Friday’s Headlines Are Searching for Equity

Image: Duke Makangila via Creative Commons
Image: Duke Makangila via Creative Commons
  • Black and Hispanic Americans are more likely to be killed by drivers while walking or biking than whites, by even wider margins than previously thought. (ABC News, Streetsblog USA)
  • Traffic enforcement puts Black and brown people at risk. (Next City)
  • For the first time, two federal reports tracked data on crashes involving self-driving cars. For driver-assist vehicles, surprise, surprise, Tesla led the way. Waymo was worst among more advanced autonomous systems. (The Verge, Streetsblog USA)
  • Official statistics are hard to come by, but cars crash into buildings 100 times a day, by one estimate, killing hundreds of people each year. (Slate)
  • Ford is recalling almost 3 million vehicles with a defect that causes them to roll over people while in park. (Washington Post)
  • UPS is testing battery-powered cargo bikes in congested cities like New York. (CBS News)
  • Preparations for the 2028 Olympics have the potential to transform L.A. transit. (Los Angeles Times)
  • The Federal Transit Administration ordered Boston’s transit system to take immediate action on safety issues. (WCVB)
  • Kansas City buses went fare-free, but riders are still frustrated by infrequent and unreliable service. (Star)
  • The Atlanta Regional Commission is spending $45 million on street safety upgrades and transit projects. (The Center Square)
  • The Charlotte city council approved the next phase of extending the Gold Line streetcar, but only reluctantly because of problems with previous phases. (WCNC)
  • Detroit is extending QLine streetcar hours until midnight. (Detroit News)
  • If the Biden administration really did try to push electric vehicles on cyclists and pedestrians, would anyone bat an eye? (The Onion)

ALSO ON STREETSBLOG

A Bike-Ped State of the Union: 9.6% of Trips, 1.2% of Federal Funding

|
With the nation still digesting the State of the Union address, the Alliance for Biking & Walking picked an auspicious day to release their biennial Benchmarking report on America’s bike-ped behavior. The group’s bottom-line conclusion: federal transportation funding continues to disproportionately shortchange travelers powered by their own two feet. (Chart: Alliance for Biking & Walking) […]