The drumbeat of a future without so many damn cars everywhere continues this week, and I couldn’t be happier about it. Now let’s turn these headlines into real changes on the ground.
Here are the most noteworthy items we came across in the past seven days….
This isn’t hard: Saying “The ecological transition is a priority,” the leader of a Montreal neighborhood will charge SUV owners more to park their gas-guzzlers.
San Diego has more guts than we do?: Oh look, another city (in the U.S. this time!) is moving forward with plans to ban driving on their most iconic and popular downtown street in a bid to increase real estate values and boost foot traffic.
Language matters: I am giddy that respectable researchers have backed up (with science!) my deeply held belief and standard practice of being very careful and thoughtful with word choice when reporting on traffic crashes.
A vote against incrementalism: This well-researched piece from the Center for American Progress makes an excellent case for why simply going for small “wins” for biking and walking on projects where driving capacity is significantly improved, is actually a very big loss.
Time to break up: Another week, another national headline about how cities are finally ending their toxic love affair with driving.
Advertisement
Parking pays for transit: When people say “free transit” is an impossible pipe dream, send them a link to this op-ed that says if we priced auto parking appropriately it could offset the loss in transit fares.
Traffic violence takes stage: I noticed that Families for Safe Streets has launched an effort to get “End Traffic Violence” into the national presidential campaign conversation. Then I noticed candidate Elizabeth Warren tweeted about it. 👏🏽👏🏽
AV dystopia: Jalopnik reports on a study that used chauffeurs to mimic an autonomous vehicle future and the results were horrific.
Future of e-road bikes: VeloNews dives into the nascent market of high-end, high-performance e-road bikes, ponders who might buy them, and juxtaposes them with more functional micro-mobility options.
Dynamic leadership is key: The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency board has chosen “high-profile outsider” Jeffrey Tumlin to lead the agency. There’s a good interview with Tumlin on the SFMTA blog.
Advertisement
Kids know best: A neighborhood in Germany is much safer because they let kids design a roundabout, crosswalks, and other roadway features.
Race and advocacy: This solid piece about the value and need for non-white advocacy leadership is based in Chicago but is relevant to a similar dynamic here in Portland.
Biking in Los Angeles: L.A. is far from a biking paradise, but even with its driver-dominated streets and suffocating car culture, the benefits and appeal of cycling come through for this USC student.
Trump builds bike lanes: The US DOT released its third batch of BUILD grant (formerly named TIGER) award winners. Several of the projects include bikeways, including the sole project from Oregon — a $15.5 million project that will add driving lanes and bike lanes to a road in Medford.
Tweet of the Week: Local cycling journalist and photographer Pat Malach shared an amazing slice of Portland bike messenger history:
#tbt Portland, circa 1993-97, to a group of lost boys and the Neverland they carved out delivering other people's shit by bike. Portland is a small town, and ours was a small group, and we were all broken in some way. (1) pic.twitter.com/7nP2rs8aMm
— Pat Malach (@Pat_Malach) November 14, 2019
— Jonathan Maus: (503) 706-8804, @jonathan_maus on Twitter and jonathan@bikeportland.org
— Get our headlines delivered to your inbox.
— Support this independent community media outlet with a one-time contribution or monthly subscription.