Streetsblog

Tuesday’s Headlines are Coming At Ya Like a Hurricane

Car crashes are damaging to our national psyche, one writer says in The Atlantic. Plus the rest of the news of the day.

By Blake Aued

12:01 AM EDT on May 4, 2021

A writer for The Atlantic learned the hard way that our dangerous roads put people in no-win scenarios, with dangerous and traumatic results for individuals and our national psyche.
An aging bridge over the Ohio River has become a symbol of the struggle over infrastructure spending between President Biden and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky (New York Times). That would explain why Vice President Kamala Harris went to Cincinnati to tout the administration’s infrastructure plan (WHIO).
The $80 billion that Biden wants to pump into Amtrak is more than all the federal funding its received since its founding in 1971 (Governing). The plan is nearly as ambitious as interstate highways (ABC News).
In addition to stimulus money, Amtrak is asking Congress for $1.5 billion in the FY22 budget for Northeast Corridor improvements. (Railway Age)
Ride-hailing stocks crashed after Labor Secretary Marty Walsh said gig workers are misclassified as contractors (Slate). Even Hollywood star Mila Kunis knows Uber and Lyft drivers are underpaid! (Complex)
A bipartisan group of governors, senators and members of Congress met in Annapolis to discuss infrastructure. (Transportation Today)
Micromobility company Lime figured out that bike lanes are good for business and is mobilizing users to push for Complete Streets. (Smart Cities Dive)
With a trust fund set to go broke next year, Pinellas County, Florida, is considering raising the gas tax to pay for a backlog of 641 sidewalk projects. (Tampa Bay Times)
The opening of Charlotte’s Gold Line streetcar has been delayed again, this time until August. (WSOC)
Bike-share roundup: Honolulu’s Biki needs city help to avoid shutting down (KHON). Las Vegas is incorporating transit and bike-share in a single app (Smart Cities World). Cedar Rapids’ bike-share reopens May 7 with the addition of sit-down scooters (KWWL). Dayton Bike Share is expanding to new neighborhoods (Daily News).
We love bike lanes, too, but jeez, get a room! (Streetsblog Chicago)

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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