Streetsblog

Monday’s Headlines to Start the Week

Uber drivers remain underpaid, and electric vehicles remain overpriced. Maybe electric transit and e-bikes are the answer.

By Blake Aued

12:00 AM EST on January 16, 2023

Quote Catalog, CC

Even though wages are up, with inflation taking its toll Uber drivers make less than their counterparts behind the wheel of taxis, showing yet again that the company’s business model is unsustainable. (New York Times)
Personal electric vehicles are too expensive for many consumers to afford, but transit riders get the same tailpipe benefits with electric buses. (The Conversation)
Instead of trying to eliminate traffic congestion, cities should be using it as a tool to encourage transit use. (Dezeen)
Los Angeles traffic deaths hit an all-time high of 309 in 2022. (L.A. Mazazine)
Plans to expand transit in Atlanta and Clayton County face a more than $1 billion shortfall, according to a former MARTA official who says he was fired without cause earlier this month. (AJC)
North Carolina’s Republican House speaker says he’ll only OK Charlotte’s $13 billion transportation plan if it focuses on widening roads instead of bike lanes. (Queen City Nerve)
Much like transit, Northern Virginia’s “slug line” system of informal carpooling is struggling to recover from the pandemic. (Washington Post)
Boston has no e-bikes in its public fleet, putting the city behind the curve of the growing e-bike trend. (CommonWealth)
The Honolulu Star-Advertiser and Philadelphia Inquirer editorial boards push for safer streets.
One of Colorado Gov. Jared Polis’ priorities this year is to discourage sprawl and encourage affordable transit-oriented development. (Colorado Public Radio)
Denver is considering decriminalizing jaywalking. As in many cities, the crime is enforced selectively, with 41 percent of 135 tickets since 2017 going to Black pedestrians in a city that’s only 10 percent Black. (CBS News)
Cuyahoga County officials are hoping to turn an abandoned streetcar line into a Highline-style “park in the sky.” (News 5 Cleveland)
New Orleans has added 300 e-bikes to its bikeshare fleet, bringing Blue Bikes up to 800 total. (Biz New Orleans)
A New York bike group is fixing up donated two-wheelers for asylum seekers. (Bicycling, Streetsblog NYC)
Here’s why e-bikes are great for commuting, errands and last-mile use. (Clean Technica)

Blake Aued

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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