Transportation

In a rare reversal of a long-standing trend, gas prices in the Sacramento area and throughout California remained stable last week while the rest of the nation saw a significant increase.

Elected officials voiced increasing doubts Monday about opening the new San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as planned on Labor Day weekend, and asked for a formal investigation into state management of the massive construction project.

Experts say that while a total collapse seems unlikely, if Caltrans miscalculated corrosion estimates a major quake could cripple sections of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge.

The Bee's ongoing investigation into California Department of Transportation testing and construction has prompted changes in how state government safeguards bridges and roadways.

Corroded tendons were one of many problems that have plagued the new eastern span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge since its inception.

Joel Sayre, a former spokesman for the Bay Bridge project, brought concerns about corroded skyway tendons to The Bee in November 2011.

Cars that steer themselves through bumper-to-bumper traffic will hit the market by the end of this year, and self-parking vehicles aren't far behind. Fully autonomous models that don't need human drivers at all are less than a decade from dealerships.

Frustrated state senators pressed California Department of Transportation officials at a Tuesday hearing about how they will deal with thousands of suspect steel parts in the new San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge which were installed even though they had not met specifications.

The National Transportation Safety Board recommended Tuesday that states lower their threshold for drunken driving with the goal of reducing alcohol-related fatal crashes, which have held steady for much of the past 15 years.

The Siemens rail company, one of the Sacramento region's manufacturing mainstays, unveiled a major new product line Monday, rolling out the first of 70 electric locomotives it will produce over the next two years for Amtrak's East Coast passenger lines.

As predicted by analysts, Sacramento-area gas prices took off over the past week.

Safety improvements to Highway 70 in Plumas County will result in continuous one-way traffic in the Feather River Canyon causing up to five-minute delays, said Trisha Coder, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Transportation.

Hang on, gas prices are heading up to $4 a gallon once again.

The Federal Aviation Administration will keep open for now the 149 control towers at small airports – including Sacramento Executive Airport – that were slated to close as the result of governmentwide automatic spending cuts imposed by Congress, the Transportation Department said Friday.

The cities of Sacramento and West Sacramento took a major step this week in bidding goodbye to the 101-year-old I Street Bridge.

Medium and small hub airports across the country have fewer flights and fewer seats than they did five years ago, according to a study released this week, but it wasn’t a struggling economy that caused it, according to aviation experts.

Tens of thousands of Sacramento drivers, who were sent scattering five years ago when Caltrans shut Interstate 5 for repair, will soon face a freeway fix that could be even more intrusive.

The Tesla Motors Inc. Model S electric car has tied an older Lexus for the highest score ever recorded in Consumer Reports magazine's automotive testing.

Transportation officials said Wednesday that they need until at least May 29 to decide on possibly delaying the planned September opening of the new eastern span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, as they address problems with broken and suspect bolts.

State and local transit authorities are calling for an independent review of proposals to repair the new San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, whose planned opening date has been jeopardized by recent construction setbacks.

Nineteen months after its gala opening, the Sacramento airport's new $1 billion terminal is a modern, stylish showpiece that often feels empty. It's up to John Wheat, a 30-year veteran of airports, to make it bustle.

Area gasoline prices, which have been slowly falling in recent weeks, stayed locked in place last week.

There's a good chance you never would have heard the name Cal Worthington, encountered his "dog" Spot nor had the lyrics to his car dealership jingles burned into your memory for decades, had he earned a college degree.

Citrus Heights is moving forward with an ambitious plan to connect the city with a 26-mile bike trail that would also accommodate walkers, joggers and skaters.

There is a startling new sight at the subway station at Hollywood and Vine these days, set amid the handsome trappings of vintage film projectors and movie paraphernalia: five subway turnstiles.

A state Department of Transportation employee was killed Thursday morning on Highway 99 in Sutter County while on his way to a workers memorial ceremony at the state Capitol.

There will be more bicyclists on the streets of the Sacramento region this month than ever before.

US Airways will start seasonal nonstop service from Sacramento to Charlotte, N.C., and Philadelphia in May – with connections to Europe.

Upon further review, the Sacramento-based Niello Co. has opted to build a new Mini auto dealership on Auburn Boulevard.

Welds on the iconic tower of the new San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge are flawed and must be repaired, compounding other problems that have beset the project and could delay its planned September opening.

State legislators, county officials and community leaders will join family and friends of the late state Sen. Dave Cox on Friday morning in dedicating the Highway 50 interchange at Hazel Avenue in his memory.

Some of the experts asked to conduct a technical review of the tower foundation for the new San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge have current or recent financial and professional ties to the California Department of Transportation and Bay Bridge contractors.

Continuing a trend dating back to 2006, gasoline consumption in California declined in 2012, according to the California Board of Equalization.

The average retail price of gasoline in the Sacramento area fell another 1.1 cents to $3.80 a gallon over the past week, according to national price tracker GasBuddy.com, which surveys 720 stations in the area.

Seven years after introducing parking kiosks downtown, Sacramento officials say it's time for an even more expansive upgrade of downtown parking – starting with solar-powered parking meters that drivers can pay via cellphone.

Which Sacramento freeway section has the worst congestion? It appears we have a new champion.

Motorcycle deaths rose nationally in 2012, a study found, and the culprits may have been warmer weather and economic changes.

Transportation officials said Wednesday that they hope to announce on May 8 the cost and timing estimates for retrofitting and repairing the new San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge.

Politicians in Washington swapped accusations this week as anticipated mandatory spending cuts began to have their first noticeable impact on the nation’s air travel, with hundreds of flights delayed after airport personnel were forced to take unpaid days off.

The old adage "pack your patience" may be more true than ever this summer at Sacramento International Airport and other airports nationally - the result of federal budget cutbacks that went into effect this week.

The Sacramento region made Cars.com's annual list of U.S. cities with the most eco-conscious car shoppers.

California lawmakers moved Monday to further restrict teenage drivers, including approval of one measure to require that newly licensed 18- and 19-year-olds follow rules that now apply to younger motorists.

The average retail price of gasoline in the Sacramento area fell another 2.9 cents to $3.81 a gallon over the past week, according to national price tracker GasBuddy.com, which surveys 720 stations in the area.

Sacramento International Airport officials said the facility was largely unaffected Monday by the air traffic controller furloughs blamed for a cascade of flight delays on the East Coast.

Was something unusual happening in Sacramento almost exactly one year ago today? We ask that because a traffic analysis indicates that Friday, April 20, was the most congested day of 2012 on Sacramento roads.

Last weekend, Louie Kraushar received the Federal Aviation Administration's Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award, which recognizes pilots who have at least 50 consecutive years of safe flight operations in the United States.