Streetsblog

Wednesday’s Headlines Are Still Struggling

Deep dives into Charlotte's decade-long ridership plunge, a Florida transit agency having an existential crisis and more news.

By Blake Aued

12:00 AM EDT on July 20, 2022

Wednesday’s Headlines Are Still Struggling

Photo credit: Forbes.com

International public transportation systems signed a resolution declaring mobility a human right. (Mass Transit)
Transportation continues to evolve, but innovators can’t seem to get self-driving cars or hyperloops to work, let alone the flying cars and hoverboards the movies promised us. (Surface)
Uber reached a settlement waiving fees for disabled riders and offering refunds to those who sued saying the company charged them for taking too long to get into vehicles. (Reuters)
President Biden signed an executive order telling railroad workers involved in a labor dispute that they can’t strike for the next 60 days. (Politico)
Charlotte bus ridership had been declining for years even before the pandemic, and now it’s lost 75 percent of its riders since 2014. Two factors are ride-hailing and gentrification. (WFAE)
Members of Tampa’s regional transit authority are wondering why they bother, since Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis keeps vetoing its funding and one Republican St. Petersburg legislator is trying to disband the group. (Tampa Bay Times).
The Metro Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority is facing criticism for spending money from a new tax on improved bus service instead of new rail lines, and spending it too slowly. (Saporta Report)
Dallas trains are slowing down this week because extreme heat could cause rails to buckle. (NBC DFW)
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette calls on the Pennsylvania DOT to prioritize safety over speed.
Philadelphia’s first neighborhood “slow zone” isn’t actually slowing down drivers, according to residents. (KYW)
Did Minneapolis police accidentally, and for the wrong reasons, come up with a good way to calm traffic? (MinnPost)
The replacement for Los Angeles’ iconic Sixth Street viaduct has bike lanes, but cyclists are skeptical they’ll be protected by the flimsy plastic dividers. (LAist)
El Paso, one of Smart Growth America’s 20 cities with the most dangerous streets, is considering a Complete Streets policy. (KLAQ)
Somehow, Demonbroomin beat out 3-Sweepio and Taylor Swept in the contest to name Nashville’s new bike-lane sweeper. (Tennessean)