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Today's Headlines

Wednesday’s Headlines Smell a Bit Musky

It certainly looks like Tesla CEO Elon Musk will get his money's worth after spending more than a quarter-billion dollars on Donald Trump's campaign.

  • Elon Musk helped Donald Trump get elected, and soon the Trump administration will return the favor by ending self-reporting requirements for autonomous vehicle crashes, making any further investigations into Tesla's misnamed and often misused "autopilot" feature unlikely. (Reuters)
  • Trump's animosity toward non-Tesla electric vehicles runs deeper than previously known, Ars Technica reports. In addition to ditching the Biden administration's subsidies for consumers — which Musk supports — the incoming Trump administration is also planning on trying to claw back Biden's emissions regulations, as well as funding for EV chargers and electrifying the federal fleet.
  • Parents are turning to ride-hailing apps to get their kids to school as districts cut funding for buses. (Associated Press)
  • Streetsblog's Kea Wilson speaks some inconvenient truths about how we got where we are transportation-wise at least in part because a lot of Americans not only don't mind driving long distances, they actually like it, which should influence how walking/biking/transit advocates frame the debate.
  • Metro Charlotte leaders are racing against the clock to convince North Carolina state legislators to let them put a transportation tax proposal on the November ballot. (WCNC)
  • Ironically, fewer people driving is what's killing San Francisco transit agency Muni financially. (Mission Local)
  • Other Democrats are abandoning California Gov. Gavin Newsom's fight against Big Oil, fearing high gas prices will hurt them at the ballot box. (Politico)
  • Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott has appointed a Biden administration DOT official as the city's new director of transportation. (CBS News)
  • With the success of Cleveland's HealthLine bus rapid transit project, the city's transit agency is looking at extending it. (Scene)
  • A comprehensive bike plan for San Antonio is moving closer to approval. (KENS)
  • Seems like Seattle transit advocates agree Sound Transit needs reform, but there are different ideas about how to move forward. (Seattle Transit Blog)
  • Oregon Public Media concludes a series on rural transit with a trip to Sasquatch country.
  • Philadelphia transit advocates are working hard to spread the word about the SEPTA funding crisis. (Billy Penn)
  • A Florida man — where else? — by the name of Bruce Wayne Hylton ditched the Batmobile for a Lyft, then proceeded to strip out of his Batsuit in the back seat. (Newsbreak)

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