Monday’s Headlines Get Pumped
Contrary to what President Trump says, gas remains expensive — another reason to walk, bike or take transit.
By
Blake Aued
12:19 AM EDT on April 21, 2025
- President Trump continues to gaslight Americans on gas prices, claiming that they’re down to less than $2 a gallon. In reality, the cheapest gas anywhere in the country is $2.19, and the national average is $3.17. (CNN)
- Trump’s tariffs on imported vehicles and auto parts could further slow the adoption of electric vehicles by making them even less affordable. (Government Technology)
- The Natural Resources Defense Council rated each state on its transportation policies and found that most need to do more to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Vermont led the way, with Texas coming in last. (Streetsblog also summed it up.)
- New Jersey authorities arrested a Florida man who had previously brought a “small arsenal” of guns onto an Amtrak train and charged him with leaving a suitcase full of weapons and ammunition, including a booby-trapped rifle, at a subway station. (Jalopnik)
- Lawsuits in Nashville, Phoenix and Austin are seeking to overturn voter-approved transit expansions. (States Newsroom)
- Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro continues to push state lawmakers for $292 million in transit funding. (CBS News)
- Portland’s TriMet says it will have to eliminate two-thirds of bus routes by 2031 unless the state raises a payroll tax to fund transit. Meanwhile, more than 100 transit advocates gathered at the Oregon state capitol to rally for additional funding (KATU).
- Pittsburgh is improving 14 light rail stations to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. (Post-Gazette)
- Sacramento is the first city in the nation to use bus-mounted cameras to catch drivers blocking bike lanes. (Fox 40)
- In the Omaha mayor’s race, challenger John Ewing supports using automated cameras to enforce traffic laws, while incumbent Jean Stothert does not. (Nebraska Examiner)
- A Georgia state legislator who hit a cyclist with his car pleaded guilty to minor traffic violations. (11Alive)
- Big Easy Magazine delves into the history of New Orleans streetcars, including the first major boycott by Black riders in 1867. Four years earlier, a Black woman in San Francisco refused to leave a whites-only streetcar (Mississippi Today).
- Neighborhood streets were shut down in Portland for a whimsical bike relay race. (KGW)
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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