Thursday’s Headlines Amidst the Chaos
Pete Buttigieg will be Joe Biden's transportation salesman-in-chief, and will have the opportunity to implement stricter safety standards for ever-larger vehicles.
By
Blake Aued
12:01 AM EST on January 7, 2021
- Transportation secretary nominee Pete Buttigieg will face the tough task of selling a skeptical Congress on a green infrastructure bill. (E&E News)
- Vehicles are getting bigger and more dangerous to pedestrians and cyclists, but the Biden administration could reverse that trend with new safety standards. (City Lab)
- To survive, transit agencies can no longer rely on fares, and need to find new revenue streams instead. (Marketplace)
- More people will probably keep working from home post-pandemic, which could reduce commutes but also encourage sprawl. (Reuters)
- Car ownership has spiked in New York during the pandemic, and now drivers are whining even more about parking. Transit and biking advocates say the city needs to reallocate space away from cars and back to people. (NY Times)
- Seattle’s abandonment of its bike master plan is pitting bikes and transit against each other while sparing drivers. (Planetizen)
- Charlotte leaders haven’t gotten much feedback on a massive plan to expand transit, but most of the public input has been positive. (WSOC)
- The Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled that Uber can’t force customers into arbitration for disputes like accusations of discrimination. (Boston Globe)
- Richmond’s bus route overhaul resulted in a 17 percent increase in ridership, and now Norfolk and other Virginia cities could follow suit. (Virginia Mercury)
- Only two of Missouri’s 34 transit agencies will receive a share of federal coronavirus relief funds, and the state should step in with funding. (Missouri Times)
- The Post-Gazette profiles Aurora, the Pittsburgh company that bought Uber’s self-driving car division.
- Want an e-bike but don’t want a whole new bike? Buy this wheel clip with an electric motor instead. (Fast Company)
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.
Read More:
Streetsblog has migrated to a new comment system. New commenters can register directly in the comments section of any article. Returning commenters: your previous comments and display name have been preserved, but you'll need to reclaim your account by clicking "Forgot your password?" on the sign-in form, entering your email, and following the verification link to set a new password — this is required because passwords could not be carried over during the migration. For questions, contact tips@streetsblog.org.
More from Streetsblog USA
‘Big Brother’ At U.S. DOT: Bike Lanes Aren’t Just ‘DEI,’ They’re Also Unsafe
Taking a page from George Orwell, the government is now saying that bike lanes are unsafe and speed cameras are not proven to reduce crashes. In other words, freedom is slavery.
July 17, 2026
Friday’s Headlines Slow Down
Driving over the speed limit doesn't even save much time, according to a new study.
July 17, 2026
Talking Headways Podcast: What San Francisco’s Muni Learned from COVID
SFMTA’s Julie Kirschbaum discusses the lessons her agency learned from COVID and Muni’s post-pandemic recovery.
July 16, 2026
Fifth Time’s The Harm: Pennsylvania Gov. Shapiro Again Signed A Budget With No Money For Transit
New budget refuses a single cent for transit, cuts service for most vulnerable residents.
July 16, 2026
Thursday’s Headlines Are Deadly By Design
Turns out, designing roads for fast-moving cars means people will die.
July 16, 2026
