Streetsblog

Monday’s Headlines Are Soler Powered

The Braves outfielder might have won the World Series with a homer over Houston train tracks, but mining for EV battery minerals is still harmful.

By Blake Aued

12:01 AM EST on November 8, 2021

Credit: Minda Haas Kuhlmann

As you’ve probably heard, the infrastructure bill finally passed. Here’s what’s in it (Associated Press). For now, most of the coverage is of the “what it means politically” variety. Streetsblog editor-in-chief Gersh Kuntzman has a further breakdown. And Forbes highlights the inclusion of transponder beacons that can help drivers avoid collisions with cyclists, but also carry a lot of ethical questions about what happens if someone is walking or riding a bike without a smartphone.
A bipartisan bill would give cities greater leeway to spend American Rescue Plan funds on infrastructure. (City Lab)
Countries around the world are using fuzzy math to make it seem like they’re on track to reach their climate goals. (Washington Post)
Also from the Post: No one (except Streetsblog) wants to talk about the environmental cost of mining for minerals to produce electric vehicles’ batteries.
Speeding drivers in the U.S. kill 10,000 people a year, but we accept that as the norm. (Fortune)
No one is entitled to public parking. (Real Change News)
Technology could use the kinetic energy from walking on sidewalks to generate electricity. (CNET)
Boston elected Michelle Wu as America’s first climate-change mayor. (Curbed)
Los Angeles sheriff’s deputies are stopping cyclists and using minor offenses as an excuse to search them, primarily Latinos. (L.A. Times)
Seattle’s Sound Transit received $273 million in COVID-19 grants from the Federal Transit Administration. (Mass Transit)
Portland’s pandemic parklets program has businesses singing a different tune about parking. (Bike Portland)
Richmond’s transit agency is fare-free and considering expansion. (Richmond Magazine)
Toledo buses now have a dedicated sales tax, instead of relying on property tax revenue. (Blade)
The wealthy Atlanta neighborhood of Buckhead’s move to secede from the city has ramifications for completing the Beltline. (Saporta Report)
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution pronounced the Atlanta Braves’ new suburban stadium a parking success, despite the fact that, as Darin Givens pointed out on Twitter, it’s an asphalt hellscape with no access to transit.
This Braves fan — yes, the chop is awful (Bitter Southerner) — is, however, happy to report that Jorge “Solar Power” Soler won Game 6 by hitting a home run over the fake train tracks at Minute Maid Park (Fansided).

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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