Today's Headlines

Tuesday’s Headlines Call It Heavy Metal

A New York Times interactive feature shows why larger vehicles are more deadly for pedestrians.

By Blake Aued

12:01 AM EDT on June 23, 2026

The trucks are too damn high. Angie Schmitt

The New York Times picked up on something Streetsblog’s been talking about for years: car bloat. A Times analysis found that vehicles are getting taller and heavier, which accounts for about 200 to 400 pedestrian deaths per year. In addition to the weight, that’s because higher hoods are more likely to knock people down, and massive mirrors and A-pillars create huge blind spots.
Even though crime on buses and trains is rare, transit agencies still need to take crime concerns seriously to maintain and grow ridership. (Governing)
Ride-hailing companies are known for fighting regulations, but a top Lyft executive told Smart Cities Dive that the company embraces safety standards and has good relationships with local, state and federal officials.
About 14 percent of public chargers don’t work, and that will have to improve for electric vehicles to become more popular. (Heatmap)
One leg of a 36-mile trail project in Birmingham will connect historic civil rights sites like 16th Street Baptist Church, where four Black girls were killed in a white supremacist bombing. (Birmingham Times)
Rep. Rashida Tlaib is calling on Congress to fund Metro Detroit transit instead of more highways. (Planet Detroit)
Denver bike advocates took Mayor Mike Johnston out for a six-mile ride to point out their safety concerns. (Denver 7)
Amtrak is offering a sale on tickets for destinations between Boston and New York City (Boston Uncovered) and giving away free tacos in Modesto to get people onboard (Bee).
Valley Metro is seeking public input on a west Phoenix light rail extension. (KJZZ)
A sinkhole in Omaha swallowed a sidewalk near the streetcar route. (Nebraska Public Media)
London now has 3,000 zero-emissions buses, making up a third of its fleet. (Sustainable Bus)
Should Vancouver expand the SkyTrain or build light rail at a third of the cost? (The B1M)
A new law in China mandates EV batteries that don’t catch on fire. (Autoblog)

Blake Aued

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.

Today's Headlines

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