Thursday’s Headlines
Can airline-style rewards bring riders back to public transit? Agencies from Portland to Philadelphia think they’ll help attract customers poached by ride-hailing services, but critics say such programs are distractions from real issues like frequency, speed and reliability. (Wired) Since the 1950s, freeways have been shifting people and money from city centers to the suburbs, … Continued
By
Blake Aued
12:01 AM EDT on July 11, 2019
- Can airline-style rewards bring riders back to public transit? Agencies from Portland to Philadelphia think they’ll help attract customers poached by ride-hailing services, but critics say such programs are distractions from real issues like frequency, speed and reliability. (Wired)
- Since the 1950s, freeways have been shifting people and money from city centers to the suburbs, according to a Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia study. Burying or capping freeways could reduce those effects. (PlanPhilly)
- Boomer NIMBYs are drowning out other voices and holding back progress on transportation and housing. (Mother Nature News)
- Cities getting rid of parking spaces is generally a good thing, but one downside is that homeless people who live in their vehicles have fewer places to stay at night. (The Conversation)
- The Federal Transit Administration has granted $100 million each to light rail projects in Seattle, Phoenix and Los Angeles. (Mass Transit)
- A San Francisco judge has decided preliminarily that Lyft’s exclusive contract with San Francisco applies to dockless as well as docked bikes. Uber had tried to get in on the dockless game as the number of Lyft’s Bay Wheels bikes dwindled, but after the ruling, Lyft is putting more bikes back on the street. (Chronicle)
- An Illinois economist says the state’s gas-tax hike will likely encourage people to drive less, and maybe even get rid of their second car (WGIT). President Obama’s former transportation secretary, Ray LaHood, says the federal government should follow suit (Peoria Public Radio).
- Ridership on Denver transit is up since Uber added route information and a ticket-buying option to its app. (Denver Post, Streetsblog Denver)
- As other cities reduce their freeway footprints, Louisville continues its aggressive roads and bridges construction. LEO Weekly explains why that’s a bad idea.
- France is implementing an “eco-tax” on plane tickets that will help fund more environmentally friendly modes of transportation, such as rail. (USA Today)
- Yas queen! RuPaul knows what’s up. (Twitter)
Blake Aued has been doing Streetsblog's daily national news digest for years. He's also an Atlanta Braves fan, which enrages his editor in New York.
Read More:
More from Streetsblog USA
How To Fix The Broken Gas Tax
Drivers aren't paying their fair share — and no one else is getting their due. Is it time to rethink our federal road funding mechanisms?
March 31, 2026
Tuesday’s Headlines Peace Out
The congressman at the helm of the House transportation committee is stepping down. Who will step up?
March 31, 2026
Chicago to St. Louis Is the High-Speed Rail Test America Can’t Afford to Fail
A looming deadline could be the end of high speed rail in Illinois — or the beginning of an entire midwest network, a top advocate argues.
March 31, 2026
Trump’s ‘Freedom Means Affordable Cars’ Rings Hollow As Gas Prices Surge
Real freedom is the freedom to choose how you get around — including not driving at all.
March 30, 2026
Monday’s Headlines Pedal Backwards
The Trump administration really does not want to make it easy to ride a bike.
March 30, 2026
Comments Are Temporarily Disabled
Streetsblog is in the process of migrating our commenting system. During this transition, commenting is temporarily unavailable.
Once the migration is complete, you will be able to log back in and will have full access to your comment history. We appreciate your patience and look forward to having you back in the conversation soon.