Wednesday’s Headlines Don’t Feel the Need for Speed
New York City's efforts to scare drivers into slowing down won't work, and fears of crime on transit are overblown.
By
Blake Aued
12:00 AM EDT on May 4, 2022
- The Biden administration is spending $3 billion to spur domestic production of batteries for electric vehicles, although the minerals needed are mainly controlled by China. (New York Times)
- Another reminder that the best way to reduce emissions is not EVs, but making it easy for people to ditch cars altogether. (Smart Cities Dive)
- The Census Bureau is reclassifying more than 1,000 communities from urban to rural, which could affect their transportation funding. (Associated Press)
- After a recent mass shooting on the New York City subway and amid fears that crime is keeping riders away, some federal lawmakers are calling for more funding for transit security (NPR). The thing is, crime on transit is actually down; the only reason the crime rate is higher is because ridership has fallen. (Human Transit).
- Instead of investing in better street design, NYC is trying a “scared straight” approach to slowing down speeding drivers, with billboards and an ad campaign depicting pedestrians and cyclists being hit. Now that we think about it, who are they trying to scare? (NY Times, Streetsblog NYC)
- A Houston native who’s developing a car-free development in Arizona says his hometown is getting more bike-friendly, but some Houston cycling advocates disagree. (Chronicle)
- An Atlanta foundation donated $30 million toward finishing the Beltline, a 22-mile walking and biking loop around the city. (AJC)
- Plans to shorten a proposed Honolulu light rail line would also cut the estimated daily ridership by 35,000. (Civil Beat)
- Birmingham has started striping lanes for a new bus rapid transit line. (WBRC)
- One Capital Bikeshare user has visited all 683 docks in the D.C. region, saying it helped him get to know the area when he moved there three years ago. (Washington Post)
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.
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