Streetsblog

Tuesday’s Headlines to Pick You Up Each Time You Fall

The best story of the day? Oklahoma — yes, Oklahoma — is finally planning some public transportation. Plus all the other news.

By Blake Aued

12:01 AM EDT on October 27, 2020

While American transit systems are recovering from COVID more slowly than European ones, agencies across the globe are grappling with lost revenue and how to provide services in a world where millions of people no longer work 9-to-5. (Politico)
Combine the inherent expense of owning a car with predatory lending practices and a pandemic, and many consumers are struggling to pay off their car loans. (U.S. PIRG)
Amtrak’s most famous rider, Joe Biden, could save the embattled agency if he’s elected president. (New York Times)
Parking lot owners are repurposing those now-empty spaces as drive-in movie theaters, haunted houses and other better uses than merely storing cars. (Wall Street Journal)
Denver’s Regional Transportation District is planning on cutting little-used bus routes to beef up service on the busiest ones. (Denver Post)
Despite Uber and Lyft’s claims in Prop 22 ads, evidence is mixed that ride-hailing apps reduce drunk driving. (Sacramento Bee)
Bay Area Rapid Transit has approved unarmed “ambassadors” and a crisis intervention team to deal with issues like homelessness and substance abuse. (San Francisco Examiner)
Maryland businesses and residents that have been affected by construction along the Purple Line route have been in limbo since contractors stopped work last month over payment disputes with the state. (Washington Post)
Despite the decline in driving during the pandemic, Portland is on pace to exceed 2019’s traffic deaths. (Portland Tribune)
A Maryland agency rejected plans to widen the Beltline, setting up a potential lawsuit. (Planetizen)
The Federal Transit Administration is funding $16 million worth of track improvements in Michigan. (MLive)
The Little Rock transit workers’ union came out against Issue 1, a ballot referendum for a transportation sales tax, saying the tax is regressive and the DOT should fund transit with road money instead. (Arkansas Times)
Oklahoma is creating its first-ever statewide plan for public transportation. (Fox 25)
London Mayor Sadiq Khan and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson are fighting over whether to expand the zone where drivers pay congestion pricing. (The Guardian)

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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