Thursday’s Headlines Start the New Year With a Tragedy

The attack on Bourbon Street early Wednesday morning was the latest and deadliest example of a killer using a vehicle as a weapon.

By Blake Aued

12:01 AM EST on January 2, 2025

City of New Orleans|

A rendering of new bollards planned to keep vehicles off of Bourbon Street.

In what the FBI believes was an "act of terrorism," an American man with ties to ISIS drove a truck through a crowd of New Year's Eve revelers and college football fans in New Orleans' French Quarter, then got out and opened fire, killing 15 people and injuring at least 30 more before being gunned down by police (CNN, Associated Press, et al).
The simplicity of using a vehicle as a weapon, combined with the rising number of outdoor events post-COVID, has led to a rash of such attacks in recent years. (USA Today)
The fact that the driver was able to maneuver around police barricades raised concerns about why the city has not fully pedestrianized Bourbon Street, where thousands of people gather nightly to drink and party. The New Orleans government was in the midst of replacing malfunctioning bollards with new ones when the attack occurred (NBC News).
Federal authorities are investigating whether the New Orleans attack was linked to the explosion of a Cybertruck outside of the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas, according to the New York Times. However, Cybertruck batteries are known to spontaneously combust, most recently at a Tesla dealership outside of Atlanta on Tuesday (Decaturish).
The late Jimmy Carter was the first U.S. president to link emissions to climate change and implement fuel efficiency standards for automobiles, but ultimately proceeded too cautiously on environmental issues. (Slate)
A new ride-hailing drivers' cooperative is taking aim at Uber and Lyft. (Jacobin)
Some San Francisco residents are so worked up about a nonexistent "war on cars" that they're willing to turn to threats of violence. (Chronicle)
The Tennessean named Nashville Mayor Freddie O'Connell its person of the year, in part for ushering through a successful transit referendum.
The company building Honolulu's Skyline light rail project is suing the city, alleging that it's been forced to absorb tens of millions in cost overruns. (Trains)
Maryland's Purple Line is behind schedule and over budget, primarily because of the Larry Hogan administration's foot-dragging and unrealistic cost estimates. (Washington Post)
Montgomery County, Maryland released a plan to expand bus service through 2050 to serve its growing population. (WTOP)
The state of Maryland currently runs Baltimore's transit system, and a local transit advocate explains why local control is better. (Maryland Matters)
New Jersey broke ground on a new railyard that can withstand flooding from superstorms like Hurricane Sandy. (Jersey Digs)
A biking influencer highlighted Chicago construction zones that force cyclists from bike lanes onto the street. (The Cooldown)
An Atlanta Journal-Constitution columnist's dilemma over whether to drive drunk or risk a parking ticket illustrates why the city needs better transit.
Wichita's new bike plan calls for adding 80 miles of new bikeways. (Eagle)
Ho Chi Minh City, the traffic-choked financial center of Vietnam, opened its first metro line. (CityLab)