Tag Archives: department of transportation

US Dot – Airline Cancellations Below 2%

However, DOT is currently investigating several domestic airlines to ensure that they are not engaging in unrealistic scheduling of flights. Gaming the system is possible, perhaps likely, because last year, DOT issued the largest fines in the history of the consumer protection office, thereby helping hundreds of thousands of air travelers get hundreds of millions of dollars back. Since 2021, DOT says it has helped return more than $1 billion in refunds to travelers. Continue reading

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US DOT Gives Spirit Slots at Newark as Airlines Bilk Flyers

This comes as as weary people attempt to resume some sort of normal post-covid routines after the disastrous Trump mis-administration that ignored the deadly effects of a corona virus that is still mutating. Let the finger pointing start, or rather continue. That said AutoInformed notes once again that airlines are in effect a free international marketing tool that promotes the use of automobiles and automobility. Continue reading

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American Fined $900,000 for Tarmac Delays at O’Hare Airport

Between May 2010 and April 2011, the first 12 months after the three-hour limit was in effect, the larger U.S. airlines required to file tarmac delays reported 20 tarmac delays of more than three hours, none of which was more than four hours long. In contrast, during the 12 months before the rule took effect, these carriers had 693 tarmac delays of more than three hours, and 105 of the delays were longer than four hours, according to DOT. Anti-government regulation fanatics should note that this is a clear case of effective regulation. Continue reading

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Milestones: 45 Years of the Department of Transportation

Over the weekend the U.S. Department of Transportation celebrated its 45 anniversary since President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the law that created it by combining 31 agencies and their bureaus into DOT. “In a large measure, America’s history is a … Continue reading

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New Jersey Stiffs U.S. Taxpayers over $271 Million Grant. Republicans, Democrats Collude on Cancelled ARC Tunnel

Well, it sounds like LaHood (an Illinois Republican appointed by Obama) had no choice. Defenders of the deal, and there are some, say that DOT maneuvered to get N.J. taxpayers some benefit from the cancelled transit investment. In their view this solves the standoff over reimbursement — interest and penalties were accruing daily that New Jersey taxpayers would have been responsible for — and maybe New Jersey residents will also get the benefit of improved transit in the state. We will see. There sure is enough political manure here in my view to help New Jersey remain the garden state… Continue reading

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DOT adds Protections for Air Travelers Abused by Airlines

The rulemaking finalized today grows from passenger protections issued by the U.S. Department of Transportation in December 2009, which prohibited U.S. airlines operating domestic flights from permitting an aircraft to remain on the tarmac for more than three hours. That rule stopped almost overnight a common abuse of passengers by 16 of the largest U.S. airlines. Continue reading

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FocusDriven Distracted Driving PSA: 5,500; How Many More?

FocusDriven, the first national non-profit organization advocating for victims of distracted driving has released new Public Service Announcement or PSA titled, “5,500; How Many More?”

The PSA highlights that nearly 5,500 people are killed and half a million more are injured in distraction-related crashes annually. The auto industry and electronics makers whose devices are enabling distracted driving thus far show no interest in helping to curb this growing safety problem. And the U.S. Congress has forbidden federal safety regulators form promulgating national standards or rules. Continue reading

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DOT Secretary LaHood Blasts Distracted Driving Yet Again

Congress has prohibited DOT from enacting national regulations governing driving behavior, so LaHood can do little about it except use his “bully pulpit” to address the growing issue, which has been called repeatedly an epidemic by safety advocates. Continue reading

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