Monday Roundup: Victim blaming and martyrdom in the ‘war on cars’

Happy post-holiday Monday! Hope you had a nice Thanksgiving break and are staying warm.

Before we embark on another week of news and content, let’s look back at the most important stories we came across in the past week.

Campaigns matter: The residents of Berkeley, California elected a new mayor who campaigned on a platform for safe streets and beat an incumbent who opposed walk and bike infrastructure. (SF Chronicle)

A cycling martyr: The Mayor of Paris says a man who was killed while cycling by a road raging SUV driver should be recognized as a hero for his work as an advocate and a symbol that the French city refuses to end its war on cars. (NY Times)

Language matters: An effort to improve the way police and media talk about traffic crashes is bearing some fruit in the UK as new research based on the Road Collision Reporting Guidelines has been published. (Road.cc)

Show me the money: Turns out that even with all the overhead associated with collecting more parking fine revenue in Portland, it is still a revenue-positive endeavor. (Willamette Week)

Road diet homework: If you want to sharpen your responses to people who oppose road diets for nefarious reasons, read this opinion piece that does so with a very reasonable and pragmatic tone. (Minn Post)

Blaming pedestrians: A controversial story amplifies voices that believe there’s simply no way to eliminate traffic deaths as long as some people don’t take more steps to be safe while walking. (San Francisco Standard)

Words about the ‘war’: Another perspective about the ‘war on cars’ is that it’s just complete and total hogwash with no basis in reality. (The Toronto Star)

Thanks to everyone who sent in links this week. The Monday Roundup is a community effort, so please feel free to send us any great stories you come across.