PBS NewsHour: Transportation Archive | 2011

ABOUT US \| LOCAL TV LISTINGS EMAIL PRINT

TRANSPORTATION


	2011 DECEMBER Dec. 29, 2011 California to Stop Towing, Impounding Vehicles of Unlicensed Drivers Starting Jan. 1, a new law will take effect in California, meaning that police officers can no longer impound a car at sobriety checkpoints if the driver's only offense is driving without a license.

	Dec. 23, 2011 The Role of the Consumer Mindset in the Cost of Energy Jeffrey Brown talked to energy expert author Daniel Yergin about the impact of consumer behavior on the elasticity of oil prices. Watch Yergin discuss oil prices and the consequences of the Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan.

	Dec. 13, 2011 Proposed Cell Phone Ban for Drivers: What Do You Think? A Q&A with NTSB Chief Deborah Herman and a Storify of thoughts from members of the NewsHour audience on how they feel about the new recommendations for a ban on all personal electronic devices while driving.



	NOVEMBER Nov. 21, 2011 Tweet Your Thanksgiving Travel Tales With #TSATime In 2010, your tweets helped debunk fears that Thanksgiving travel would be a nightmare due to stricter airport security measures and 'opt-out' protests. This year, we want to hear again first-hand about your experience flying during one of the busiest travel weeks of the year.



	OCTOBER Oct. 11, 2011 'Underwear Bomber' Trial Opens in Detroit Opening arguments were heard Tuesday in a Detroit courtroom in the trial against Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the Nigerian man known as the "underwear bomber" who stands accused of trying to blow up an American airplane on Christmas Day 2009. Gwen Ifill reports.



	SEPTEMBER Sept. 14, 2011 9/11 to Now: Ways We Have Changed With the 10th anniversary this week, we take a look at some of the other changes in American life.

	Sept. 9, 2011 In Russia, Airplane Crash Renews Focus on Airline Safety The crash of a jet Wednesday that killed 45 people, including 38 players, coaches and staff of the Russian professional ice hockey team Lokomotiv Yaroslavl has renewed focus on Russia's poor airline safety record.

	Sept. 8, 2011 Drastic Changes in Airport Security After 9/11 Stir Controversy Correspondent Tom Bearden reports on the profound changes in aviation security and air travel after the 9/11 attacks. Critics say some of the new measures are excessive and infringe on the rights of travelers, pointing to more invasive searches and examples of passengers being detained.

	Sept. 8, 2011 9/11's Profound Effects on Air Travel After 9/11, Washington federalized airport security by creating the Transportation Security Administration and overhauled the screening process. Tom Bearden looks at a the rapid increase in security measures and the many ways air travel has changed for passengers.



	AUGUST Aug. 26, 2011 Cars of the Future May Keep Us Safe Behind the Wheel at Any Age The MIT AgeLab's latest creation is the "Aware Car," with $1.5 million dollars worth of medical, computer, camera and robotic equipment which will sense and predict a driver's performance -- and even intervene to prevent accidents.

	Aug. 25, 2011 In 'Old People Driving,' Handing Over the Keys Means the End of the Road In "Old People Driving," filmmaker Shaleece Haas examines how aging Americans can balance safety and independence as the ranks of drivers 85 and older surpasses 3 million. This excerpt is part of The Economist Film Project series of independently produced films aired in partnership between The Economist and the NewsHour.

	Aug. 10, 2011 China's High-Speed Rail Accident 'Struck a Nerve' The fatal collision of two high-speed trains last month in China was not only a blow to the country's growing transportation system, but also to the nation's use of the system as a sign of its rising status.

	Aug. 4, 2011 FAA Shutdown Coming to an End, But Funding Fight Still Looms Congressional leaders announced Thursday they had reached a bipartisan agreement to temporarily extend funding for the Federal Aviation Administration, which would end the nearly two-week partial shutdown but leave long-term funding in question. Jeffrey Brown discusses the deal with Public Radio International's Todd Zwillich.

	Aug. 4, 2011 Reid: Deal Made to End FAA Shutdown Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Thursday afternoon that a bipartisan compromise has been reached to end the partial Federal Aviation Administration shutdown that put thousands of transportation and construction workers out of work indefinitely.

	Aug. 3, 2011 Airplane Turbulence: Is It Dangerous? No frequent flyer is a stranger to turbulence. But what causes it, and how dangerous is it?

	Aug. 2, 2011 Budget Impasse, Partial Shutdown Costing FAA Millions in Lost Revenue Since July 23, the FAA has furloughed nearly 4,000 employees and shut down construction grants for workers at airport facilities. Judy Woodruff discusses the budget impasse, which is costing the FAA millions in lost revenue, with Public Radio International's Todd Zwillich and USA Today's Ben Mutzabaugh.



	JULY July 29, 2011 How Will New Fuel Efficiency Rules Affect Consumers? President Obama, flanked on stage by executives from the country's leading automakers, announced new fuel economy standards for cars and light trucks Friday that would double the current requirement to 54.

	July 25, 2011 LaHood on FAA Furloughs: Congress Must Pass Long-Term Funding The Senate adjourned Friday without reauthorizing the Federal Aviation Administration's budget, which left nearly 4,000 employees out of work immediately. Ray Suarez discusses the status of the FAA's budget problems and what could be done to fix them with Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood.

	July 6, 2011 Somali Terror Suspect in U.S. Court A Somali man, Ahmed Abdulkadir Warsame, appeared in a New York City courtroom, months after he was detained in the Gulf of Aden on suspicion of involvement in terrorist activities.



	JUNE June 3, 2011 The Morning Line: Amid Poor Jobs Report, Obama Will Tout Autos Success On a day when President Obama heads to Ohio to tout the successful rescue of the American auto industry, he'll have to combat brutal headlines about a labor market that seems entirely stalled.



	APRIL April 20, 2011 LaHood: 2 Controllers Fired, but All Must Take 'Personal Responsibility' Federal officials moved to dispel new air-travel safety concerns after a military plane carrying first lady Michelle Obama breached the safety zone of another plane landing ahead of it. Gwen Ifill talks to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood about the latest in a series of incidents involving air-traffic controllers.

	April 20, 2011 New 'Passenger Bill of Rights' Limits Tarmac Time, Reimburses Lost Bags Passengers wait in check-in lines Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced Wednesday a bulked-up version of the "Passenger Bill of Rights" for consumers traveling by air.

	April 14, 2011 'Brain Rattler' Schedule Among Big Problems for Air-Traffic Controllers The Federal Aviation Administration's top air-traffic control official resigned Thursday following another report of a controller sleeping on the job, forcing a medical flight to land without tower guidance in Reno. Judy Woodruff discusses the safety concerns with Alan Levin, who covers aviation for USA Today.

	April 4, 2011 Cracks Ground Southwest Planes, Raise New Questions on Inspections Southwest Airlines is grounding its fleet of Boeing 737-300s for inspection after one of its planes was forced to make an emergency landing Friday with a five-foot hole in the roof of the cabin.



	FEBRUARY Feb. 8, 2011 Transportation Secretary: Electronic Issue Not Cause of Toyota Recall Woes Jeffrey Brown speaks with Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood about the investigation into Toyota's recalls of more than 12 million vehicles after thousands of drivers complained of unintended acceleration. LaHood said an investigation showed that electronic flaws do not appear to have been the cause of the problems.

	Feb. 2, 2011 One-Million Car March? A warning to those expecting EVs to clog the roadways anytime soon, or even to meet President Obama's stated goal of one million by 2015.

	Feb. 2, 2011 One-Million Car March? A warning to those expecting EVs (electric vehicles) to clog the roadways anytime soon, or even to meet President Obama's stated goal of one million by 2015: it's not likely to happen, despite the fact that the U.S. has as many as a quarter of a billion gas-powered vehicles on the roads right now.



	JANUARY Jan. 31, 2011 For Automakers, Better Batteries Crucial to Success of New Electric Cars In the second of two reports on the future of electric cars, Paul Solman looks at efforts to make the vehicles more viable -- and financially successful for automakers -- by building better batteries and making them more aerodynamic. It's all part of his ongoing reporting on Making Sen$e of financial news.

	Jan. 31, 2011 'Revenge of the Electric Car' Director Paine Discusses Renewed Optimism Filmmaker Chris Paine achieved notoriety with his 2006 documentary, "Who Killed the Electric Car?" Now he's back -- with a more sanguine sequel, "The Revenge of the Electric Car.

	Jan. 30, 2011 How Funny is the Chevy Volt? A Skeptic Gives It a Going Over As a preview to our Tool$ Tuesday feature (spoiler alert: we'll be looking at your car's carbon emissions), here's a truly surprising "review" of the Chevy Volt, the electric darling of the Detroit Auto Show earlier this month and the subject of a piece of ours last week and another airing this week on the NewsHour.

	Jan. 20, 2011 Desolate Detroit: The Forsaken City In its heyday, it boasted nearly two million people, the world's premier automobile industry, the world's most popular music , and perhaps the country's most prosperous black middle class.