Tuesday’s Headlines Are At an Impasse

Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema announced she opposes Democrats’ $3.5 trillion “soft” infrastructure bill (Politico), which is a problem because House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has tied its passage in the Senate to the House passing the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill, the one with the transportation funding (The Hill).

The Active Transportation Alliance is calling on Congress to restore $10 billion in funding for transit that was cut from the bipartisan bill.

Federal funding has kept transit agencies afloat during the pandemic, and the infrastructure bill will help pay for a massive backlog of maintenance projects. But it’s not enough to improve service much. (Route Fifty)

Electric vehicles aren’t the be-all, end-all when it comes to either road safety or climate change. But what if people had been using taxis and streetcars powered by batteries, and not privately owned cars that run on fossil fuels, all along? (Slate)

In a decision that’s sure to be appealed, a California judge ruled that Prop 22 — the state law voters approved that made gig workers contractors — is unconstitutional. (The Verge)

California regulators approved a second leg of high-speed rail. It’s a long way off, but now the project is eligible for federal funding. (Streetsblog CA)

Los Angeles County has started a two-year pilot project with the eventual goal of fare-free transit. (L.A. Times)

The D.C. city council is eying a Georgetown as a potential landing site for a gondola system, an idea long left for dead but now revived. (Washington Post)

The small town of Carmel, Indiana, has more roundabouts than any American city, and they’ve reduced crashes by almost 50 percent. (Autoblog)

A recent poll found that over 60 percent of Washington and Oregon residents support high-speed rail connecting Portland, Seattle and Vancouver. (The Urbanist)

Plans for a replacement tunnel in Vancouver destroy any hope of including rail. (Daily Hive)