Friday’s Headlines for a Long Weekend
Uber alternatives, Muni problems, more Cincinnati streetcar drama and bike lanes galore in this edition. Happy Labor Day!
By
Blake Aued
12:01 AM EDT on September 4, 2020
- With Uber and Lyft in a labor fight with California, two ride-hailing startups are positioning themselves as driver-friendly alternatives. (CNN)
- The drop in congestion from people working from home during the pandemic is probably not sustainable. Between “Zoom fatigue” and the innovation that comes from physically being in the same space, white-collar workers are going to have to go back to the office eventually. (Fast Company)
- Pedestrian Observations put together a cool map and database of costs for transit projects around the world.
- The Baltimore Sun wonders why Maryland wants to slash funding for Baltimore transit while sparing roads, airports and the D.C. Metro.
- Muni light rail in San Francisco is expected to be out of service through the end of the year due to equipment failures. (SF Chronicle)
- A private equity-backed company is already planning to fast-track construction of a passenger rail line connecting California and Las Vegas, despite not having all the funds in place yet. (Bloomberg)
- Boston’s transit agency is rushing to build 14 miles of new bus lanes before winter. (WBZ)
- The Twin Cities’ Metro Transit is extending its discounted $1 fare for low-income riders to the jobless, as well. (Star Tribune)
- A hit-and-run driver killed Philadelphia resident Avante Reynolds, but decades of redlining and designing dangerous roads are equally responsible. (WHYY)
- The Cincinnati streetcar is free once again after the city council overrode Mayor John Cranley’s veto. Cranley had wanted to charge fares to ride the streetcar and use the revenue to fund police. (Enquirer)
- The feds told Hawaii it couldn’t use Interstate H-3 for COVID-19 testing, but Hawaii is doing it anyway. (Honolulu Civil Beat)
- A rail line between Pueblo and Fort Collins would carry about 9,200 passengers a day, according to a Colorado DOT study. (Daily Camera)
- Dallas has pulled the plug on rental e-scooters. Meanwhile, Houston has never even tried them, as efforts to write regulations languished. (Houston Chronicle)
- Raleigh is getting its first protected bike land. (News & Observer)
- A new grade-separated bike lane in Portland is slightly elevated to protect cyclists from cars. (Bike Portland)
- The bikelash is strong in Buffalo. (News)
- Here are Rolling Stone’s five best choices for a commuter bike.
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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