Wednesday’s Headlines
- President Trump’s latest budget cuts Amtrak funding by 50 percent and eliminates a loan program for clean vehicle manufacturers. It also includes $1 trillion for infrastructure, but with no way to pay for it. Democrats are unlikely to go along. (Reuters)
- A California judge declined to block a new state law that requires Uber and Lyft to treat drivers like employees rather than independent contractors — a sign Uber’s lawsuit seeking to overturn the law is unlikely to be successful. (Gizmodo)
- E-scooter companies are having a hard time making it in less-dense cities. Those cities can help by limiting the number of vendors and giving users more freedom on where to park the devices. (City Lab)
- The House Energy and Commerce Committee is holding hearings this week on autonomous vehicles, and two members write in The Hill that they could save thousands of lives by eliminating human error.
- With the number of people who bike to work expected to double by 2022, cities don’t have enough bike infrastructure to keep up. (Denver Channel)
- Biking in Denver is near a tipping point. Already in some neighborhoods, 10 percent of vehicles on the road are bikes — the point at which drivers really start to pay attention. And other areas could hit that mark as the city continues to build out a network of protected bike lanes and more people feel safe pedaling. (Denver Post)
- San Francisco is planning a two-way bike path along the Embarcadero, where drivers have killed two people and injured 242 in the past five years. (SF Bay)
- Las Vegas’ regional transportation plan includes 200 miles of light rail and bus rapid transit lines. (Review-Journal)
- Utah took the first step toward a statewide rail system, which could mean commuter rail in Salt Lake City that runs twice as frequently. (Salt Lake Tribune)
- Oregon will roll out its cap-and-trade program in Portland first, then other cities, to spare rural areas where the idea is unpopular from higher gas prices. (KATU)
- Washington state might stop building new roads, focusing on maintenance instead. (Columbia Basin Herald)
- Toll lanes and transit are among the Georgia DOT’s ideas for fixing perpetually clogged I-85. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
- In an alternate — and much cooler — universe, Columbus has a train to Cleveland, a downtown streetcar and a citywide network of bike lanes. (Underground)
- Even though central London has practically eliminated private car trips, it’s more congested than ever, thanks to ride-hailing, delivery vans and other factors. (The Guardian)
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