Thursday’s Headlines, Election Results Edition
Election Night brought bad news for federal climate policy, but mostly good news for local transit and environmental initiatives.
By
Blake Aued
1:00 AM EST on November 7, 2024
- Donald Trump is likely to try to roll back the Biden administration’s climate policies, like the Inflation Reduction Act, but could face pushback from Republicans that benefit from green jobs (New York Times). For now, EV battery plant construction remains on track (The Conversation). Meanwhile, other nations will continue the climate change fight with or without the U.S. (The Guardian)
- Transit systems all over the country made it easier to cast a ballot Tuesday by offering fare-free rides to the polls. (Government Technology)
- On the local level, Nashville voters approved a transportation referendum that will fund sidewalks and bus rapid transit. (Tennessean)
- In Washington state, voters opposed an effort to repeal its landmark cap-and-trade carbon law (KING), and Seattle voters passed a property tax hike for street safety and transit infrastructure projects (KOMO).
- California voters approved an environmental bond package with $2 billion for bike trails. (Los Angeles Times)
- San Francisco voters opted to keep the Upper Great Highway closed to car traffic. (NBC Bay Area)
- Phoenix-area voters extended a half-penny sales tax for roads and transit. (Arizona Republic)
- Denver voters removed a cap on sales tax revenue for the Regional Transportation District. (Colorado Sun)
- Columbus, Ohio voters passed a 0.5 percent sales tax for sidewalks, bike projects and bus rapid transit. (WOSU)
- Bucking the trend, suburban Atlanta voters once again rejected transit measures similar to Nashville’s. (AJC)
- In Ontario, Doug Ford’s proposal to rip up Toronto bike lanes would cost just as much as it did to install them in the first place. (Global News)
- The EU’s incoming commissioner for sustainable transport has a vision for high-speed rail and night trains connecting European capitals. (Rail Journal)
- Castletown on the Isle of Man is banning cars from its town square. (BBC)
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.
Read More:
Streetsblog has migrated to a new comment system. New commenters can register directly in the comments section of any article. Returning commenters: your previous comments and display name have been preserved, but you'll need to reclaim your account by clicking "Forgot your password?" on the sign-in form, entering your email, and following the verification link to set a new password — this is required because passwords could not be carried over during the migration. For questions, contact tips@streetsblog.org.
More from Streetsblog USA
Friday’s Headlines Celebrate Juneteenth
Ideas for speeding up infrastructure construction in the U.S., where it's slower and more expensive than any other nation.
June 19, 2026
Talking Headways Podcast: So What Is ‘Urban Disorder’ In A Post-Covid U.S.
Open air drug bazaars in San Francisco are one thing that we can agree need to be fixed.
June 18, 2026
Driverless Cars Could Save Tens of Thousands of Lives. But We Must Treat Them Like Aviation — Not Like Cars
Commercial passenger aviation has nearly zero passenger deaths per year compared to about 40,000 roadway deaths. That's not a function of driving being inherently riskier — it is a function of what our leaders decide is "safe enough."
June 18, 2026
Thursday’s Headlines Go Green, Save Green
A lack of smart planning and political willpower contributes to climate change that is costing Americans money
June 18, 2026
Wednesday’s Headlines Are Truckin’
Maybe we shouldn't rely so much on diesel to fuel buses or move so much freight by truck.
June 17, 2026
