Wednesday’s Headlines, Unplugged
- A New York Times story about the boom in electric cars doesn’t even point out e-bikes, which outsold e-cars, or road deaths, which is dependent on design, not power train. In fact, EVs, like their gas-powered counterparts, are getting bigger, heavier and more dangerous to pedestrians (Washington Post). Meanwhile, this Reuters graphic illustrates the near-impossibility of getting enough EVs on the road in time to meet climate goals.
- Microtransit programs promise on-demand transportation for all, but they're inefficient compared to fixed-route buses, and customers can face long waits at peak hours. (CityLab)
- Transit agencies should be prioritizing the health and safety of and better pay for transit workers. (Transit Center)
- Philadelphia is backing off a long-awaited plan to three-lane notoriously dangerous Washington Avenue. (Inquirer)
- Transit agency MARTA is proposing a bus rapid transit line in southwest Atlanta, but some residents and city officials are holding out for light rail. (Journal-Constitution)
- Pennsylvania will receive $234 million and Pittsburgh $30 million for transit from the federal infrastructure law. (Tribune-Review)
- Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's proposed budget includes a 20 percent boost in transportation funding. (Click on Detroit)
- Activists are pressing Wisconsin to focus infrastructure funding on transit, bike and pedestrian projects. (Planetizen)
- Uber and Lyft helped pass Prop 22 in California and want to pass a similar gig-worker law in Massachusetts, and now they're turning their sights to Washington state. (GeekWire)
- San Francisco's city attorney is looking into Uber's alleged discriminatory practices against transgender drivers. (SFGate)
- Facing a homelessness crisis, Los Angeles County is considering housing people in parking garages. (Santa Monica Daily News)
- Austin is going through a second round of lowering speed limits. (Monitor)
- The Seattle Times editorial board wants Sound Transit to do more to stop turnstile jumpers.
- Cincinnati announced the winner of an art contest to design a new wrap for the Bell Connector streetcar. (Enquirer)
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