Friday’s Headlines from Our Entire Nation
The bottom line? Transit needs a federal stimulus or else our cities will die. The GOP seems to disagree. That plus more headlines — just one click away.
By
Blake Aued
12:01 AM EDT on June 12, 2020
- In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, transportation systems should be designed so they can easily shift to accommodate more walking and biking, loading zones, outdoor dining and surges in traffic as the need arises. (Planetizen)
- Los Angeles, Miami, Cincinnati and other cities suspended transit service during the recent demonstrations, stranding riders and contributing to the racial and economic injustice that people were protesting. (Transit Center)
- Rep. Scott Perry, a Pennsylvania Republican on the House Transportation Committee, blasted transit agencies’ request for more federal funding to fill the coronavirus-shaped holes in their budgets. (Politico)
- Austin has finalized a $10-billion transit plan that includes three new light rail lines, funded by a property tax hike. Voters will approve or reject the plan in November. (American-Statesman)
- New ridership estimates for Massachusetts’s east-west rail line are much higher than initial forecasts, but the project will need federal funding to come to fruition. Cost estimates range from $2 billion to upgrade existing freight tracks to $25 billion for a new, high-speed electric line. (Mass Live)
- Ridership on the D.C. Metro shot up during last weekend’s protests, prompting the agency to look at adjusting its coronavirus recovery plan. (Washington Post)
- NJ Transit has a five-year, $17-billion plan for bus and rail projects, but only $11 billion to spend. Where will the rest of the money come from? (Spotlight)
- California regulators ruled that Uber and Lyft drivers are employees under the state’s new gig-work law, and ordered the companies to start paying unemployment insurance by July 1. (San Francisco Chronicle)
- The pandemic is far from over, but Denver’s Regional Transportation District is resuming front-door board and fare collection. (Colorado Politics)
- An Atlanta task force is working to untangle the codependent relationship between development and parking. (Saporta Report)
- An investigation is underway in Tulsa after video showed police handcuffing two black teenagers for jaywalking, aka walking while black. (World)
- Germany recently doubled subsidies for electric vehicles and is considering a “gas guzzler” tax on vehicles with high emissions and low mileage. The U.S. already has a similar tax — but SUVs and light trucks are exempt. (Electrek)
- Three autonomous bus companies will start testing prototypes in five European cities later this month. (Cities Today)
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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