Counter-Intuitive Department: Sometimes, Traffic Controls Make Streets More Dangerous
Since the very first center line appeared on a Michigan road in 1911, many have questioned whether the design norms that govern U.S. roads really make them "safe", or simply less dangerous than the anarchic days of early motordom — though still nowhere near as safe as the days before the car dominated American roads at all. Here's why.
January 23, 2023
Driving is Normalized Way More Than We Think — With Terrible Ramifications
People raised in a car-dominated culture are measurably more likely to accept the societal harms and inequities associated with driving than other public health threats — and undoing those powerful double standards will require a profound rewiring of the way we think about the world.
January 20, 2023
Why Don’t Drivers Stop at Crosswalks? Because They’re Driving Too Fast
Many motorists yield to pedestrians in crosswalks — but not when they're driving at deadly speeds, according to a new study that shows the need to slow down car drivers with broader road design changes, and not just more signs and paint.
January 16, 2023
Transport is the Leading Source of U.S. Emissions — Again
America's transportation sector remains the leading national driver of the climate crisis — and automobile drivers aren't helping.
January 12, 2023
Road Deaths Surged Alongside Covid — But Who Died, Exactly?
The surge of traffic deaths in the first year of the pandemic can't be completely explained by quarantine-emptied roads that made speeding easy — and new data on who, exactly, was involved in those crashes may lead to more questions than answers.
January 9, 2023
Steal This Idea: Cincinnati Hires In-House Crew To Build Pedestrian Infrastructure
In what could be a model for cities across America, Cincinnati is creating an in-house team to build safer streets for people who walk and roll, and vaulting over one of the most common roadblocks to saving vulnerable road users lives.
January 5, 2023
Four Ways Automotive Regulators Could Save Pedestrian Lives
America's top regulatory agency is failing its mandate to “keep people safe on America’s roadways” — and to truly accomplish it, they need to fundamentally change the way they operate.
January 4, 2023
Federal Funding Bill Contains $45M for New Active Transportation Program
That great news was soured slightly, though, by the very small dollar figure attached to it.
December 23, 2022
‘America’s Bike Mayor’ Put a Seat at Every Bus Stop. Why Can’t We?
"If there's one more senior who can choose to stay independent in my city because we provided a bus seat to them — because in the absence of that, they don't have mobility choices — I'm going to put a bus seat there. As unsexy as that may seem to some folks, that matters to me."
December 22, 2022
Most U.S. Cities Can’t Set Their Own Speed Limits — But Maybe They Should
Oregon may soon allow cities more leeway to set lower speed limits on dangerous roads — rather than reserving that power for state transportation leaders whose primary interest, historically, has been moving cars as quickly as possible.
December 21, 2022
