Thursday’s Headlines Yearn to Breathe Free
Is our children learning? It helps if they have clean air.
By
Blake Aued
12:01 AM EDT on September 10, 2026
- Cleaner air equals smarter children. That was the result of a Columbia University study that found that a reduction in tailpipe pollution, among other sources, in New York City improved toddlers’ cognitive development by 26 percent. Other studies have also shown respiratory benefits when measures like low-emissions zones are implemented. (NY Times)
- Jake Boyles provides hard proof that interstates are homogenizing the country. (Strong Towns)
- Robotaxis would be much more useful in rural areas that lack transit than in big cities. (Bloomberg CityLab; paywall)
- Human backup drivers in robotaxis might not be worth much if they lose their skills while observing most of the time. (The Conversation)
- Electrek lays out how it’s possible to replace a second car with an e-cargo bike.
- Lyft was able to convince California voters to classify rideshare drivers as independent contractors, and now CEO Logan Green wants to take Prop 22 nationwide. (Mashable)
- Chicago’s new regional transportation authority overseeing the CTA, Metra and Pace is up and running. (Eno Center for Transportation)
- How many bike-riding children have to die before Michigan stops designing roads solely for drivers? (WLNS)
- At least one Atlanta city council member is onboard with a new plan for light rail along the 22-mile Beltline. (CBS News)
- Cincinnati’s Connector streetcar has not quite lived up to early expectations, but it’s still carried 7.5 million riders in 10 years, and the numbers are trending up. (Axios)
- In addition to cutting bus routes and early morning service, Miami-Dade could start charging for the Metromover. (Miami Times)
- Japanese architects are going to great lengths to provide parking for single-family homes with limited space. (Design Boom)
- Clearly Ottawa mayoral candidate Alex Lawson hasn’t read “The High Cost of Free Parking.” (CBC)
- Montreal, too, is in danger of backsliding as Mayor Soraya Martinez Ferrada puts bike projects under renewed scrutiny. (Momentum)
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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