Friday’s Headlines Go Underground

• If every city with more than 500,000 people had a subway system, it would cut their carbon dioxide emissions in half. (World Bank)
• With federal COVID funding running out, transit agencies are turning to states and cities, future federal funding and/or local voter initiatives for support. (Center Square)
• The Biden administration is redirecting some planning funding from the bipartisan infrastructure law toward quick-build Vision Zero projects. (Transportation for America)
• Since its Vision Zero program started 10 years ago, New York City has at least managed to hold the line on traffic deaths, whereas drivers have killed 30 percent more people in other U.S. cities. The difference is even more stark when focusing just on pedestrians. (Route Fifty).
• A long read in Cleveland Scene details how its growth has been fueled by drivers’ fears that they won’t have anywhere to put their cars, and what the city is doing now to correct the mistakes of the past.
• Some Buffalo residents fear that a plan to cap the Kensington Expressway won’t reunite neighborhoods; it will only push more pollution into the majority Black surrounding area. (CityLab)
• With New York City’s congestion pricing program set to take effect this summer, Boston is considering following suit. (NBC Boston)
• The D.C. Metro is warning regional partners that despite an influx of funding for the coming year, the transit agency needs a more sustainable source of revenue. (WTOP)
• Rather than fighting fires, the Los Angeles firefighters’ union is fighting a referendum on making L.A. streets safer. (L.A. Times)
• With 285 million boardings last year, the L.A. Metro’s ridership hit its highest level since the pandemic hit. (Progressive Railroading)
• A Waymo taxi crashed into a cyclist in San Francisco — further proof that driverless cars aren’t ready for prime time. (Bicycling)
• Some Utah legislators want transit in their districts, but they don’t want to fund it. Instead they want to take funding from other suburbs already served by transit. (Fox 13)
• Axios has a timeline for Seattle light rail construction.
• Even in a bike lane, cyclists should always prepare for the unexpected. (Momentum)

source https://usa.streetsblog.org/2024/02/16/fridays-headlines-go-underground