Friday’s Headlines: Long Reads for a Long Weekend

Streetsblog is taking the day off today, because the Fourth of July is so nice we had to celebrate it twice. But we know you’re hungry for 71 hot dogs and buns — and are few longer reads to tide you over through the weekend.

• No matter how many cyclists are killed by drivers, nothing ever seems to happen. Driver hits cyclist, police blame the victim, cyclists mourn and everyone moves on. Wash, rinse, repeat. (Deadspin)
• The pro-housing YIMBY (Yes in My Backyard) movement has been decentralized so far, but it could become the background of a new nationwide urban progressive coalition. (Curbed)
• A City Lab writer tried Bird’s new monthly e-scooter rental program and found it convenient and cheap, but with a few drawbacks.
• An e-bike helped one young parent reclaim her identity as a fearless bike commuter — toddler in tow. (Bicycling)
• The debate over whether California Uber and Lyft drivers are employees or contractors and what kind of rights they should have is causing a rift among labor unions. (NY Times)
• The deadly Red Line crash in 2009 spurred needed safety reforms at the D.C. Metro and other transit systems across the country. (Washington Post)
• New York City Council Speaker Corey Johnson envisions a Big Apple where cars no longer rule the road. (Gotham Gazette)
• The Denver Post remembers the 1969 freeway fight that paved the way for regional transit 50 years ago.
• Pittsburgh is one of the few places where bus ridership is growing, because it was at the forefront of bus rapid transit and still excels at moving people quickly. (The Grist)
• A 94-year-old Lansing, Mich., resident who was displaced by freeway construction in the 1960s is collecting information for a history project about her old neighborhood. (Next City)