Wednesday’s Headlines Have a Sense of Urgency

photo via Twitter @ajlatrace, who is 6'1"
photo via Twitter @ajlatrace, who is 6'1"
  • Climate change is inflicting global damage even faster than previously thought, and governments are not doing enough to curb greenhouse gas emissions, according to a new report from UN scientists. (New York Times)
  • Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could distract from the climate change threat when in fact it only emphasizes the need to replace fossil fuels with renewable energy. (New Statesman)
  • Slate wonders how tough drivers will feel when they “accidentally” kill someone with their big-ass manly pickup truck.
  • Transit Center is launching a new ‘zine about how women are changing transportation.
  • Induced demand — the concept that building more road lanes will entice more people to drive, this worsening congestion — is true, but hard for people to understand. (Governing)
  • Walkability alone won’t make neighborhoods healthier unless pollution and access to healthy food are also addressed. (Popular Science)
  • Michigan probably won’t get anywhere near its return on investment for EV manufacturer subsidies. (The Guardian)
  • Salt Lake City transit advocates are calling for better bus lanes. (KUER)
  • Mutual of Omaha wants $68 million in tax incentives to build a new skyscraper, part of which would fund streetcar construction. (World-Herald)
  • A Metro Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority BRT line in Clayton County won preliminary federal approval. (AJC)
  • A bike loop around a popular Seattle park is moving forward. (MyNorthwest)
  • Charlotte’s new streetcar continues to struggle with reliability issues. (Axios)
  • A Washington Post reporter tried to assuage his climate guilt by biking to the airport.
  • Remember that Uber Eats driver Snoop put on blast? Well, now he’s suing the Doggfather. (Complex)

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Portland Suburb: To Fight Climate Change, Expand Highways!

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Clackamas County, outside of Portland, has some opinions about the region’s plan to address climate change. According to Michael Andersen at Bike Portland, county commissioners have drafted a letter to regional planners saying the right way to control carbon emissions is to build more highways. Scratching your head? Well, the misguided belief that building more roads […]
Nobody wants this.

Mayors Seek Transit Funds To Fight Climate Change

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A coalition of mayors wants Congress to declare a "Marshall Plan" against climate change by spending on mass transit to curb air pollution in their cities. The mayors of Atlanta, Honolulu, St. Paul, Pittsburgh, and Portland, Ore., implored senators at a climate hearing on Capitol Hill last week to invest in renewable-energy programs in order to create jobs and fund bus and rail systems, with the goal of weening people off gas-polluting vehicles.

Grassley: ‘Two or Three Other’ Republicans Open to Climate Change Deal

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The Senate’s propensity for filibusters, delay, and fruitless attempts at bipartisan deal-making is earning it quite the reputation these days. And climate change legislation, with its big-ticket implications for transit and urban development in general, is becoming increasingly caught up in the Senate’s peripatetic politics. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) (Photo: CNN) The Finance Committee held […]

White House Staying Quiet For Now on Transit’s Role in Climate Bill

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Delivering his climate-change message to Congress yesterday, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood warned that fuel-efficiency advances secured by the Obama administration would not be enough to reduce emissions from transportation — not without encouraging Americans to drive less. Transportation Secretary LaHood said today he’ll weigh in later on climate-change money for transit. (Photo: HillBuzz) But when […]