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February 13th, 2009

America in Gridlock: [VIDEO] Stimulus Roadblock?
President Barack Obama's stimulus money is about to be distributed, but will it be spent in the way it is intended? One alarming example: Mass transit. Cities and states, strapped for money, are cutting back on mass transit even as it becomes more popular with Americans. At the same time, President Obama is calling for increased mass transit as a necessary step toward energy independence. Blueprint America -- with NOW on PBS -- reports from North Carolina to see what the future holds for the country's mass transit systems in these financial times.

January 16th, 2009

America in Gridlock: [RADIO] There’s Gas in Them Thar Hills
Blueprint America -- with Weekend America -- in a report on modern day gas prospecting in the hills of Northeastern Pennsylvania.

January 15th, 2009

America in Gridlock: [VIDEO] Power Struggle
Will green energy happen? Blueprint America -- with NOW on PBS -- looks at the reality of renewables -- energy generated from natural resources such as sunlight, wind, and rain.

December 31st, 2008

Profiles from the Recession: [VIDEO] The Big Fix
In a Blueprint America special, David Brancaccio (NOW on PBS) interviews Nobel Laureate and The New York Times columnist Paul Krugman about President-elect Barack Obama's proposed stimulus package - how government spending on infrastructure projects will impact America's economy in these hard times.

December 31st, 2008

Profiles from the Recession: [VIDEO] Paul Krugman’s Big Fix
Blueprint America -- with host David Brancaccio (NOW on PBS) -- interviews economist Paul Krugman on the effect a stimulus in infrastructure spending will have on the American economy.

December 16th, 2008

America in Gridlock: [VIDEO] The Wrong Track
About one in every three users of mass transit in the United States and two-thirds of the nation's rail riders live in New York City and its suburbs. And the cost to maintain one of the world’s most extensive mass transit systems is expensive. Each new subway car, for example, costs $1.4 million. Replacing and maintaining tracks runs the state's Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) about $303 million a year. In order to pay for subway maintenance and projects over the years, the MTA has had to borrow a lot of money for funding. So much so that the MTA is now the fifth biggest debtor in the United States – after the state of California, the state of Massachusetts, New York State, and New York City. Blueprint America looks at the costs of maintaining New York City's transportation system and the difficulties involved when making improvements.

December 15th, 2008

America in Gridlock: [VIDEO] The Wrong Track: Building the Second Avenue Subway
Blueprint America correspondent Rick Karr speaks with Joe Trainer, Chief Engineer of MTA Capital Construction in New York City, about the day to day process of building the Second Avenue line from above ground in Manhattan.

December 15th, 2008

America in Gridlock: [VIDEO] The Wrong Track: 14 Stories Underground
Blueprint America correspondent Rick Karr speaks with Edward Kennedy, Chief Tunnel Engineer of the East Side Access Tunnel in New York City, about the construction of the Long Island Railroad access tunnel that will run from Queens to Grand Central Station in Manhattan -- 140 feet underground.

December 12th, 2008

America in Gridlock: [VIDEO] The Wrong Track: The Saga of the 2nd Avenue Subway (1975)
This 51st State report, which originally aired in 1975 on Channel Thirteen in New York, looks at New York City's repeated attempts to complete a second subway line on the East Side of Manhattan. The project is still not finished after over a half-century of delays.

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