Friday’s Headlines Took the Road Less Traveled By

And that has made all the difference, when it comes to preventing traffic deaths.

By Blake Aued

12:01 AM EDT on March 20, 2026

Photo: Don Harder

Simply getting people to drive less is the single biggest factor in street safety, according to one study. There is a nearly direct link between vehicle-miles traveled and fatal crashes, even greater than other factors like speeding or volume of truck traffic. (State Smart Transportation Initiative)
State DOTs want more flexibility to spend federal money on highways, so local governments are trying to take that money out of their hands. (Transportation for America)
U.S. transit agencies added more than 8,000 zero-emissions buses between mid-2024 and mid-2025, but federal policy and funding could slow that growth. (Smart Cities Dive)
Walk stores just measure how close you are to stores, restaurants and parks, not whether the walk is along a traffic-choked stroad or a pleasant, tree-lined street. (CU Boulder Today)
An elderly, speeding San Francisco driver killed a family of four who were waiting for a bus. She was sentenced to probation, and once it ends, will be eligible to get her driver's license back. (New York Times)
Political experts are confident San Francisco voters will back Muni funding, but a tax for other Bay Area transit agencies is less of a sure thing. (Standard)
Seattle's Sound Transit is considering fare gates and accessing state carbon tax credits to raise more revenue. (KING 5)
Boston leader Michelle Wu is no longer the bike-lane mayor. (Streetsblog USA)
Cambridge, Massachusetts was the first American city to mandate protected bike lanes, and it's seen cycling rise by 250 percent. (Momentum)
Kansas City is putting one of its most dangerous thoroughfares, Southwest Boulevard, on a road diet. (KCTV)
Lessons learned from the failure of the D.C. streetcar. (Greater Greater Washington)
Ireland is looking to China to learn how to build light rail projects faster. (Irish Times)
Transport for London is launching a speed camera pilot program. (Traffic Technology Today)