- Even walking is a political issue these days — and a majority of Americans prefer to drive everywhere. According a Pew Research Center poll, 60 percent of respondents prefer to live where houses are bigger and farther apart, and schools, restaurants and shopping are miles away, while just 39 percent want walkable neighborhoods. Three-quarters of Republicans like sprawl, while Democrats were evenly split. (Motherboard)
- MSNBC's Hayes Brown frames the poll results not as a response to COVID-19, but as a decades-long pattern of investment in car infrastructure over transit that's a self-inflicted wound in the war against climate change.
- Fossil fuel-powered vehicles should quickly be replaced with electric ones; also, the need for driving must drastically be reduced to address climate change and equity. (CleanTechnica)
- A coalition of trade, union and environmental groups is asking Congress to restore $10 billion in funding for transit in the $2.5 trillion reconciliation bill that the Senate cut from the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill. (The Hill)
- Used cars are worth a lot of money right now, so this is a really good time to sell yours. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
- New York City commuter rail, like many others, slashed service during the pandemic in response to lost ridership. What will they do when federal aid runs out and office workers are still staying home? (Times)
- Spokane is encouraging denser housing and mixed uses around new bus rapid transit lines and bike infrastructure. (Spokesman-Review)
- Hundreds of people came out for a sneak peek at a San Diego trolley line extension. (Fox 5)
- Almost half of U.K. Uber drivers have quit in the past few months in response to the company raising service charges. (Bloomberg)
- Paris has lowered speed limits to 30 kilometers per hour, or 18 mph, on almost all roads. (RFI)
- Leaded gasoline is a thing of the past after Algerian gas stations, the last in the world to sell it, recently stopped. But the work is not done yet — one researcher who helped convince the U.S. to ban leaded gas says all motor fuels should be banned. (CNN)
Streetsblog
Wednesday’s Headlines Are Putting On Their Walking Shoes
Stay in touch
Sign up for our free newsletter
More from Streetsblog USA
Friday Video: Guess Which Argument Can Get a NIMBY To Change Their Mind About New Housing
Put your instincts to the test with this fascinating experiment about the power of messaging to win support for urbanism.
Friday’s Headlines Took the Road Less Traveled By
And that has made all the difference, when it comes to preventing traffic deaths.
Commentary: How a T-Rex Costume and a Police Sting Underscores Bay Area’s Deadly Driver Problem
Stanley Roberts story is funny. And disturbing.
Study: How Ambiguous Definition of ‘Major Transit Stop’ Creates Wiggle Room for Municipalities
This is a story of how well-intentioned efforts by the state to tie new development to transit hinge on how local governments (with their own incentives) interpret broad state law.
Talking Headways Podcast: Growing St. Louis’s Arts and Culture District
This week on Talking Headways, step inside St. Louis's Grand Center Arts District with the people who make it happen.
Advocates Get D.C. Mayor To Release Buried Report On The Potential Benefits Of Congestion Pricing
How many other conversations about congestion pricing across the country are being suppressed — and how many have never even gotten started?





