Thursday’s Headlines from Across the Country
Lots of transit news, plus some politics, in today's daily news digest.
By
Blake Aued
12:27 AM EDT on October 1, 2020
- Unless Congress provides funding, more than 3 million households and 1.4 million workplaces will lose access to transit as agencies make cuts. (Streetsblog)
- People who walk, bike or take transit to work are more satisfied with their commutes than those who drive. (Mobility Lab)
- The system, not the backup driver, is responsible for the death of an Arizona woman killed by a self-driving Uber in 2018, writes former Streetsblog editor Angie Schmitt. (Next City)
- The Kinder Institute suggests that a rebate program for e-bikes would give people incentive to buy a vehicle that doesn’t run on fossil fuels — especially those who can’t afford an electric car.
- President Trump took credit for an Obama-era incentive to buy electric vehicles at Tuesday’s presidential debate. (Electrek)
- Uber and Lyft are stocked with former Obama administration officials lobbying for regressive labor and environmental policies. Would a President Biden embrace them? (New Republic)
- The National Association of City Transportation Officials suggests repurposing streets as outdoor voting booths. (Government Tech)
- Passenger rail company Brightline is selling $3.2 billion in bonds to finance the first leg of a line between Las Vegas and California. (Las Vegas Sun)
- The Seattle City Council approved a new pay formula that will ensure Uber and Lyft drivers make the city minimum wage of $16.39 an hour after expenses. (Seattle Times)
- A pilot program will bring a fleet of shared electric vehicles to Minneapolis and St. Paul. (MinnPost)
- Charlotte opened new bus-only lanes on one of its most congested streets. (WCNC)
- Aided by investment in 5G wireless internet, China is about to unleash fleets of self-driving taxis in congested cities. (Fast Company)
- And, finally, a man has biked across the country from Poo Poo Point to Pee Pee Creek. (Yosef Kessler via Twitter)
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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