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Friday’s Headlines From Around the Nation

Will transit ever fully recover from COVID-19? Click here to find out.
  • Public transportation might never fully recover from the COVID-19 pandemic (City Metric). Vancouver’s TransLink is laying off 1,500 workers and suspending 18 bus routes because it’s losing $75 million a month (CBC).
  • Conservative magazine The Federalist continues to falsely claim that transit spreads COVID-19. Such fears have automakers hoping that transit riders will buy cars (Automotive News).
  • With gas tax revenue falling and electric cars getting more popular, the U.S. needs a new way to pay for road maintenance. (The Drive)
  • John Forester, a controversial figure in the cycling community because he opposed bike lanes and advocated riding with traffic, has died at the age of 90. (Forbes)
  • If people keep working from home, walkable neighborhoods will spring to life. (Treehugger)
  • A Portland freeway is carrying more cars at higher speeds since the COVID-19 pandemic started because traffic has stayed just below the tipping point — showing that it’s pointless to try to relieve congestion by widening roads without managing demand. (City Observatory)
  • The transit union in Philadelphia called off a strike Thursday and will continue talks on coronavirus safety measures. (KYW)
  • Landscape Architecture muses about coronavirus and Boston’s Emerald Necklace.
  • Paris is creating 650 kilometers of pop-up bike lanes in preparation for easing lockdown May 11. (Forbes)
  • These NASA satellite images illustrate how idled vehicles and factories are clearing the air in India.
Photo of Blake Aued
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.

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