- The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced new proposals that would include pedestrian safety features in safety ratings (The Verge). But that won't incentivize automakers to stop producing such heavy vehicles that are more likely to kill pedestrians (Streetsblog USA).
- Like building more highway lanes, more transit also induces demand because it reduces congestion, encouraging more people to drive. Congestion pricing could fix this. (Governing)
- On a related note, there's no such thing as a free freeway, even if we've been trained to think there is. Our current method of paying for road construction doesn't even pay for the construction, let alone the societal costs of driving like pollution. (U.S. PIRG)
- Encouraging people to go back to the office is not a good idea when gas prices are so high (Bloomberg). On the other hand, if stay-at-home workers continue to work from home, downtowns will suffer (CommonWealth). Hmm ... if only there were a way to get commuters to their jobs without driving ...
- In her first-ever interview, the backup driver of an autonomous car Uber was testing in Arizona when it hit and killed a woman crossing the street says she worried that it would be a setback for the whole industry. (Wired)
- Transit agency MARTA approved a $300 million plan for bus rapid transit in southwest Atlanta, although some continue to push for more expensive light rail. (AJC)
- Reducing speed limits to 20 miles per hour in Denver did little to actually slow down drivers. (The Denver Channel)
- San Francisco Mayor London Breed and key city agencies are backing a car-free JFK Drive. (Standard)
- Washington, D.C. mayoral candidates argued about streetcars during their first debate. (DCist)
- Getting around is difficult for a Louisiana State University student trying to navigate auto-centric Baton Rouge without a car. (Reveille)
- Ann Arbor is already one of just 35 gold-level bike-friendly communities in the U.S., and residents want to be even better. (Michigan Daily)
Streetsblog
Thursday’s Headlines Are Still Too Big
By Blake Aued
Federal laws favor giant pickups and SUVs.
|Angie SchmittStay in touch
Sign up for our free newsletter
More from Streetsblog USA
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
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
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
Exploding Costs Could Doom One of America’s Greatest Highway Boondoggles
The Interstate Bridge Replacement Project and highway expansion between Oregon and Washington was already a boondoggle. Then the costs ballooned to $17.7 billion.
January 8, 2026
