Recent Streetsblog USA posts about Today’s Headlines

President Trump will once again ask Congress to pass an infrastructure package in tonight’s State of the Union address. (USA Today) The price tag for fixing the nation’s infrastructure, according to the American Society of Civil Engineers, is $2 trillion — although that group’s credibility was hurt by its executive director saying nice things about Elon […]

Congestion pricing is sometimes considered regressive, but it can actually create equity in transportation by generating revenue for transit and allowing buses and carpoolers to move faster. (Curbed) Unfortunately, a rumor that L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti would endorse the idea Sunday turned out to be false. (He still may, someday!) Uber is adding city buses […]

The portion of the Federal Highway Trust Fund devoted to public transit is expected to run dry in 2021 — forcing a 30-percent spending cut — as increased fuel efficiency and construction costs cut into gas tax revenue. That could be a disaster, or an opportunity to put a better funding mechanism, like a Green […]

Riding the bus will make you healthier. A new study found a correlation between mass transit ridership and lower obesity rates. Just walking to and from the bus stop is more exercise than driving, explained the study’s co-author. (Science Daily) The Texas DOT — apparently stuck in the 1950s — wants to widen I-30 through […]

Washington state legislators are taking up bills to cap the car-tab fee that helps fund Sound Transit and a $16-billion infrastructure plan. (Seattle Times) Creepy or useful? Google’s Sidewalk Labs is using our cellphones to track us on sidewalks, and packaging and selling the data to urban planners to help them make transportation and land-use […]

City Lab has two recent stories about the drawbacks of ride-hailing: Another study — this one with newer data than previous studies — blames public transit’s declining ridership on Uber and Lyft. And Uber’s new rewards program gives users an incentive to ride solo, worsening congestion even further. Whether dockless e-scooters stick around or not, […]