Thursday’s Headlines Don’t Want to Cooperate
Republicans who want to build more roads are resisting working with the Biden administration to implement the "woke" infrastructure act. Plus, Joe Manchin did a good thing!
By
Blake Aued
12:00 AM EST on February 3, 2022
- For the infrastructure act to work, the Biden administration will have to work with GOP governors, many of whom are chafing at restrictions on funding new roads (McClatchy). Many Republicans think the bipartisan law is social engineering even though it doesn’t actually do enough to address racial and income inequality (The Hill).
- In related news, here’s Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis calling funding for street trees and speed cameras “woke.” (The Recount)
- Transit agencies are rapidly replacing diesel buses with cleaner, quieter electric models, and funding from the $1 trillion infrastructure law will speed up the process. (Smart Cities Dive)
- And the law’s funding will allow communities to build safe and easy places to bike. (Forbes)
- Parking lots cover more than 5 percent of the land in U.S. cities. (Arch Daily)
- Sen. Joe Manchin may be the villain who killed the Build Back Better bill with its billions for transit, but at least he saved a West Virginia Amtrak station’s lone ticket agent. (Trains)
- Washington state officials thought legalizing traffic cameras would make streets safer, but data from three cities shows that citations and crashes both went up. (Crosscut)
- Memphis transit agencies are working to educate the public on how they’re funded. (Fox 13)
- Nashville drivers are on pace to kill a record number of people this year. (News Channel 5)
- Delays on a streetcar extension could cost Milwaukee $1.4 million in federal funding. (Journal Sentinel)
- Austin will spend $65 million this year to stem displacement from rising property values near transit lines. (Monitor)
- Lyft has spent $14 million on a Prop 22-style gig worker referendum in Massachusetts. (Open Secrets)
- Scotland is making bus travel free for people under 22. (Intelligent Transport)
- Bicycle mayor is an official position in Toronto, where Lanrick Bennett serves as a citywide cycling evangelist. (Momentum)
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.
Read More:
More from Streetsblog USA
The California DMV’s Culture of Obstruction
California’s DMV is responsible for managing some of the biggest risks on the state’s roads, but researchers say a culture of secrecy and obstruction makes it nearly impossible for the public to access basic information about dangerous drivers and disabled parking placard fraud.
November 6, 2026
Opinion: I (Almost) Killed a Pedestrian With My Car
Every driver has a story or two about a near-miss traffic crash, even when they were doing everything right. Can we get those numbers down with safer systems?
November 6, 2026
Talking Headways Podcast: The Value of Cities
Cities are valuable precisely because there are so many people in them.
November 5, 2026
What It Will Take To Turn the ‘Blue Wave’ Into a Watershed Moment for Transportation Reform
Democrats won big at the ballot box in the midterms. Will they fight for multimodal travelers when they're in office?
November 5, 2026
