Author Archive
Daniel C. Vock
Dan Vock is a senior reporter at Route Fifty, where he focuses on transportation and infrastructure. He has covered state and local government for two decades, first as an Illinois statehouse reporter and later as a national reporter based in Washington, D.C. Dan has written stories about every state in the country, and has reported on the ground from half of them (so far). He won a Jesse H. Neal award for best profile and earned a fellowship from the Columbia Journalism School’s Ira A. Lipman Center for Journalism and Civil and Human Rights.
Infrastructure
Passenger rail keeps chugging forward during Infrastructure Week
Efforts to expand rail have reached significant milestones in recent weeks, from construction on the Northeast Corridor to new funding on Colorado’s Front Range.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Infrastructure
Why Washington Metro’s leader is ‘bullish’ on post-pandemic transit
Faced with a drop in riders and major budget shortfalls, Randy Clarke doubled down on providing more service to D.C.-area riders. It seems to be working.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Infrastructure
Feds open the door to $2B in Northeast Corridor rail improvements
The grant applications come as President Joe Biden, a longtime railroad fan, wraps up his first term and Amtrak ridership rapidly rebounds from pandemic-era lows.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Infrastructure
After Supreme Court decision left wetlands unprotected, Colorado steps in
Lawmakers crafted new rules to protect and restore wetlands and streams left vulnerable following a decision by the high court that scaled back the types of places subject to the Clean Water Act.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Management
Amid campus protests nationwide, DC’s response stands out
The capital city’s police department cleared an encampment at a local university following pressure from House Republicans to be more forceful. But the District’s reluctance to take action sooner underlies lessons officials learned decades ago about the perils of aggressive enforcement.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Management
How local governments can respond to the housing crisis
A new book by Charles Marohn and Daniel Herriges of Strong Towns encourages local officials to promote small-scale developments, even if it means using city financial tools to get them off the ground.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Management
As a critical deadline approaches, the Biden administration issues a flurry of regulations
The new rules cover subjects as varied as marijuana policy, vehicle pollution, civil rights for transgender students, and drinking water safety.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Management
Illinois' child welfare agency goes on a hiring spree
The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services has reduced hiring times for frontline workers from nine months to just a few weeks. Agency leaders hope a bigger staff will help improve the lives of kids it serves.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Infrastructure
E-bikes are a ‘game changer’ for bike shares
Ridership on the systems in cities big and small after the pandemic is stronger than ever, and bike-share operators say the electric devices are a big reason why.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Workforce
Southern governors raise pressure in fights with auto unions
Republican officials want to tell automakers that get big financial incentives for new factories that they have to use secret ballots during unionization efforts.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Infrastructure
States explore new incentives to lower the cost of EVs
Washington state became the latest state to roll out rebates for buying or leasing EVs this week, but other states are offering incentives to knock thousands of dollars off the cost of the vehicles, too.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Management
Justices debate whether cities can make sleeping outside a crime
Cities worry they could have to “surrender” public places if an Oregon city’s anti-camping law is struck down by the Supreme Court, while advocates say the city rules criminalize being homeless.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Management
Justices appear willing to limit bribery law used in corruption cases
The U.S. Supreme Court appeared to be sympathetic to a former Indiana mayor’s argument that the federal bribery statute is vague. A ruling would resolve a disparity in which “gratuities” from outsiders are considered OK in some courts, but not in others.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Finance
Can compromise be reached in two state budget debates?
Taxes and affordable housing are holding up budgets in Virginia and New York. Instead of threats, the governors in each state appear to be trying to find common ground—for now.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Infrastructure
Senate rebukes Biden administration on effort to reduce vehicle pollution
Three Democrats and one independent joined the chamber’s Republicans, arguing the Federal Highway Administration overstepped its authority in requiring states to track greenhouse gas emissions. But the president threatened to veto the measure.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Infrastructure
New Houston mayor reverses course on bike, pedestrian improvements
Mayor John Whitmire ordered pedestrian islands removed, froze projects with bike lanes and suggested cyclists stick to “recreational” trails. It’s a big change in direction from his predecessor’s approach.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Management
Oregon rolls back decriminalization of drugs. But is it too soon?
At a time when drug overdoses plague the nation, Oregon will recriminalize hard drugs, walking back a first-in-the nation experiment that critics say the state botched.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Infrastructure
2022 was the ‘worst year ever for bicyclist deaths,’ new data shows
Safety advocates blame the upswing in cyclist deaths on larger, more powerful vehicles that have become more common on American roads in the last decade.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Infrastructure
Biden administration mandates two-person crews on freight trains
The new rules from the Federal Railroad Administration come after nearly a dozen states passed similar requirements in the last decade.
- By Daniel C. Vock
Finance
Pro teams aim to score nicer stadiums—and maybe more—from the public
Sports teams are asking for millions of dollars in public subsidies to build or refurbish their stadiums, and many want to create nearby fan districts to boost their bottom lines too.
- By Daniel C. Vock