
Midwest power transmission project targets Kansas wind ... A Houston company is in the early stages of planning one of the largest energy infrastructure projects the Midwest has seen in years - a $1.7 billion high-voltage transmission line connecting Kan  ...more

New York Times (05/27/2011)
Shale Boom in Texas Could Increase U.S. Oil Output ... Until last year, the 17-mile stretch of road between this forsaken South Texas village and the county seat of Carrizo Springs was a patchwork of derelict gasoline stations and rusting warehouses. No  ...more

The Spokesman-Review (05/26/2011)
Megaloads could skip U.S. on rail-truck Canada route ... What if giant loads of oil field equipment didn’t have to enter the United States to get from Asia to the Alberta oil sands project in Canada, and what if avoiding the U.S. actually cost less? Tha  ...more

The Oklahoman (05/25/2011)
EPA chief Lisa Jackson says natural gas production is ‘a good thing’ ... The head of the Environmental Protection Agency told a House committee Tuesday that she favored natural gas production and said she didn’t know of any “proven case” in which hydraul  ...more

U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (05/25/2011)
Boxer, Inhofe, Baucus, and Vitter Joint Statement on Transportation Authorization Legislation ... Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee, Senator James Inhofe (R-OK), Ranking Member of the Committee, Senator   ...more

PTP Blog (05/24/2011)
WindPower 2011 … Daily Report … May 24, 2011 .. Ports-to-Plains Region was strongly represented in the huge trade show by companies and statewide coalitions. High Ground Texas brought together many of our members from Texas. They had a great location a  ...more

PTP Blog (05/23/2011)
WindPower 2011 … Daily Report … May 23, 2011 ... Opening Session was interesting … Ted Turner ... Governor Brian Switzer (MT) … I do need to point out that while wind development and wind manufacturing is important to the Limon, eastern Colorado, Colorad  ...more

PTP Blog (05/22/2011)
WindPower 2011 … Daily Report … May 22, 2011 ... I will be at the WindPower 2011 Conference in Anaheim, CA this week. I will be reporting daily. I can be reached at Booth No. 745. Stop by for a visit.   ...more

Mileage Based User Fee Alliance (05/20/2011)
MBUFA Releases Fact Sheet on VMT User Fees  ...more

AASTHO Journal (05/20/2011)
Senate Finance Committee Weighs Several Options to Pay for Reauthorization ... The Senate Finance Committee examined numerous proposals to increase federal revenue for transportation projects during a Tuesday hearing, but no consensus appeared to come fr  ...more

Calgary Herald (05/18/2011)
Trillions predicted in oilsands spending ... The recession that clouded the future of oilsands development two years ago has lifted and clear skies beckon trillions of dollars of investment, according to a report released Monday. Over the next 25 years,  ...more

Omaha World-Herald (05/18/2011)
Nebraska Gov. OK's sales tax for roads ... In somewhat of a surprise, Gov. Dave Heineman signed into law a bill that will substantially increase state road funding in two years. Heineman expressed reluctance in signing Legislative Bill 84 on Tuesday nig  ...more

The Hill: Floor Action Blog (05/17/2011)
CBO says taxing cars by the mile could raise money for highways ... The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) on Tuesday said the imposition of a new tax on cars and trucks based on how many miles they drive would be one way of generating revenues for the fe  ...more

CNBC (05/17/2011)
Tightening Screws on Infrastructure Spending ,,, Debating whether government should back away from more roads, bridges, airports and let private companies take over, with Rep. Terry Morrow, (DFL-MN) and Rep. Larry Phillips, (R-TX).  ...more

Washington Post (05/16/2011)
Study: $2 trillion needed for U.S. infrastructure ... The United States is falling dramatically behind much of the world in rebuilding and expanding an overloaded and deteriorating transportation network it needs to remain competitive in the global marke  ...more

Longmont Times-Call (05/16/2011)
‘Reshoring’ brings business back: New trend benefits local manufacturers ,,, There’s nothing new about offshoring — the practice of American manufacturers sending large-volume orders overseas, where wages are a fraction of what they are in the U.S. But   ...more

USA Today (05/12/2011)
Should drivers pay by the mile instead of the gallon? ... For nearly 80 years, motorists have paid a tax every time they put gas in their cars. What if they were taxed based on how far they drive instead? That's just what a number of groups, including t  ...more

Omaha World-Herald (05/12/2011)
Roads funding bill passes ... A major roads funding bill pulled up to the governor's desk Wednesday, where it faces an uncertain future. Gov. Dave Heineman remained mum about whether he planned to sign or to Legislative Bill 84. He has until Tuesday to m  ...more

ARTBA (05/12/2011)
Reagan, Clinton star in push for transportation bill ... May 12, 2011 The unlikely duo of Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton is featured in a new ad campaign from the American Road and Transportation Builders Association and the American Public Transportati  ...more

Prairie Post (05/11/2011)
Saskatchewan: Port plan moves forward for S.W. region ... The focus is now on the Saskatchewan government to improve the province’s highway infrastructure for increased trade with the U.S. Aaron Murray, of Derek Murray Consulting and Associates (DMCA),   ...more

Scottsbluff Star-Herald (05/11/2011)
Rural road project discussed in Alliance and Congress ... Where’s the road going? That’s the question about 50 Alliance area residents had for the Nebraska Department of Roads last week. NDOR hosted a public information open house at the Sandhills Center   ...more

Dow Jones Newswires  (05/10/2011)
Few Lasting US Green Jobs from Generation-Focused Subsidies ... President Barack Obama’s administration has frequently presented "green collar" jobs as one benefit of its renewable energy subsidies, but almost two years into those programs, the signs are t  ...more

Reason.com (05/10/2011)
Environmentalists Were For Fracking Before They Were Against It ... The world’s projected natural gas supplies jumped 40 percent last year. How is such a thing possible? Until a decade ago, experts believed that it would be technically infeasible to expl  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Blog (05/09/2011)
House members submit testimony supporting Rural Transportation ... “Do not forget rural America” is the message a contingent of nine members of the U.S. House of Representatives from five different states delivered to the House Transportation and Infrastru  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Blog (05/02/2011)
Advocating Rural Transportation in Washington DC ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance is in Washington DC this week advocating for a policy focus in the transportation reauthorization on transportation corridors that connect the resources of energy, food and f  ...more

Heavy Lift (04/30/2011)
Wishing we were elsewhere ... With shippers losing confidence in the US permitting system for heavy loads, industry organizations are now calling for a more structured approach across the country.  ...more

House Natural Resources Committee (04/29/2011)
House to Vote on American Energy Bills to Ease Pain at Pump, Create Jobs, Reduce Foreign Dependence ... As Americans continue to experience pain at the pump from skyrocketing gasoline prices, House Republicans are preparing to vote next week on two bills t  ...more

Star Telegram (04/28/2011)
Could Texas someday track drivers electronically, charge a vehicle-mile-traveled tax instead of a gas tax? ... Here's a question for you: Would you rather pay the current state gas tax of 20 cents a gallon (on top of the federal tax of 18.4 cents a gallon)  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (04/28/2011)
URGENT: Tell the Federal Government to Expand Access to Onshore Energy Resources ... The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will be hosting four scoping meetings in Wyoming and Colorado over the next week on the potential commercial development of oil shale  ...more

The Economist (04/28/2011)
America's transport infrastructure: Life in the slow lane ... Americans are gloomy about their economy’s ability to produce. Are they right to be? We look at two areas of concern, transport infrastructure and innovation…  ...more

Transportation Advocates of Texas (04/28/2011)
The public must demand better solutions to traffic ... If the Texas transportation system were a medical patient, the diagnosis would be failing health on the verge of critical condition. Our urban and suburban roadways are like clogged arteries, many of  ...more

Fort Morgan Times (04/27/2011)
Heartland route reps ask county to join alliance ... Representatives of the Ports-to-Plains Alliance Tuesday asked the Board of Morgan County Commissioners to join with the effort to build a trade route. Years ago, the U.S. Congress declared the need f  ...more

Daily Toreador (04/27/2011)
Marketing professor receives grant to study trade between US, Canada ... Donna Davis, associate professor of marketing, has been awarded a grant by the Canadian Studies Faculty, a government agency for a cross-border research project under the direction   ...more

Exxon Mobil (04/27/2011)
Gas prices and industry earnings: A few things to think about the next time you fill up ... Here’s a simple fact of economics that’s getting everyone in Washington pretty excited this week: When prices increase for a commodity like oil, companies that pr  ...more

Denver Business Journal (04/27/2011)
Wind turbine near Golden heralds new player in U.S. market ... The biggest of three wind turbines rising above the high plains along Colorado 93 north of Golden was dedicated Tuesday by officials from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Alstom S.A  ...more

Daily Yonder (04/26/2011)
A Transportation Bill for Rural America ... Any federal transportation policy needs to insure that rural communities have the same level of choice in pursuing multiple transportation goals and options as their urban counterparts...  ...more

TxDOT (04/22/2011)
Best of the TxDOT Podcast: Texas' Focus on Rural Roadways Reducing Fatalities ... More than half of Texas' 80,000 centerline mile highway system is made up of the mostly rural, narrow Farm-to-Market roads. Built mostly in the 1950s and 1960s, these roads   ...more

Petroleum Economist (04/21/2011)
Let’s get real about the oil sands ... The oil-sands debate must be about environmental performance, economic growth and jobs, and energy security and reliability – all are important...  ...more

State of North Dakota (04/18/2011)
Dalrymple Signs Historic Investment Package for Statewide Transportation Infrastructure ... Governor Jack Dalrymple today was joined by legislators in the state Capital where he signed House Bill 1012, the state Department of Transportation 2011-13 budget  ...more

Wall Street Journal (04/16/2011)
Oil Without Apologies ... John Watson, Chevron's CEO, says Americans must stop taking affordable energy for granted. That means more 'oil, gas and coal.'…  ...more

AASTHO Journal (04/15/2011)
Government Shutdown Averted; Transportation Suffers Significant Spending Cuts ... Congress approved Thursday and sent to President Barack Obama an appropriations bill to complete funding the federal government for the fiscal year that ends Sept. 30. The   ...more

U.S. Department of State (04/15/2011)
State Department Releases Keystone XL Pipeline Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement ... The U.S. Department of State posted the Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the proposed Keystone XL pipeline on April 15. The Suppleme  ...more

Dow Jones Newswire (04/14/2011)
US Senate May Have To Consider Smaller Highway Bill -Sen Baucus ... The U.S. Congress may have to consider a much smaller highway-funding bill than initially planned because of a steep drop in revenue from the federal gasoline tax, Senate Finance Committ  ...more

PTPBlog/Bloomberg Businessweek (04/05/2011)
Lawsuit filed to halt megaloads moving through MT ... During his speech on energy policy last week, President Obama discussed how dependent our economy is on oil, and how vulnerable it is to instability in the Middle East. While pledging to reduce Ameri  ...more

New York Times/Climatewire (04/04/2011)
Republicans Weigh a Federal 'Reverse Auction' to Push Clean Energy ... As House Republicans try to move energy legislation in "chunks," one piece has gone largely unnoticed: an attempt to fund renewable energy with maximum mileage for the federal dollar.  ...more

The Hill  (04/04/2011)
GOP senators say no gas tax to pay for Obama transportation budget ... Twenty-two Republican senators are asking President Obama to explain where he would find the revenue to pay for his proposed increase in transportation funding. The Republicans said  ...more

The Commercial Appeal (03/31/2011)
Mid-South Sens. Alexander, Pryor introduce bill to track all truckers ... All commercial trucks would be required to have on-board, tamper-resistant recording devices identifying the driver and his or her precise location to assure compliance with hours-  ...more

TheDenverChannel.com (03/31/2011)
Weld County Sees Oil Boom Benefits ... Northern Colorado is on the front lines of the effort to cut reliance on foreign oil, as oil and gas companies explore a promising formation in Weld County. It seems, lately, what grows best in some Weld County fie  ...more

American Petroleum Institute (03/31/2011)
API Welcomes Call for Increased Oil Sands Development ... The American Petroleum Institute today praised the efforts by Representative Connie Mack (R-Fla.) to draw attention on the need to put Americans back to work, invest billions in the economy, and m  ...more

Texas 2030 Committee (03/31/2011)
State of Texas Transportation: Report from the 2030 Committee ... The Texas Transportation Commission adopted the 2030 Committee’s updated report on the state of Texas transportation: It’s About Time: Investing in Transportation to Keep Texas Economicall  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (03/31/2011)
Ports-to-Plains Alliance Mayors Support Keystone XL Pipeline ... Twenty-four mayors from seven states in the Ports-to-Plains region support the written comments regarding the importance of the Keystone XL Pipeline to our regional economy and to the energ  ...more

Fort Morgan Times (03/30/2011)
Colorado: Hwy 71 project on budget … CDOT official: Smoother curves will make traffic flow better ... No matter where in the United States they are located, most state highways need to have some twists and turns to navigate around buildings or private pr  ...more

Amarillo Globe-News (03/25/2011)
Amarillo, TX: Area big rigs left idle … 2012 could see 400,000 job openings ... As U.S. industries begin to climb out of recession, another problem faces companies trying to move their products - freight is stuck on the loading docks. "I've got freight   ...more

Gering Citizen (03/24/2011)
'Ports to Plains' a topic of trip to Washington ... Gering Mayor Ed Mayo recently returned from Washington, D.C., where one of the discussions was about the Ports to Plains Project. Ports to Plains would create a highway transportation system from Canad  ...more

AgWeb (03/23/2011)
EPA Caught Overreaching on Clean Water Act ... A federal appellate court ruled last week that significant portions of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations governing concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) under the Clean Water Act  ...more

Investor’s Business Daily (03/23/2011)
Bakken Shale Promises Big Oil Production ... The energy industry has been transformed over the years, thanks to new ways to explore for and extract oil and natural gas. Sometimes, innovative thinkers take old technologies and do something new with them.  ...more

The Hill Energy and Environment Blog (03/22/2011)
Interior touts support for coal, oil amid GOP attacks ... The Interior Department on Tuesday rolled out plans to allow expanded coal production on federal lands in Wyoming’s Powder River Basin, marking the second time in two days the agency has touted it  ...more

Houston Chronicle (03/19/2011)
Mexican tariffs casting wide net ... Many billions in agricultural items from U.S. affected, study by A&M says. Every year, about $153 billion in U.S. agricultural production is affected by Mexico's tariffs against the United States, according to a stud  ...more

FoxNews.com (03/17/2011)
Increased Drilling Creates Jobs ... An oil drilling boom across the American West is creating a wealth of job opportunities at a time when most segments of the economy remain sluggish. The boom is the result of new and updated technologies allowing compa  ...more

Calgary Herald (03/16/2011)
U.S. extends review of Keystone XL; Public to get 90 days for comment ... The Keystone XL pipeline to the Gulf of Mexico faced the prospect of more regulatory delays after the U.S. State Department put more conditions on the troubled project. The U.S. g  ...more

Consumer Energy Alliance (03/16/2011)
CEA:“Use It or Lose It” Legislation Wrong Approach; Access to Domestic Energy Resources Needed ... Following a press conference today by Senators Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and Bill Nelson (D-FL) to announce new “Use It or Lose It” legislation for oil and ga  ...more

PTPBlog/The Hill/Dallas Morning News (03/16/2011)
Bipartisan Infrastructure Bank Bill ... A comment by Senator John Thune (SD) in The Hill article below is key to understanding the rural impact of this proposal. “Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) has urged caution in going forward with an infrastructure bank, a  ...more

Journal of Commerce (03/15/2011)
Mica Aims for T&I to Complete Transport Bill in May ... The chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee plans to complete the panel's work on the next long-term transportation legislation in May, an ambitious schedule that could get  ...more

Futures and Commodity Market News (03/15/2011)
Udall Speaks Up For Farmers, Ranchers on Dust Regulation ... Last week, Mark Udall sent a letter to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson asking her to consider the impact regulations governing dust could have on rural communiti  ...more

Zocalo Saltillo (03/15/2011)
Exports increase through this border ... Acuña, Coah .- Being safer than others Acuña border of the country, companies have taken this route to export their products to the U.S., creating more movement on the International Bridge also brings benefit to t  ...more

Globe and Mail (03/15/2011)
Heavy oil gaining weight in energy markets ... The type of thick crude that companies pump from Canada’s oil sands is set to explode in global importance as the world’s energy mix shifts further from easy-flowing sources of oil.  ...more

KXNet.com (03/15/2011)
Learning Oil's Lessons (video) ... The mayors from Williston, Watford City and Sidney and Minot's were panelists during the "Lessons Learned" discussion at the Energy Impact Symposium recently in Minot. The leaders said they're applying knowledge gained  ...more

Journal of Commerce (03/14/2011)
House Democrat questions White House plan to open border to Mexican trucks ... A key House Democrat is questioning whether the Obama administration has the authority to launch a new cross-border trucking program with Mexico. Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore.,   ...more

NewGeography (03/14/2011)
Why North Dakota Is Booming ... Living on the harsh, wind-swept northern Great Plains, North Dakotans lean towards the practical in economic development. Finding themselves sitting on prodigious pools of oil—estimated by the state's Department of Mineral  ...more

Consumer Energy Alliance (03/11/2011)
Alliance Continues to Urge for Expanded American Energy Production to Relieve Escalating Energy Prices ... Following President Barack Obama’s press conference today on energy prices and oil supply disruptions, representatives from the Consumer Energy All  ...more

Energy Tomorrow (03/10/2011)
Facts Don't Support Claims on Gulf of Mexico Oil Production ... Last week, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar told Congress that oil production in the Gulf of Mexico "remained at an all-time high, and we expect that it will continue as we bring new productio  ...more

San Antonio Express-News (03/10/2011)
Forest Service sued over inaction on megaloads ... An environmental group wants a federal judge to step in and block plans to haul dozens of oversized truckloads of oil refinery equipment along a northern Idaho highway federally protected river corridor.  ...more

Amarillo Globe-News (03/09/2011)
Texas: PUC approves line route to transmit wind energy ... The pace of wind energy transmission approvals for the Panhandle is building from a breeze to a gale with another route finalized and the last two moving along. The Public Utility Commission app  ...more

Dallas Morning News (03/08/2011)
Editorial: U.S.-Mexico truck deal would benefit Texas companies ... The ink isn’t dry yet, but we’re pleased the Obama administration has worked out a tentative deal with Mexico to allow Mexican trucks to deliver goods into the U.S. Since 1994, when the  ...more

Denver Post (03/07/2011)
Carroll: "Lax" on fracking? Far from it ... What The New York Times describes as "this century's gold rush — for natural gas" is such good news on so many levels, from jobs to domestic energy supplies, that of course it must be debunked. Hence a lengthy  ...more

El Paso Times (03/06/2011)
Bill Hammond: Texas must build new roads to progress ... State Sen. Tommy Williams, chairman of the Texas Senate Transportation and Homeland Security Committee, recently stated that as of 2012, Texas will have no new money to build new roads or highways.   ...more

NREL (03/04/2011)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory's (NREL) 2011 Executive Energy Leadership Program (Energy Execs) ... Applications are currently being accepted for the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory's (NREL) 2011 Executive Energy Le  ...more

Congressman Doug Lamborn (CO) (03/03/2011)
Congressman Lamborn Questions Sec. Salazar on Oil and Gas Leases ... U.S. Representative Lamborn (CO) questions Secretary of the Interior Salazar about the backlog of oil and gas permits on western lands. Thousands of leases sold in the region in the pas  ...more

Journal of Commerce (03/03/2011)
Business Groups Applaud U.S.-Mexican Trucking Pact ... Preliminary agreement paves way for cross-border trucking, removal of tariffs The U.S. and Mexico reached a preliminary agreement on resolving a cross-border trucking dispute that led to $2.4 billi  ...more

PTPBlog (03/03/2011)
Confusion swirls around changes to ExxonMobil big rig project??? ... How bad could this “confusion” be? If it’s the original 207 megaloads, then the Montana’s finalized environmental assessment stands. If Imperial Oil/ExxonMobil is able to divide some   ...more

AASTHO (03/03/2011)
Senate Passage Sends 7-Month Highway & Transit Extension to President ... The Senate late this afternoon approved legislation to extend federal highway and transit programs for seven months. The measure now heads to President Barack Obama for his expect  ...more

U.S. Senate Committee on Budget (03/03/2011)
Chairman Conrad's Questions for Secretary LaHood ... The Senate Budget Committee held a hearing to receive testimony from Mr. Ray LaHood, the Secretary of Transportation. Secretary LaHood testified about the President's FY 2012 budget request for the Dep  ...more

CNBC (02/28/2011)
North Dakota … Game Changer (Video) ... Mad Money ... Cramer's got a potential upside to the oil industry's downside ... Senator Hoeven advocates an all-energy policy for the United States.   ...more

Nebraska, TV (02/28/2011)
CommonGround Educates Consumers (video) ... A great interview on Good Morning Nebraska about how local farm women are reaching out to urban consumers.   ...more

Harvard Business School (02/26/2011)
Harvard Business School looks at competitiveness on a state by state basis.   ...more

Business Wire (02/25/2011)
Energy Expert and Former Regulator Issues Statement on Sunday New York Times Article on Deep Natural Gas Drilling ... John Hanger, immediate past secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, former member of the Pennsylvania Pub  ...more

PTPBlog (02/25/2011)
Field Hearing of Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, U.S. House of Representatives ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance attended the field hearing of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure on Oklahoma Cit  ...more

MSNBC (02/25/2011)
Eagle Pass, Texas: 'Where Yee-Haw! meets Ole!' ... This is euphoric little border town is where multiculturalism is literally embraced. “Our town (and Mexico’s Piedras Negras) has a long history of friendly collaboration,” says Sandra Martinez of the Ea  ...more

ProLogis (02/24/2011)
Mexico's Evolving Network of Modern Interstate Roadways, Winter 2011 ... The Mazatlán-Matamoros Corridor connects the Ports-to-Plains Alliance with the seaport of Mazatlan. The 771 mile corridor will serve as the Port of Mazatlán’s gateway to the rest   ...more

PTPBlog (02/24/2011)
Southern Ports-to-Plains Trade Workgroup Organizes ... The first of the Ports-to-Plains Alliance workgroup met in San Angelo, TX on February 18, 2011 after the West Texas Trade Summit to create a Strategic Plan for the future. This is the first official  ...more

Denver Post (02/23/2011)
Panel rules against homeowner who said fracking fouled well ... The controversial oil-industry technique known as fracking went on trial at the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission on Tuesday — and fracking won…  ...more

Rogelio Madero, Master Sculptor/PTPBlog (02/22/2011)
Culture and Arts meet Infrastructure through the Ports-to-Plains Alliance ... Mexican artists united with their U.S. and Canadian counterparts to present their work and ideas to the world through the infrastructure created by the Port to Plains project,   ...more

Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council (02/22/2011)
Oil Sands in Canada and the U.S. Petroleum Imports ... When talking about U.S. oil imports, attention inevitably turns to the Middle East. And why not? Of the top 15 oil producers in 2009, six nations were in the Middle East or North Africa, including Sa  ...more

Energy Tomorrow (02/22/2011)
House Limits Funding for EPA's GHG Regulations ... On Saturday, February 19th the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 1, the Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, for 2011. The Continuing Resolution (CR), which would fund the government through  ...more

Missoulian (02/21/2011)
Weather, lack of turnouts impeding megaloads ... All was quiet Monday on the big rig front. ConocoPhillips' second Billings-bound megaload was shut down at Kooskia, Idaho, for the third straight night, and now won't make it to Montana before the weekend  ...more

City of San Angelo, TX/Ports-to-Plains Alliance (02/21/2011)
The Southern Ports-to-Plains Corridor ... Food, Fiber and Fuel. Video, created by the City of San Angelo, TX, describes the economic opportunities presented by the Ports-to-Plains Alliance Corridor.  ...more

Williston Wire (02/21/2011)
Economic Developers’ Roles Change with Oil Boom ... The role of economic developers in the oil patch isn’t what it used to be. Before the oil boom, their job was to attract new businesses and industries to their towns. Today, their duties include deter  ...more

San Francisco Chronicle (02/19/2011)
Utilities' renewable energy pacts expensive ... …Since the law was passed, 59 percent of the contracts the utilities have signed with renewable power developers have been more expensive than the levelized price of electricity from a new natural gas plant  ...more

Mon-Dak Energy Alliance (02/18/2011)
Wednesday Meeting to Preview Upcoming Industrial Developments ,,, The MonDak Energy Alliance will preview upcoming industrial developments at their next meeting on Wednesday February 23 at 7:00pm (CT) in the Courtyard at the Airport International Inn in  ...more

San Angelo Standard-Times (02/18/2011)
Ports-to-Plains Corridor may lower business costs ,,, The West Texas Trade Summit held Thursday in San Angelo focused on a development with the potential to heavily impact the city's trade and transportation, the Ports-to-Plains Corridor. "This is a con  ...more

U.S. Chamber of Commerce / The Hill (02/17/2011)
U.S. Chamber of Commerce and AFL-CIO support fuel tax increase ... U.S. Chamber President Calls for Passage of Strong Highway and Public Transportation Proposal ... Unlikely partners Chamber, AFL-CIO: Raise gas tax to fund infrastructure fixes  ...more

The Economist (02/16/2011)
Are taxes or crude oil prices to blame for expensive petrol? ... PETROL prices have risen steeply in rich countries, triggering heated arguments about whom or what is to blame. America’s energy department recently blamed a jump in petrol prices of 3.1 ce  ...more

Scottsbluff Star-Herald (02/15/2011)
Heartland Expressway message heard in US, state capitals ... Heartland Expressway supporters used a two-pronged strategy last week as representatives visited with Congressional representatives in Washington, D.C., and western Nebraska representatives tra  ...more

Calgary Herald (02/15/2011)
Canada pipeline deal too costly, officials in Kansas say ... Crude oil from western Canada began flowing through a controversial pipeline in Kansas last week. Supporters say that construction of the Keystone Pipeline - which flows down through the Dakot  ...more

Kansas City Star (02/14/2011)
Hold the Thin Green Line ... When the United States rationed food during World War II so citizens and soldiers had enough to eat, the Secretary of Agriculture often repeated the slogan: "Food will win the war and write the peace." I think of these words  ...more

PTPBlog (02/11/2011)
Ports-to-Plains: Walking the Halls of Congress ... Ports-to-Plains Alliance staff was in Washington DC this week with a primary focus on updating newly elected officials and new staff with transportation responsibilities. Alliance staff Michael Reeves,   ...more

AASTHO (02/11/2011)
Federal FY 2011 Funding Bill Includes Transportation Cuts ... …Last week Rodgers directed the House Transportation, Housing & Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee to trim FY 2011 budget authority to $56.3 billion from the F  ...more

Missoulian (02/11/2011)
Montana Department of Transportation OKs megaloads bound for Canada ... Even as another oil giant moves the first of its four massive loads through the wilds of Idaho, Imperial Oil/ExxonMobil finally got the go-ahead this week to truck 207 massive loads   ...more

KNEB (02/10/2011)
Niobrara: Oil lease interest increasing in Panhandle ... The future possibility of using horizontal drilling technology to tap into the deep Niobrara shale formation has oil interests snapping up leases in the Nebraska Panhandle, even though none of this  ...more

Lincoln Journal Star (02/10/2011)
Nebraska: Roads funding bill draws crowd of supporters ... Supporters of a roads funding plan lined up Thursday in front of the Revenue Committee to mostly sing its praises and thank Sen. Deb Fischer of Valentine for introducing the proposal. "I must ad  ...more

Calgary Herald (02/10/2011)
Secure oil is the real Alberta advantage ... For all its accolades -an enviable tax environment, grassroots ingenuity and entrepreneurial spirit -Alberta's most significant advantage may be its most obvious: its freedom and isolation from conflict and wa  ...more

Lincoln Journal Star/PTPBlog (02/10/2011)
Roads funding bill draws crowd of supporters ... Supporters of a roads funding plan lined up Thursday in front of the Revenue Committee to mostly sing its praises and thank Sen. Deb Fischer of Valentine for introducing the proposal. "I must admit, Gener  ...more

Fleet Owner (02/10/2011)
ATAs Graves: Challenges can be turned to benefit trucking ... The trucking industry has a number of obstacles both regulatory and operational in nature before it, according to Gov. Bill Graves, president & CEO of the American Trucking Assns. (ATA). Yet m  ...more

Prairie Post (02/10/2011)
Saskatchewan: Improved port of entry could benefit southwest ... The City of Swift Current council has committed its support to Community Futures in the efforts to develop a corridor for competitiveness between Saskatchewan and the U.S. “I’m glad to see  ...more

Associated Press (02/09/2011)
New drilling method opens vast oil fields in US ... A new drilling technique is opening up vast fields of previously out-of-reach oil in the western United States, helping reverse a two-decade decline in domestic production of crude. Companies are inves  ...more

Calgary Herald  (02/09/2011)
Oilsands receive modest approval ... Something interesting has happened in the last week: The oilsands have received modest, if not backhanded, endorsements from the U.S. Department of Energy, the Washington Post and the influential investment publicatio  ...more

PTPBlog (02/08/2011)
Declaration by President Obama and Prime Minister Harper of Canada - Beyond the Border ... The trading relationship between the United States and Canada is important to both nations. In 2009, total trade was $430 billion. Eight of the ten states of the  ...more

Denver Post (02/04/2011)
USDA: Farmers can plant genetically modified beets ... Genetically modified sugar beets designed to withstand the weedkiller Roundup can be planted under strict conditions with no threat to the environment and other plants, the U.S. Department of Agricul  ...more

Rapid City Journal (02/04/2011)
Ranch family hopes wind farm powers economic future ... On a snowy patch of high ground a mile or two from her ranch house, Eileen Miller stood still just long enough to pose for a picture. But her hair didn't. Even on a day that Miller called "very ca  ...more

San Angelo Standard Times (02/03/2011)
CHRIS CORNELL: Setting the record straight on Ports-to-Plains Corridor ... The Ports-to-Plains Corridor is a great project that will mean safer highways and the opportunity to create new jobs in San Angelo. I am troubled by some of the misinformation tha  ...more

SWTC Channel (02/03/2011)
Swift Current Supports Highway 4 Project ... Behind the scenes work continues to improve the state of Highway 4 from Cadillac to the U.S. Border. With the City of Swift Current now on board with the issue.  ...more

DCVelocity (02/02/2011)
Bumpy road ahead for transport reauthorization (Editorial) ... Ray LaHood may be one of the few optimists left in Washington. In January, the Secretary of Transportation told the SMC3 winter meeting in Atlanta that he believes prospects are good for Con  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (02/02/2011)
Registration open for 2011 Ports-to-Plains Energy Summit ... The 2nd Annual Ports-to-Plains Alliance Energy Summit will be held in Broomfield, CO on April 7-8, 2011 at the Omni Interlocken Resort.   ...more

A Farm Wife’s Life (02/02/2011)
Why We Don't Get Snow Days ... I sure by now that most of you have heard about the little snow fall we got here in the parts of the Midwest, but if you haven't well let me be the first to tell you that it snowed.... And by snowed I mean we got a good ol  ...more

Ag on the Forefront (02/01/2011)
Quotes from Oprah tell the story ... Well the slam on modern agriculture wasn’t as bad as I expected from Oprah’s show today featuring Michael Pollan, Kathy Freston and Cargill. First, I think it is great that Cargill opened their slaughterhouse doors   ...more

El Paso Times  (02/01/2011)
Texas lawmaker stresses need for funding state's roads ... Funding Texas roads is a critical issue that has so far been obscured by the state's looming budget deficit and high-profile partisan legislation, an El Paso lawmaker said Monday. State Rep. Joe  ...more

Dixie Press (02/01/2011)
Hatch: Stop Obama’s War On The West ... Utah is one of the most beautiful places on earth. In their latest attack on the rural West, President Obama and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced unauthorized and unlimited “Wild Lands” designations in wes  ...more

The Infrastructurist (01/31/2011)
Is a Vehicle Mileage Tax Coming to a State Near You? ... There’s plenty of reasons to be excited about the sudden, meteoric rise of EVs and ultra-fuel-efficient hybrids — with gas prices showing no sign of decreasing, fuel supplies showing equally no sig  ...more

Billings Gazette (01/30/2011)
Disputed oversized loads to start rolling in Idaho ... ConocoPhillips will start moving its first load of oversized oil-refinery equipment across northern Idaho and into Montana starting Tuesday, said a spokesman for the oil company. Bill Stephens said   ...more

New Geography (01/27/2011)
The Great Plains: An Old Frontier May Hold The Secret to Recovery ... Could the next zone of opportunity exist in the middle of the country? Census unemployment figures seem to signify this notion, especially in the Great Plains. State-wise, November 20  ...more

Great Falls Tribune (01/26/2011)
Montana: Group discusses improving Highway 2 infrastructure ... Members of the Highway 2 Association held their annual meeting in Helena on Tuesday in an effort to draw lawmakers' attention to the importance of supporting highway infrastructure improveme  ...more

Territorio de Coahuila y Texas (01/26/2011)
Inaugura el gobernador Jorge Torres López la tercera planta de Bendix–Madasa en Ciudad Acuña ... El Gobernador Jorge Torres López y el Presidente Mundial de Knorr-Bremse AG, Klaus Deller, inauguraron la tercera planta de Bendix-Madasa en Acuña, que gener  ...more

AASTHO (01/26/2011)
Testimony Of The Honorable Susan Martinovich ... Director Nevada Department of Transportation and President, American Association Of State Highway and Transportation Officials On Behalf of the American Association Of State Highway And Transportation Of  ...more

USA Today (01/25/2011)
Study: Roads are safer in urban areas ... Your odds of dying in a motor vehicle crash vary dramatically because of one simple thing: where you live. The safest places to drive in the USA are Washington, D.C., and Massachusetts. Among the most dangerous:  ...more

Consumer Energy Alliance (01/24/2011)
CEA 112th Congress Policy Recommendations ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance is a member of the Consumer Energy Alliance. We are including both a video talking about the recommendations and the recommendations themselves in this posting   ...more

Houston Chronicle on the Potomac Blog (01/24/2011)
Analysis: Mexican truckers would be a boon to Texas business, but unions say it will cost jobs ... A proposal by the Obama administration that would grant Mexican truckers greater access to Texas roadways -- and far beyond -- would be a boon to businesse  ...more

American Independent  (01/21/2011)
Texas Rep. Pickett files two plans to reduce highway fund diversions ... Chronic funding problems for road infrastructure extend well beyond the current general budget woes. As a first step toward having a serious discussion on adjusting motor fuel taxes  ...more

The Economist (01/21/2011)
Canada's tar sands: Muck and brass... SMOKESTACKS dot the horizon; a whiff of oil hangs in the air; gargantuan vehicles clog the highway. There is a din of heavy machinery, punctuated by blasts from cannons scaring birds away from toxic lakes. But golf c  ...more

AASTHO (01/21/2011)
House to Vote Next Week on Reducing Federal Spending to '08 Levels ... The House Rules Committee approved a resolution Wednesday that would authorize the chairman of the House Budget Committee to set reduced spending levels for the remainder of the fede  ...more

David Holt, Consumer Energy Alliance via Houston Chronicle (01/21/2011)
Affordable energy needed for economic resurgence (Editorial) ... So important was the matter of ensuring the U.S. government had ample and unrestricted access to helium in the future that lawmakers got together in 1920 to pass what is regarded as the fir  ...more

Bismarck Tribune (01/20/2011)
House bill endorses oil fracturing ... The House Energy and Natural Resources Committee heard a bill Thursday that would establish oil fracturing as “an acceptable recovery process in this state.” House Bill 1216 essentially gives a thumbs up to hydraul  ...more

Austin American Statesman  (01/19/2011)
TxDOT takes only glancing blow from House budget ... The Texas Department of Transportation, insulated to some degree from the state’s larger financial bind because it is funded by gas taxes and other fees, would see only a 3.2 percent cut under the prop  ...more

AASTHO (01/19/2011)
Facebook, YouTube Campaign Urges Americans to Tell Congress about Transportation Needs ... As Congress begins work on a new transportation bill, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) today launched a social media   ...more

Barak Obama via Wall Street Journal (01/18/2011)
Toward a 21st-Century Regulatory System ... For two centuries, America's free market has not only been the source of dazzling ideas and path-breaking products, it has also been the greatest force for prosperity the world has ever known. That vibrant ent  ...more

Transportation Nation (01/18/2011)
Interview: John Mica says Transportation Bill Needs “Alternate Means of Financing” (Podcast) ... Transportation Nation’s Todd Zwillich spoke with Republican John Mica, Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, about rumors of ra  ...more

Havre Daily News (01/17/2011)
Highway 2 Association sets annual meeting in Helena ... In conjunction with the legislative session, the Highway 2 Association has set its annual meeting in Helena this year on Tuesday, Jan. 25. “We hold the annual meeting in Helena every two years when  ...more

PTPBlog/USAToday (01/15/2011)
'Earmarks' to nowhere: States losing billions ... Cannot help but comment on this USAToday article. Clearly throws every earmark under the same bus … poorly conceived, incompetent, and political, but carefully avails a major issue with every transportat  ...more

AASTHO (01/14/2011)
Booming Energy Economy Impacting Condition of North Dakota Roads ... Contrary to the financial woes many states are experiencing, North Dakota is in the midst of an economic boom. One of the nation's largest wind farms is located in the state. In additio  ...more

San Angelo Standard-Times (01/14/2011)
San Angelo, TX: City may become transit hub ... San Angelo officials are excited about the area's participation in the Ports-to-Plains Alliance, which plans to pave the way for the city to be a major transportation crossroads. "We are in a prime positio  ...more

Ports-to-Plains Alliance (01/13/2011)
Ports-to-Plains valuable in promoting Alberta, rural economic development ... Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta (MLA) Len Mitzel walked through the crowded lobby outside the Hilton Hotel meeting hall, shaking hands, meeting new people and gre  ...more

Houston Chronicle (01/13/2011)
The Bakken factor: Could this oil reserve become that reliable bridge to a sustainable energy future? ... The news may not rate with a No. 1 ranking in the college football polls, but residents of North Dakota have reason — make that 11 billion reasons —  ...more

Dallas Morning News (01/13/2011)
Sunset panel votes to replace Texas Transportation Commission with single chief ... Gov. Rick Perry could gain even tighter control over the Texas Department of Transportation under a series of proposals approved Wednesday by the Texas Sunset Advisory Co  ...more

PTPBlog/Hulu/Speed TV (01/10/2011)
Heavy Haulers ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance continues to advocate for a transportation system that meets the needs of energy and agriculture through the heartland of North America. Both economic sectors require the movement of oversize and overweight  ...more

Journal of Commerce (01/10/2011)
Mica Plans Field Hearings on Surface Transport Bill ... Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., who chairs the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, intends to start a process in February that can help his panel craft a new multi-year surface transportation bill.  ...more

Dallas Morning News (01/07/2011)
Obama administration's proposal aims to resolve trucking dispute with Mexico ... The Obama administration sent Congress a proposal Thursday for solving a longstanding trucking dispute with Mexico. The Laredo border checkpoint serves thousands of truck  ...more

El Siglo de Torreón (01/07/2011)
'Amarran' recursos para carretera ... Carlos Román Cepeda González, representante de la Secretaría de Fomento Económico del Gobierno del Estado, dijo que ya están asegurados los recursos federales para la construcción de la primera etapa de la carretera   ...more

Daily Yonder (01/05/2011)
The Price of Groceries ... Just before Christmas, the Departments of Justice and Agriculture held a one-day hearing on the discrepancies between the prices for food paid to farmers and the prices for food paid by consumers at the grocery. The hearing wa  ...more

TxDOT Restructure Council (01/05/2011)
TxDOT Restructure Council Issues Report ... Report and a news piece on the TXDOT Restructure Council: A Revitalization of TXDOT  ...more

American Petroleum Institute (01/04/2011)
The State of American Energy Speech ... Jack Gerard – President and CEO, American Petroleum Institute  ...more

Texas Transportation Forum/TxDOT (01/04/2011)
Keynote Address: Governor Edward G. Rendell, State of Pennsylvania ~ Texas Transportation Forum ~ January 4, 2011 (Video) ... This was a highlight of the Texas Transportation Forum. Every transportation advocate would benefit from watching this video.   ...more

Congressional Research Service (01/03/2011)
Transportation Spending Under an Earmark Ban ... Earmarks—formally known as congressionally directed spending—have directed a significant amount of federal transportation spending in recent years. Proposals to ban earmarks in authorization and appropriat  ...more

Bond Buyer (01/03/2011)
Highway Trust Fund Rescue Effort ... The incoming chairman of the House Transportation Committee opposes the Republican leadership's proposal for a change in House rules that could hurt the funding of transportation programs. Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., "is  ...more

PTPBlog (01/03/2011)
Ports-to-Plains Alliance 2010 Report Card …Who We Are…Accomplishments ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance would like to share its 2010 Report Card with you. Advocacy in Washington, DC, state capitals and in true grassroots; domestically we have membership i  ...more

Calgary Herald (01/01/2011)
Optimism riding high in Alberta oilpatch ... Nearly 12,000 oil and gas wells have been drilled in Western Canada in 2010, the second-weakest number of the past decade, but still representing a 30 per cent rebound over 2009. Oil and gas activity is expe  ...more

PTPBlog (01/01/2011)
A look forward on North Dakota’s energy boom ... The boom is on in western North Dakota. The following articles highlight the impacts. Sales tax revenues in Williston demonstrate the current effect of energy and agriculture on western North Dakota econo  ...more

PTPBlog/Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City (12/30/2010)
A Rural Rebound in 2010 ... Let’s begin 2011 with a little good news about rural economies in the Ports-to-Plains Alliance Region. The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City issued The Main Street Economist entitled A Rural Rebound in 2010. The points bel  ...more

PTPBlog/San Angelo Times Standard/The Hill (12/30/2010)
EPA: Views from Texas ... Alex Mills is President of the Texas Alliance of Energy Producers. His comments in the San Angelo Times Standard address the regulatory actions of the EPA in Texas. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (TX) addresses the new EPA green  ...more

PTPBlog/ARTBA (12/29/2010)
House Rules Changes May Affect Transportation Funding ... The article below addresses a probable change in House rules that could certainly affect transportation funding in the 112th Congress. Our team in Washington, DC is very involved, along with other  ...more

PTPBlog/High Plains Journal (12/29/2010)
A New Year’s Resolution: I am going to speak up about Agriculture ... Energy ... Transportation! ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance agrees with Trent Loos’ comments in the following article. His comments are on target for both agriculture and energy and y  ...more

MySanAntionio.com (12/28/2010)
Hearing officer: ITD should issue megaload permits ,,, BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A hearing officer recommended Tuesday that the Idaho Transportation Department issue four permits to allow ConocoPhillips to ship oversized oil-refinery equipment from Idaho to Mo  ...more

Bond Buyer (12/27/2010)
Transport Issues Still Snarled … Prospects Seem Grim for 2011 ... Improving economic conditions are likely to put new stresses on the nation*s roads, airports and ports in 2011, but congressional gridlock could stymie efforts to pass already delayed fund  ...more

AASTHO (12/24/2010)
Senate OKs Extension of Transportation Appropriations & Authorization to March 4 ... The Senate voted 79-16 this afternoon to temporarily extend through March 4 federal highway and transit programs as well as appropriations for the U.S. Department of Tra  ...more

Denver Post (12/24/2010)
Stymied in Congress, the Obama administration is moving unilaterally to clamp down on power plant and oil refinery greenhouse emissions, announcing plans for developing new standards over the next year. In a statement posted on the agency's website late   ...more

Consumer Energy Alliance/PTPBlog (12/23/2010)
House Call: Support Builds for Keystone XL ... Colorado Congressman Doug Lamborn was joined by 38 of his colleagues in the U.S. House of Representatives in calling for an expeditious approval of the cross border permit for the Keystone XL pipeline. Sup  ...more

PTPBlog (12/23/2010)
Could the northern border be secure and efficient? ... The following two articles address ongoing discussions between the United States and Canada regarding security along the 49th parallel. The first article was written by five Canadian Ambassadors to t  ...more

Associated Press (12/21/2010)
Montana Governor says oil company megaloads have their place ... Mont. Gov. Brian Schweitzer said Tuesday that banning the contested oil company megaload shipments from state highways could hurt efforts to attract businesses to the state. Schweitzer mad  ...more

Government of Alberta (12/20/2010)
Alberta kick-starts new world-class monitoring system ... A group of independent experts will provide detailed action items on how to best set up, operate, and govern a world-class environmental monitoring, evaluation, and reporting system for Alberta’s   ...more

PTPBlog (12/20/2010)
False Attacks on Animal Agriculture by HSUS ... Animal agriculture is a mainstay of the economy of the Ports-to-Plains Alliance Region. That economy, much like energy, is under false attacks by outside groups whose agenda often outweighs truth. In this  ...more

Energy Tomorrow (12/20/2010)
Fossil Fuels or Alternatives? ... For the past couple of years, U.S. policymakers have been debating two different ways of addressing this country's energy needs. Some politicians believe the United States should embrace the development of alternative en  ...more

Huffington Post (12/18/2010)
An Inside Look at Beef Processing ... I just got back from west Texas where I toured a big industrial beef processing plant and I am still in shock by what I witnessed there. But I am not shocked in the way you might expect based on the negative portraya  ...more

Medicine Hat News (Opinion) (12/18/2010)
Development of oilsands needs some perspective ... To listen to critics of the oilsands there is evidently something about reality that bothers a lot of people. It doesn't matter whether it's Greenpeace or the Royal Society of Canada, everybody goes on a  ...more

PTPBlog (12/18/2010)
Saskatchewan and Ports-to-Plains Alliance … It’s a Natural Fit (PowerPoint) ... The Ports to Plains Alliance and the Theodore Roosevelt Expressway made this presentation in Saskatchewan. With a total trading relationship of $3.159 billion between Saskat  ...more

PTPBlog (12/17/2010)
Guest Editorial: Though Shalt Not Pass ... An interesting story from The New York Times. The details of the story have me shaking my head. It appears that in Idaho a small group of residents are trying to block construction equipment from using public  ...more

Lone Star Report  (12/17/2010)
Texas Transportation Commission takes look at miles-driven tax method ... The Texas Transportation Commission, in its Dec. 15 meeting, took a look at a taxation method to eventually replace the state motor fuels tax. The Texas Transportation Institute r  ...more

Logistics Today (12/17/2010)
Modest Growth in Manufacturing is Sustainable ... In tandem with a slowing pace of recovery in the general economy, the manufacturing sector is decelerating, yet modest growth is sustainable, according to the Manufacturers Alliance/MAPI’s U.S. Industrial  ...more

PTPBlog (12/16/2010)
Alberta Economic Outlook Good!   ...more

PTPBlog (12/16/2010)
North Dakota recognizes transportation needs in energy corridor ... New North Dakota governor on the two year budget cycle – “Counting the regular highway funding committed to these Western Districts, we are providing $958 million altogether for infrastr  ...more

Norfolk Daily News (12/14/2010)
Nebraska Legislative Update: Sen. Fischer Unveils Highway Funding Plan for the 2011 Legislative Session ... State Senator Deb Fischer of Valentine today unveiled her highway funding plan for the upcoming legislative session, calling for a half cent of ex  ...more

Calgary Herald (12/14/2010)
Oilsands rivals unite to tackle tailings pond environmental issue ... Alberta's seven oilsands mining companies have decided to share tailings research without regard to patents or recovering costs in an effort to speed up reclamation of the embarrassing  ...more

Fast Company (12/14/2010)
Amarillo: Hotbed of Freelancers, and Other Outsourcing Surprises From 2010 ... Workers in Amarillo, Texas collectively earned the fourth-largest amount of money of any city in the U.S. from gigs they found via the job-posting site Elance. That's just one  ...more

Edmonton Sun (12/13/2010)
Oil companies unveil $90-million partnership on tailings ponds research ... Seven oil giants are joining forces in a push to slash the environmental impact of tailings ponds. The oil companies — which will share tailings research — announced the “unpre  ...more

Moose Jaw Times Herald (12/13/2010)
Enterprise Region joins tri-national partnership ... Representatives from several American states were in Moose Jaw Friday to educate economic developers, as well as provincial and municipal officials on the benefits of a trade partnership. They found at   ...more

PTPBlog (12/11/2010)
Ports-to-Plains Alliance meets with leaders in Moose Jaw, SK ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance (PTP) and the Theodore Roosevelt Expressway Association (TRE) met with leaders in the South Central Enterprise Region in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan on Friday after  ...more

The Hill Energy & Environmental Blog (12/10/2010)
White House backs green tax provisions to build liberal support ... …The package includes other green-energy incentives that could win support among House liberals, who are disappointed the Senate failed to take up a comprehensive energy reform and clima  ...more

PTPBlog (12/10/2010)
Congressmen in the Ports-to-Plains Region assigned to Ways and Means Committee and Energy and Commerce Committee ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance congratulates both third term Adrian Smith, 3rd-NE, on his assignment to the House Ways and Means Committee   ...more

Alverta Oil (12/10/2010)
The fluid behind the frac ... Hydraulic fracturing is a term that’s increasingly bandied about but unfortunately remains poorly understood. The composition of fluids used in high-pressure injections that blast fissures into dense layers of underground ro  ...more

Landlinemag.com (12/09/2010)
Mica confirmed as chairman of House T&I Committee ... As expected, U.S. Rep. John Mica, R-FL, has been confirmed to chair the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in the next Congress. He is currently the ranking Republican on the committee,  ...more

Yahoo Finance (12/09/2010)
Despite Drug Violence, Business Is Booming in Mexico ... Monday saw the opening of Madonna's new high-end gym in the wealthy Bosques de Las Romas suburb of Mexico City. With access to the gym over $160 a month, it was proof of the rising wealth to be fou  ...more

The Shaunavon Standard (12/07/2010)
U.S. highway group to visit Shaunavon ... A group of special guests from the U.S. will be in Shaunavon this Saturday to discuss border, highway and trade issues with community leaders from across the Southwest. The visit to Shaunavon is one of several   ...more

Ag Week (12/07/2010)
Ag aiding economy ... Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, in a Dec. 1 news conference, highlighted recently released trade and income statistics showing agriculture leading the country out of the recession. Vilsack said USDA forecasts that U.S. farm expo  ...more

PTPBlog (12/06/2010)
Ports-to-Plains Endorses the Recommendation Regarding Fuel Taxes by the Debt Reform Commission ... The National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform released its final deficit-reduction proposal that includes a recommendation to gradually incre  ...more

Transportation Nation (12/03/2010)
Jim Oberstar, Exit Interview after 17 Terms with House Transportation Committee (MP3) ... Rep. James Oberstar (Dem-Minn.) is about to leave the House after serving 17 terms representing the 8th Congressional District of Minnesota. He’s spent 15 years as   ...more

ABC13.com (12/02/2010)
Drilling ban to impact oil, gas companies in Houston (Video) ... The Obama administration says there will be no new drilling in the eastern Gulf of Mexico for the next seven years  ...more

PTPBlog (12/02/2010)
Earmarks ... Earmarks ... Earmarks ... What about Transportation Funding! instead of Debt ... Thankfully the Report of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform was released on December 1st. Perhaps it will shift the focus from earmark  ...more

PTPBlog (12/01/2010)
The Moment of Truth: Report of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform: a Focus on Transportation and its Role in the Economy ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance agrees with the statements made by John Horsley, executive director of the   ...more

News Channel 10 (12/01/2010)
All Eyes on Dumas Wind Energy Industry ... Hopefully all eyes are now on Dumas and its' wind industry because of a recent award. Expansion Solutions Magazine, a national publication, has named the Dumas EDC to its' top five for success in bringing wind e  ...more

Yahoo Finance (12/01/2010)
What the "Frack?" Natural Gas Is Key to America's Energy Independence, but Is It Safe? (Video) ... The White House has decided to extend the temporary ban on any new drilling in the eastern Gulf of Mexico for at least another seven years, the AP reports.  ...more

Denver Business Journal (11/30/2010)
Colorado's agriculture exports up 28% so far in 2010: Agriculture Development in the Ports-to-Plains Region ... Colorado's agricultural export sales totaled $778 million in the first nine months of 2010, up 28 percent from the same period of 2009, the st  ...more

PTPBlog (11/29/2010)
PTP Editorial: The Future of Renewable Energy??? ... While the Ports-to-Plains Alliance supports an all-energy strategy and communities throughout the Ports-to-Plains Alliance Region are benefiting from renewable energy opportunities including production  ...more

Tri-State G & T (11/29/2010)
Kit Carson Windpower Project operational: Economic Development in the Ports-to-Plains Region ... Tri-State announced on Nov. 29, 2010 the completion of the Kit Carson Windpower Project, a 51-megawatt wind farm located in east-central Colorado. The wholes  ...more

American Petroleum Institute (11/29/2010)
Election night poll: Americans oppose new oil, natural gas industry taxes by 2-to-1 margin – most cite job loss fears ... By a decisive margin, Americans oppose raising taxes on America’s oil and natural gas industry, and most believe it could kill jobs,  ...more

PTPBlog (11/27/2010)
Oil Boom in North Dakota Continues-Economic News in the Ports-to-Plains Region  ...more

Territorio de Coahuila y Texas (11/27/2010)
Convoca Fomento Económico a Cuarta Feria del Empleo en apoyo a 15 maquiladoras ... En apoyo a trece maquiladoras, cuatro centros comerciales y una institución educativa, que requieren en conjunto más de 670 trabajadores, Fomento Económico del Estado y de  ...more

PTPBlog (11/26/2010)
Oversize Loads Bound for Refinery in Billings, MT Still Held Up by Administrative Procedures ... The ongoing event in Idaho regarding oversize loads brings an interesting question before us. Should federal funding for highways be withheld from the state   ...more

Big Government (11/25/2010)
What James Cameron Can’t Tell You about the Oil Sands ... When movie director James Cameron descended upon the Athabasca oil sands a while back, Albertans were subjected to the predictable but nonetheless aggravating media blitz of misinformation that oc  ...more

Denver Post (11/23/2010)
Addition to NREL research complex planned -Economic Development News in the Ports-to-Plains Region ... A $39 million research-support facility — funded with federal stimulus money — is set to be built at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden  ...more

PTPBlog (11/23/2010)
The Race to Liquids: North America’s Energy Corridor ... The Ports-to-Plains Alliance region is the North American Energy Corridor. As this article that was published in August indicates, not only is the region a primary location for new natural gas pla  ...more

National Post (11/21/2010)
What follows is an excerpt from a speech by former American ambassador to Canada David H. Wilkins at the Churchill Society Dinner on Nov. 16. On the eve of the First World War, Winston Churchill made a historic decision: to shift the power source of the   ...more

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal (11/21/2010)
South Plains stands to lose big in earmark flap ,,, Petersburg’s pork replaced the witch-hatted landmark the state figured was best left to the birds. Inspection problems led the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to shut down in 2009 the water t  ...more

San Angelo Standard-Times (11/20/2010)
Officials seek to propel projects ... San Angelo city officials went on a whirlwind round of lobbying Friday, seeking assistance and advice to propel water and transportation projects forward. Mayor Alvin New and Assistant City Manager Elizabeth Grindsta  ...more

Toronto Star (11/20/2010)
A new beef with role of cows in global warming ... Statistics have been giving us a bum steer when they state how much cattle methane emissions contribute to global warming, a new study shows. That's because mathematical equations used to predict cows' m  ...more

PTPBlog (11/19/2010)
Ports-to-Plains Editorial: Earmarks at top of Congress’ list ... There is a great deal of focus upon earmarks. Earmarks are controversial and greatly misunderstood. There is no doubt about it. Many criticize the practice of earmarking and say it shoul  ...more

TRIP / PTPBlog (11/19/2010)
Future Mobility in Texas: Meeting the State’s Need for Safe and Efficient Mobility ... A new report highlights Texas transportation needs. TRIP estimates that Texas’ roadways that lack some desirable safety features, have inadequate capacity to meet tra  ...more

Territorio de Acuña y Texas (11/18/2010)
Promueven casi 700 empleos en Acuña ... Al señalar que Coahuila es hoy el primer estado del país donde se genera más empleo, el presidente municipal Alberto Aguirre Villarreal destacó que Cd. Acuña es la que más ha contribuido, junto con Saltillo para qu  ...more

Scottsbluff Star Herald (11/18/2010)
Coalition looks to increase funding for Nebraska roads ... High construction costs and rapidly deteriorating roads across Nebraska have led a group to appeal for more state highway spending. Nebraska On the Move, a coalition of groups committed to impr  ...more

Lubbock Avalanche Journal (11/18/2010)
Northern gusts can't chill Levelland rail park celebration ... Levelland, which calls itself “progressive on purpose,” got some new slogans to think about Wednesday during a wind-swept ceremony opening the city’s $8.6 million industrial rail park. “Leve  ...more

City of Del Rio and Chamber of Commerce (11/17/2010)
Del Rio’s City and Chamber host Tourism Study Tour ... The Del Rio Chamber of Commerce in conjunction with the City of Del Rio recently hosted a tourism study tour using a grant obtained through the office of the Governor. The findings of the study will  ...more

Solutions Magazine (11/17/2010)
Ports-to-Plains Alliance members: Dumas and Sweetwater Economic Development Corporations (TX) receive Awards of Excellence for Wind Energy  ...more

Drive our Economy (11/16/2010)
Top 8 Myths: Kearl U.S. 12 Transportation Project ... Overweight and oversize trucks are common occurances in an economy like the Ports-to-Plains region with its basic economic drivers of energy and agriculture. The current discussion in Idaho and Monta  ...more

PTP Blog (11/15/2010)
Continuing Education: Hydraulic Fracturing ... In a continued attempt to keep accurate information before you, the Ports-to-Plains Alliance continues to provide the latest information on Hydraulic Fracturing. Please share these links with your friends.   ...more

Midland Reporter-Telegram  (11/15/2010)
Rep. Drew Darby (R-San Angelo) says state needs to address transportation funding ... If Texas doesn't address its transportation funding issues, congestion and a lack of road maintenance will lead to a loss of dollars in citizens' pockets and a decline   ...more

Territorio de Acuña y Texas (11/14/2010)
The modernization of the highway Torreón-San Pedro recorded a rise of 90 percent overall ... Gabriel Díaz Couder Núñez, Director de Construcciones de la Secretaría de Desarrollo Regional de La Laguna informó que la administración del Gobernador Humberto   ...more

PTPBlog (11/12/2010)
The “Science” of CSI … What else should we believe? Last night CSI on CBS decided to create a political show on hydraulic fracturing. Science and accuracy were certainly not part of the plot. If you really want to know what hydraulic fracturing is all a  ...more

Billings Gazette (11/12/2010)
New group promotes big rigs on Montana Roads ... Some Missoula business, contractor, agriculture and community groups have formed Drive Our Economy, a task force to promote Montana's economy and protect its roadways for commercial use. It was formed in   ...more

Williston Herald (11/12/2010)
Bakken oil conference scheduled next week in Denver … Ports-to-Plains and Theodore Reesevelt Expressway to participate  ...more

Woodward Governor Company (11/11/2010)
Woodward Signs Multi-Year Agreement With REpower to Supply Wind Power Converters ... Woodward Governor Company (NASDAQ: WGOV) today announced that it signed a multi-year agreement with REpower Systems AG, Germany that will substantially increase deliveri  ...more

Wall Street Journal  (11/11/2010)
Deficit Panel's Leaders Push Cuts ... Proposal to Save $3.8 Trillion Targets Medicare, Pentagon, Middle-Class Tax Breaks ... National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform co-chairs Alan Simpson, a retired Wyoming Republican senator, and Erski  ...more

New York Times (11/11/2010)
Panel Seeks Social Security Cuts and Higher Taxes ... The chairmen of President Obama’s bipartisan commission on reducing the national debt outlined a politically provocative and economically ambitious package of spending cuts and tax increases on Wednes  ...more

National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform (11/11/2010)
National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform CO-Chair Proposal  ...more

EOP (11/11/2010)
$200 Billion in Illustrative Savings-Federal Debt Reduction Proposal  ...more

Progressive on Purpose: A Blog About Levelland Texas (11/11/2010)
Levelland Completes New $8.6 Million Industrial Rail Park … Ports-to-Plains Alliance Region ... Less than one year after breaking ground, Levelland City and Economic Development officials will get engines on track for an $8.6 million industrial rail park  ...more

Denver Business Journal (11/11/2010)
Vestas ready to hire as Colorado production ramps up … Ports-to-Plains Region ... Vestas Wind Systems will add 1,700 jobs in the United States in the next few months as the Danish wind turbine-maker ramps up production at its Colorado factories. In an i  ...more

Dallas Morning News (11/10/2010)
Editorial: Texas: Hard push needed for transportation money ... Think of the 2011 Legislature as a turnip, the same homely vegetable that's tough to squeeze blood out of. It's the right mental image for how tough it will be next year to get lawmakers to   ...more

Missoulian (11/09/2010)
Semitrailers attach to 2 Conoco megaloads at Port of Lewiston ... A funny thing happened Sunday and Monday as legal minds sparred over the next moves in the ConocoPhillips oil-drum shipment saga: Things started popping at the Port of Lewiston, where the  ...more

Des Moines Register (11/08/2010)
Defi