Maybe Monday’s Headlines Drive, Maybe They Walk

Nobody tells you where to go, baby. So what's the difference if a computer's behind the wheel or a person?

By Blake Aued

12:01 AM EDT on October 20, 2025

Main photo: Waltarrrr, CC

There might be a million or more robotaxis on the road 10 years from now (Forbes). Uber is already paying drivers to train the AI that will eventually replace them (CNBC). Meanwhile, the Detroit News pushes back against the notion that self-driving cars are a threat to American car culture, which begs the question, why are we spending hundreds of billions of dollars on them?
The government shutdown is holding up negotiations on next year's transportation funding bill. (Transport Topics)
Closing a street to cars isn't a yes-or-no question. There are a variety of options. (The Future of Where)
Based in part on walkability, a WalletHub study named San Jose, Washington D.C., Oakland, Irvine, San Francisco, Honolulu and San Diego the greenest cities in the U.S. (Quartz)
The City of Pittsburgh and Strip District business owners reached a compromise allowing a Penn Avenue road diet to move forward. (WTAE)
A D.C. driver crashed into a Maryland birthday party, killing a woman and injuring 11 others, including eight children. (WUSA)
Protected bike lanes are being built on the Bethesda road where a driver killed Maryland diplomat Sarah Langenkamp while cycling in 2022. (WTOP)
A $21 million Complete Streets project on Atlanta's Howell Mill Road is almost done. (WSB-TV)
Augusta, Georgia, purchased five new electric buses. (Chronicle)
Vision Zero projects in Austin have saved nearly half a billion dollars in terms of medical costs, emergency services, lost wages and other expenses, not to mention lives. (Community Impact)
The Kansas City Star got a sneak preview of the Main Street streetcar extension.
A European partnership developed the StreetForum guide for transforming car-dominated streets. (Spacescape)
Bikeshares generate about $360 million annually for the European economy. (Cities Today)
On a single day in September, Paris cyclists logged nearly 22,000 rides on a single route that opened just two years ago. (Momentum)