Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In
Streetsblog

Thursday’s Headlines Missed an Opportunity

An electric car like this Tesla is still a car. Photo: Steve Jurvetson, CC

    • Democrats' inflation and infrastructure laws will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but by prioritizing cars, they missed a chance to do anything about preventing traffic deaths. (Mother Jones)
    • One in four Americans lacks reliable transportation, and the Federal Transit Administration is seeking to quantify the effect of transportation insecurity on everything from wages to health care. (Cityfi)
    • Bosses want people back in the office, but office workers are still slow to return, which is impacting transit revenue. (New York Times)
    • Ever since cars took over the streets in the 1920s, automakers have been trying to influence urban planning, and they're still at it today. (Fast Company)
    • A young engineer who's being compared to Atlanta Beltline visionary Ryan Gravel is developing plans for a regional commuter rail system based on existing tracks. (Urbanize Atlanta)
    • A Brightline/SunRail project between Orlando and Tampa will cost $6 billion and take 10 years to build. (Trains)
    • Boston Mayor Michelle Wu announced plans to build 9 miles of protected bikeways, 100 new bike-share stations and 100 speed humps to calm traffic. (Streetsblog MASS)
    • With the traffic death toll rising, the Kansas City Star is calling on the city to divert any available funds to protected bike lanes and redesigning dangerous streets.
    • Texas has approved adding HOV lanes to I-35 in Austin. (Community Impact)
    • Charlotte's three-year-old program offering developers density bonuses to build affordable housing near transit has netted just eight units and $1.7 million for a trust fund. (Axios)
    • For unclear reasons, Nashville is closing nine bike-share stations near parks. (Tennessean)
    • Hundreds of cyclists joined a memorial ride for a U.S. diplomat who was killed by a driver while riding her bike in Maryland. (WTOP)
    • Japan's tiny kei cars, impressive rail system and lack of on-street parking are three reasons why traffic deaths are six times lower there than in the U.S. (City Lab)
    • Germany's summer-long nine-euro unlimited rail pass kept 1.8 million tons of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere. (Bloomberg)
    • European cities are going further than California by not only phasing out gas-powered vehicles, but phasing out cars altogether. (Yahoo! News)

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

OPINION: Where Cities are Investing, Vision Zero is Working 

As the Vision Zero Network turns 10, it's time to look at what works and what is achievable (a lot!).

November 28, 2025

Friday’s Post-Turkey Headlines Are on Autopilot

While we remain skeptical of driverless vehicles, they do sound nice while in a tryptophan stupor.

November 28, 2025

Book Excerpt Special: Jonathan Lethem’s ‘Program’s Progress’

Class struggle. Infirm secondary superheroes. Suicidal sheep. It’s all in Jonathan Lethem's new collection of short stories, "A Different Kind of Tension." Here's an excerpt — featuring class struggle with cars!

November 26, 2025

Welcome to the Jungle, Wednesday’s Headlines

The COP30 climate summit in the Amazon rain forest exposed world leaders to the effects of climate change, but they still failed to take action.

November 26, 2025

Safety’s Last for Tuesday’s Headlines

A ProPublica investigation found 30 instances where DOT actions under President Trump endanger lives.

November 25, 2025
See all posts