Monday’s Headlines Are Ready for Departure

  • The alarming new UN climate report underscores the need for cities to take back streets from cars and get more people on transit and bikes. (Smart Cities Dive)
  • Urban areas are growing faster than rural ones, according to recently released U.S. Census data, which will be used to distribute transportation funding, among other things. (USA Today)
  • The infrastructure bill includes transit funding, but local officials still have to figure out ways to spend it that will attract riders, such as bus-only lanes and going fare-free. (Governing)
  • Rail advocates say the infrastructure bill falls far short of the hundreds of billions of dollars needed to upgraded existing Amtrak lines and build a high-speed rail network. (The Hill)
  • More from The Hill: Increasing the gas tax is better than implementing a vehicle-miles driven tax for reducing pollution and traffic deaths because the gas tax discourages driving and encourages fuel-efficient vehicles.
  • Sadly, rumors that President Biden included a VMT in the infrastructure bill in order to make driving obsolete have been ruled false by PolitiFact.
  • Financial analysts are forecasting growth in the market for cargo bikes as courier companies buy more. (Cycling Industry News)
  • Everyone knows cars pose a threat to pedestrians, but so do e-scooters. (Medium)
  • The $1 billion in the infrastructure bill for tearing down urban freeways like I-345 in Dallas is likely to be doled out in small chunks with limited impact. (D Magazine)
  • The Texas DOT’s latest plans for widening I-35 through Austin ignore calls to turn the freeway into a six-lane boulevard lined with bike lanes and parks, or put a cap on it instead. (KUT)
  • Recent changes to Muni bus routes in San Francisco increased access to jobs. (Mass Transit Mag)
  • Detroit’s QLine streetcar will start running again next month and be fare-free for the rest of the year, thanks to CARES Act funds. (Detroit News)
  • The New York Times examines all the different jingles announced subway doors are closing around the world.

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