Friday’s Headlines From Around the Nation

  • Massachusetts congressman and noted train fanatic Seth Moulton wants to spend $205 billion on high-speed rail, including lines linking Chicago and Atlanta, Los Angeles and San Francisco, Dallas and Houston, and Portland and Vancouver. (Wired)
  • Social distancing is leading to a new vision of permanently pedestrian-friendly cities with better sidewalks, shared streets and more public space. (The City Fix)
  • Race and class are often missing from the debate when people talk about how to redesign cities in the wake of COVID-19. (Curbed)
  • Bike commuting is up 20 percent over the past decade, much of that increase due to bike-shares, according to a University of Washington study. (MinnPost)
  • Scooter companies are testing remote-controlled scooters in Georgia in hopes that the technology will be more convenient — riders can bring the devices to them — and reduce sidewalk clutter. (The Verge)
  • The pandemic delivery boom is accelerating a shift in the autonomous vehicle industry from moving people to moving packages. (Reuters)
  • Uber and Lyft have long used venture capital to subsidize rides in an effort to win market share, but those days might be ending. Rising ride-hailing prices could drive people back to transit. (Quartz)
  • President Trump has taken to “announcing” transit grants on Twitter that were actually awarded weeks ago. (SFGATE)
  • Virgin Trains says it won’t restart passenger rail service in Florida for months. (Bloomberg)
  • Portland voters extended a gas tax that goes toward maintaining streets and safety improvements. (KATU)
  • Detroit’s MoGo bike share is expanding into the suburbs next month. (Daily Detroit)
  • Six years later, Pittsburgh drivers still hate the Penn Avenue bike lanes, but data shows they’re drastically improved safety. (Bike PGH)
  • Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s coronavirus hot takes are costing him his loyal fan club. (The Atlantic)

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Philly’s biggest newspaper urges LaHood to approve the state’s bid to toll I-80 (Inquirer) A profile of Detroit’s nascent urban farming effort (Free Press) Nebraska Sen. Ben Nelson (D) to hold state "transportation summit" this month (AP) Houston mayor says Obama administration is pushing her to get the local transit authority’s act together to ensure […]

Today’s Headlines

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After a lackluster year, Carrion leaves White House "urban czar" post for lesser duties at HUD (NYDN) FTA chief Rogoff skeptical on Dallas’ chances of snagging viable transit public-private partnership (Morn News Blog) LaHood uses Massachusetts appearance to take the state to task for not acting on distracted driving (Globe) Ryan Avent: Seattle light rail […]

Today’s Headlines

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U.S. DOT launches new website to promote campaign against texting while driving (Det. News) New Deal skeptic Amity Shlaes thinks infrastructure stimulus might be worth it … and points out the downside of the interstate highway system (Bloomberg) Transit advertising can play a crucial role in D.C. advocacy groups’ PR strategy (NYT) Washington D.C. begins […]