Streetsblog

Monday’s Headlines Are Pulling Over

Police are reconsidering their approach to traffic enforcement, which currently endangers Black drivers and doesn't reduce crime.

By Blake Aued

12:00 AM EDT on April 18, 2022

When Grand Rapids police killed Congolese refugee Patrick Lyoya in Michigan earlier this month, it was just the latest example of how minor traffic stops often escalate into violence against Black men, and how police use offenses like broken taillights as pretexts to search for more serious charges. A number of cities are reconsidering their policies. (New York Times)
Random spikes in gas prices don’t generally change drivers’ habits much, but one way to get people out of their cars is to raise the price of gas predictably and methodically through taxes. (Grist)
The European Union is considering fitting new car with technology that limits speeds, improving both safety and emissions. (Daily Mail)
The U.S. DOT announced a plan to generate power from electric buses in disaster areas that are without electricity. (Transportation Today)
New York state’s newly approved budget includes funding to remove urban freeways in Syracuse, Albany, Rochester and Buffalo. (Public Square)
Philadelphia’s transit agency proposed a $1.6 billion budget for 2023 and will have to start drawing from reserves in 2024, when federal coronavirus funding runs out. (Inquirer)
Construction on Maryland’s Purple Line is set to resume this spring, more than a year after a contractor walked off the job. (WTOP)
Seattle’s Sound Transit is whittling down options for light rail to Ballard and West Seattle. (The Urbanist)
Central Ohio transit officials are pitching a 0.5 percent sales tax to raise $6 billion for bus rapid transit. (Columbus Dispatch)
Minneapolis’ Northstar commuter rail line is struggling. Combining it with Amtrak, more stops, more development near stops and faster speeds are some ideas for saving it. (Streets.mn)
Charlotte is streamlining the process for neighborhoods to request traffic-calming measures. (WBTV)
This Austin resident created a tiny park in a street median. (KUT)