An international auto consultant predicts that in the future people will drive less and buy fewer cars, eliminating the need to widen roads. (City Observatory)
The Brookings Institute suggests a stimulus plan that includes covering households’ transportation costs and grants to states for infrastructure maintenance.
Minimum parking requirements are among the regulations limiting the amount of new housing built in cities. (City Lab)
Ants can show us how to optimize freight fleet routes to cut vehicle emissions in half. (Intelligent Transport)
Wonk fight! Pedestrian Observations takes on the Strong Towns philosophy of incremental transportation improvement, arguing that it’s born out of timidity.
After a string of legal losses on the labor rights front, Uber and Lyft won a victory in the California Supreme Court, which ruled they can’t be sued for undercutting taxi fares. (San Francisco Chronicle)
Willamette Week calls Portland’s $5-billion transportation referendum a “big gamble,” wondering if the rise of telecommuting will hit transit as hard as it hits driving in the long run. Meanwhile, Portland is fining the feds $500 for every 15 minutes an illegal fence blocking a bike lane remains up around a federal courthouse. (KOMO).
WHYY says Philadelphia’s transit agency, SEPTA, should install bus-only lanes to speed up service and lower fares for regional commuter rail to entice riders.
A cracked West Seattle bridge could be replaced with one built from local timber that accommodates light rail, bikes and pedestrians. (Post-Intelligencer)
Houston Public Radio interviews the Harris County METRO CEO about ridership losses, restoring fares and why so many bus drivers are getting COVID (hint: Texas is one of the states that reopened).
Mobility company Helbiz is putting 300 e-scooters into Arlington and Alexandria. (ARLnow)
America’s most famous sidewalk, the Hollywood Walk of Fame, is getting an upgrade, with outdoor dining, shade trees and safety improvements replacing on-street parking. (NBC4)
National Geographic has a list of interesting places to walk, like secret staircases in Los Angeles, the country’s longest pedestrian bridge in Chicago and a bucolic cemetery in Washington, D.C.
