Streetsblog

Tuesday’s Headlines Are Charged Up

Just switching from gas to electric cars won't be enough to avert a climate catastrophe, or save the lives of the thousands killed by drivers.

By Blake Aued

12:00 AM EDT on September 20, 2022

Banning gas-powered cars is a good first step, this advocate says, but just switching to electric vehicles won’t be enough to avert a climate crisis. People are going to have to drive less, too, which means we need better transit and denser housing. (Wired) That’s because, in the end, an electric car is still a car — which means they still kill people, and they still need freeways to drive on. (Los Angeles Times)
The Biden administration wants to reshape America’s auto-centric infrastructure. Twenty-seven states, however, have laws against spending gas tax revenue on anything except roads. (Route Fifty)
Road diets, protected bike lanes and pedestrian islands are among the most effective ways to make streets safer, according to a trove of data tracking deaths and injuries before and after projects in New York City. (Governing)
Jaywalking laws should be repealed because road design has far more to do with safety than pedestrians’ behavior. (Traffic Technology Today)
Transportation Secretary — and new Michigan resident — Pete Buttigieg responds to the Republican official who called the openly gay cabinet member a “weak little girl.” (Detroit Free Press)
Charlotte’s transit agency is capping riders’ fares at $88 a month. That’s the price of an unlimited monthly pass, but some can’t afford to pay it upfront. (Axios)
Milwaukee is considering closing Brady Street to cars after a fatal hit-and-run. (Urban Milwaukee)
An on-demand shuttle service that picks up Atlanta transit riders and takes them to a station or stop saw steady growth during a six-month pilot project. (WABE)
Arlington County is the latest D.C.-area government to lower speed limits. (WTOP)
A new Nashville development will include retail on side streets instead of the noisy, pollution-choked main drag in an effort to make it more pedestrian-friendly. (Scene)