- A referendum in Atlanta's largest suburban county, Gwinnett, on joining the metro area's transit system and investing a 1 percent sales tax in rail and buses failed by a 54 percent to 46 percent margin (AJC). The race was always about, well, race, as City Lab reported. Timing and turnout were issues, too. Although some Republican elected officials supported the referendum, they didn't want pro-transit voters to help Democrats in the 2018 election, when 56 percent of voters in the formerly deep-red county wound up backing Democrat Stacey Abrams for governor. Turnout for the oddly timed referendum was less than 20 percent of 543,000 registered voters, and it skewed older and white — traditionally anti-transit constituencies. Streetsblog has more background.
- In pitching its stock to investors ahead of an IPO at the end of March, Lyft is casting itself as a company committed to ride-hailing to differentiate itself from Uber, which has ventured into areas like food delivery and freight hauling. (Reuters)
- A big infrastructure package — unlikely though it may be — will be required to achieve long-term economic growth, according to a new White House report. (Washington Post)
- Lyft would invest $50 million in Chicago’s bike-share, Divvy, adding more than 10,000 e-bikes and 600 stations to the network, under a contract extension proposed by Mayor Rahm Emmanuel and the city DOT. (Smart Cities Dive)
- Charlotte’s light-rail ridership is trending up, and the city has an ambitious plan to expand the system. But where will it find $8 billion? (Observer)
- New York City is dramatically expanding its speed camera enforcement program, which has proven success in reducing crashes and recidivist speeding. (StreetsblogNYC)
- As cities struggle with increasing demand for curb space, Boston has designed a pickup and drop-off zone in the Fenway neighborhood. (WGBH)
- The Twin Cities’ Metro Transit won’t close light-rail trains to the general public during the Final Four like it did for the Super Bowl. (Pioneer Press)
- Sacramento, Calif., is the latest city to crack down on dockless bike and scooter parking. (CBS 13)
- The Federal Transit Administration, which took over safety oversight of the D.C. Metro in 2015 after a series of mishaps, is transferring it back to a newly created local commission. (NBC Washington)
- It’s really just a sit-down electric scooter, but mobility company Gotcha insists on calling its latest three-wheeled product — unveiled at South by Southwest last week — an “e-trike.” (Industry Leaders)
Today's Headlines
Wednesday’s Headlines
By Blake Aued
Stay in touch
Sign up for our free newsletter
More from Streetsblog USA
Wednesday’s Headlines Get Off the Cheese Wagon
Transporting K-12 students via public transit can save schools money, but there are challenges involved, like teaching children how to use the system.
August 27, 2025
The Fall of Philadelphia
"Cutting almost half of a transit system is not a way to make it more efficient. It more like asking whether you’d like to keep your heart or your lungs."
August 27, 2025
Doomsday For SEPTA Is Bad News For Everyone
Deep cuts to Philadelphia's transit system will have devastating impacts in the City of Brotherly Love — and other cities may be next.
August 27, 2025
Tuesday’s Headlines Are in a Death Spiral
The worst-case scenario arrived for Philadelphia residents as draconian transit cuts took effect. Other cities could be next.
August 26, 2025
Op-Ed: A City Is Not A Cake
There's no recipe to building a great city. So why are so many zoning and road design policies written like there is — and how can loosening standards make cities less car dependent?
August 26, 2025
STREETSBLOG ABROAD: We’ll Never Have Paris … Unless We Start Rebuilding Our City Like The French Did
Où es-tu allée, Anne Hidalgo? Notre ville tourne vers vous ses yeux solitaires.
