Thursday’s Headlines Take the Long View
Instead of panic moves like gas tax holidays, maybe governments should respond to high gas prices by providing alternatives to driving.
By
Blake Aued
12:01 AM EDT on April 2, 2026
- The lack of good transit in the U.S. leaves drivers with few options other than to pay up when gas prices rise. (State Smart Transportation Initiative)
- Subsidizing fuel prices is one of the worst ways to respond to a shortage, writes David Levinson. Instead, policymakers should look to short-term measures to save fuel like lowering the speed limit and staggering work hours, as well as longer-term changes like congestion pricing to reduce driving. (Transportist)
- Automakers aren’t worried about gas prices affecting sales because only rich people can afford to buy a new car now, and they continue to pump out gas-guzzling trucks. (Jalopnik)
- Cataloging information about bus stops, like whether they have shelters or not, helps transit agencies improve the rider experience (Next City), including the D.C. Metro (Government Technology). But do cities rely too much on data at the expense of human insight? (Route Fifty)
- Governments are too busy measuring emissions to take drastically needed action on curbing fossil fuels, according to one Yale professor. (Climate Connections)
- The U.S. DOT is opening up applications for $1 billion in safe streets grants. (Smart Cities Dive)
- The Austin school district recorded at least 19 instances when driverless Waymos passed school buses, with some coming after officials alerted the company to the problem. (Wired)
- Greater Greater Washington laments the lost opportunity for a real streetcar system in D.C.
- Uber is getting more aggressive in fighting Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker’s proposed $1 rideshare fee (Axios). About 50 cities and states already charge similar fees (Governing).
- Tennessee lawmakers are close to approving a bill allowing Nashville to put bus-only lanes on state-owned roads, but there’s some question about whether bike lanes would be allowed. (Banner)
- A Georgia bill would require local governments to wait eight years to try again after a failed transit referendum, meaning Gwinnett and Cobb counties in suburban Atlanta couldn’t call another vote until 2033. (AJC; paywall)
- Alabama is spending billions to widen I-65 through major cities while residents of the impoverished, rural Black Belt face long commutes on inadequate roads, according to a University of Alabama report. (Alabama Political Reporter)
- Colorado legislators are again considering shrinking the Regional Transportation District board and replacing some elected members with appointed ones. (Denverite)
- Cap Times has an update on bike and sidewalk projects in Madison.
- The burden of funding Seattle transit falls disproportionately on low-income households. (Washington Policy Center)
- Tacoma leaders are worried that a Sound Transit budget shortfall will mean cutting short a light rail extension to the city’s domed stadium. (KOMO)
- A Seattle artist aims to keep pedestrians singing in the rain by making sidewalk art that only shows up when it’s wet. (Washington Post)
- Chattanooga is the first U.S. municipality to officially be named a National Park City. (Pop Sci)
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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