The conservative Heritage Foundation has released a series of questions it wants lawmakers to ask Transportation Secretary nominee Anthony Foxx at his first confirmation hearing on Wednesday.

Foxx is scheduled to testify before the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.

The Heritage Foundation has long argued for reduced federal role in transportation funding. The organization said this week that lawmakers should ask Foxx “[W]hat is the appropriate federal role in transportation policy and could Washington hand over certain activities to states or localities?” 

Flight attendants are defending Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) from attacks on his record on national security issues in the Massachusetts Senate special election.

Republican candidate Gabriel Gomez has questioned Markey’s commitment to security in recent days, arguing that the longtime congressman has voted against several measures to protect the homeland since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. 

But the Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA) union, which represents American Airlines employees, said Markey has actively worked to safeguard airplanes from potential terrorists during his tenure in Congress.

The union, which has endorsed Markey, cited congressman’s recent efforts to convince the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to drop its plans to allow small knives onto airplanes for the first time since 9/11. 

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) on Monday said there is no proof climate change caused Hurricane Sandy.

Christie rejected an accusation by public radio station WNYC that New Jersey Transit was systemically unprepared for extreme storms in the run up to Sandy.

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The Democratic senator said airlines should drop their plans to increase the cost of rebooking plane tickets.

Lawmakers in Connecticut pushed Monday for a quick investigation of the accident on the state's Metro North commuter railway that injured more than 70 people last week.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) conducted a briefing on Monday for lawmakers at the site of the accident that saw a train from New York City to New Haven, Conn., derail last Friday in Fairfield, Conn.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), who was one of the lawmakers who attended the NTSB briefing, said that he wanted to balance a thorough investigation with resuming commuter rail service in his state quickly.

"I have been in close contact with National Transportation Safety Board leadership and on site investigators and am confident they will do a thorough and timely investigation to determine the cause of this alarming crash, including a careful review of the safety features of the new Metro-North cars," Blumenthal said in a statement released on Monday. 

"The NTSB understands that the quicker they are done investigating on site, the sooner the railroad can be repaired and service can be restored."

The Senate's bill to prevent rental car companies from renting cars that have been recalled will get a committee hearing this week.

The Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee's Consumer Protection Committee will meet on Tuesday morning to discuss the legislation, the panel announced on Monday.

The legislation, the Raechel and Jacqueline Houck Safe Rental Car Act of 2013, was introduced last week by Sens. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.),  Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), who will be chairing Tuesday's hearing. 

Transportation Secretary nominee Anthony Foxx will face lawmakers for the first time this week as the Senate's transportation committee holds a hearing on his nomination.

Foxx (D), who is currently the mayor of Charlotte, will face questions from the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee on Wednesday.

The panel will have to approve Foxx's nomination before it goes to a vote of the full Senate. 

Airline passengers prefer sitting next to crying babies than smelly adults on flights 63 percent to 23 percent, according to a poll released Friday.

The survey, conducted by polling firm Harris Interactive, also found that 50 percent of airline passengers thought they should be allowed to use their cellphones during flights, and 37 percent said they would be willing to pay extra to fly on newer airplanes.

Fifty-eight percent of people who said they fly at least once a year would be willing to pay for extra leg room on a flight longer than three hours, compared to 33 who would pay for shorter trip, the poll found.