- Oregon Rep. Peter DeFazio, chair of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, won't run for re-election next year. DeFazio is known as a wonky champion of green modes of transportation and fought for much more ambitious infrastructure bills that the Senate watered down. But he represents a swing district, and Republicans are likely to take over the House after the 2022 election. (Politico)
- A federal DOT's RAISE program, which mainly funded rural roads under President Trump, is pivoting to streetcar, bike and sidewalk programs in the Biden administration. (City Lab)
- President Biden was in Minnesota on Tuesday selling the bipartisan infrastructure package. (CNN)
- A Biden administration task force is charged with identifying marginalized communities and helping them apply for infrastructure funds. (Route Fifty)
- Electric vehicles along won't be enough to stop climate change. Cities need to become less dependent on cars overall. (Fast Company)
- The transition to EVs will also be expensive, with Volkswagen alone spending $34 billion to build new battery plants and buy raw materials. (Reuters)
- Magnetic pavement could one day solve EV's range problem by recharging cars as they drive. (New York Times)
- Cities are often hostile to parents with strollers, but funding for active transportation in the Build Back Better bill could change that. (The New Republic)
- The Federal Highway Administration told Texas it can continue with design work on I-45 through Houston after suspending the project to investigate whether it violates civil rights laws. (Houston Public Media)
- Far from reaching its Vision Zero goal, Portland has had 62 fatal crashes this year, with 26 involving pedestrians, approaching the record of 30 set almost 50 years ago. (KATU)
- The infrastructure bill will boost Miami-Dade's formula funding for transit by at least 24 percent, with the possibility of other grants as well. (Miami Today)
- Baltimore has only 10 miles of separated bike lanes on 2,000 miles of roads. (Fishbowl)
- Pittsburgh is considering banning parking in bike lanes. (City Paper)
- North Carolina inexplicably cut Charlotte's state transportation funding by $7 million. (Observer)
- Sixty-six years ago Wednesday, Rosa Parks sparked the civil rights movement by refusing to give up her seat on the bus to a white man, inspiring the Montgomery bus boycott and leading to the end of segregation on public transportation. (History)
Streetsblog
Thursday’s Headlines Bid Farewell to DeFazio
By Blake Aued
Peter DeFazio (D-Oregon), chair of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Photo: Bike Portland
Stay in touch
Sign up for our free newsletter
More from Streetsblog USA
When the Government Says You’re ‘Weaponizing’ Your Car
Immigrations and Customs Enforcement officers have been brutalizing and killing people who they perceive as threats. Is mass automobility multiplying their pretext to do it?
January 12, 2026
Should Monday’s Headlines Carry a Carrot or a Stick?
Human beings generally don't like being forced to do anything, so Grist wonders whether policies like car bans could actually be counterproductive?
January 12, 2026
Chicago Explores Black Perspectives on Public Transit
"We're not going to fix decades of inequitable investment in one year, and things like the high-frequency bus network and the Red Line Extension are really important, but the work isn't done."
Confirmed: Non-Driving Infrastructure Creates ‘Induced Demand,’ Too
Widening a highway to cure congestion is like losing weight by buying bigger pants — but thanks to the same principle of "induced demand," adding bike paths and train lines to cure climate actually works.
January 9, 2026
Friday’s Headlines Are Unsustainably Expensive
To paraphrase former New York City mayoral candidate Jimmy McMillan, the car payment is too damn high.
Talking Headways Podcast: Poster Sessions at Mpact in Portland
Young professionals discuss the work they’ve been doing including designing new transportation hubs, rethinking parking and improving buses.
January 8, 2026
