America’s Traffic Death Toll Is a National Disgrace
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More than 40,000 Americans were killed in traffic last year, according to new estimates from the National Safety Council, a non-profit that aims to reduce preventable deaths. That’s a 6 percent year-over-year increase, and a shocking 14 percent increase compared to two years ago. It’s the first time traffic fatalities have surpassed 40,000 since 2007. Until […]
Today’s Headlines for Friday, February 17
|- Driver hits and injures a man walking across Logan Square street and drives off (DNA)
- Case begins against McDonald’s for not serving customers without cars after the lobby closes (Tribune)
- Boarding time is cut in half on Los Angeles articulated bus when people board all doors (GGWash)
- Driver kills themselves and three other people in crash last night in Des Plaines (Tribune)
- David Plouffe fine by Chicago ethics board for failing to register as an Uber lobbyist (NBC5)
- UILabs’s City Digital group is collecting data about stormwater flows on new Argyle streetscape (DNA)
- An ode to Chicago’s 1,900 miles of alleys: “deemed a waste of space on the east coast” (Reader)
- Despite opposition from Chambers, new apartments in Jefferson Park could increase business (DNA)
Streetsblog Chicago is taking a vacation next week.
Introducing a New Streetsblog Series: Getting Transit Right
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With more American cities raising impressive sums to expand transit, the question of how to invest effectively is increasingly essential. So far, few places have hit on a policy combination that makes transit more useful to more people. To help cities "get transit right," Streetsblog is launching a new series about which transit strategies are working and which are not.
Want to See Where Transit and Biking Need a Boost? D.C. Has a Map for That
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Most places in the U.S. still use 20th century metrics to measure the performance of transportation systems. The emphasis is still on moving cars, not improving transit service or reducing traffic injuries. One of the exceptions is DC, where the DOT is letting people assess streets according to a different set of priorities.
Today’s Headlines for Thursday, February 16
|- City & Federal Agencies: Rumors of ICE Checkpoints on the CTA Are False (DNA)
- Chicago Man Held in Hit & Run Death of Roman Polniak, 52, in Des Plaines (Tribune)
- Pedestrian Fatally Struck on I-59 in Warrenville (Tribune)
- 13-Year-Old Girl Killed as After Police Chase in Hammond (ABC)
- Two Police Officers Injured in Crash During Pursuit (Tribune)
- Relatives of 5 Victims in I-55 Crash Speak Out at Trucker’s Sentencing (Tribune)
- Western Springs Set to Approve Bids for Metra Platform Upgrades (Tribune)
- Does Chicago Merit Another Top Bike City Ranking? Let People for Bikes Know (Chicagoist)
Get national headlines at Streetsblog USA
Note: Streetsblog Chicago will be on vacation next week.
After an Officer Seriously Injured a Cyclist in Lakeview, Police Blamed the Victim
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The CPD argues the cyclist was at fault, claiming that she ran her stop sign. However, her attorney says the truth about the crash has yet to be determined, and the CPD's refusal to accept responsibility is yet another example of our city's larger problem of police accountability.
Milwaukee Subsidizes the Rest of Wisconsin, Not the Other Way Around
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Perhaps nowhere has the tactic of trashing cities to win elections played out more starkly than in Wisconsin, where Governor Scott Walker blows his dog whistle by portraying Milwaukee as a welfare case. But Walker's got it all wrong: New data shows Milwaukee's wealth is in fact being siphoned off by the rest of the state.
Today’s Headlines for Wednesday, February 15
|- NBC: Police Have Written Zero Tickets for Driving in Loop Link Lanes
- Trump’s Muslim Ban Sparks Fears About CTA Searches That Have Occurred Since 2014 (Chicagoist)
- Editorial: Rahm Needs to Provide “Hard Evidence” That O’Hare Express Is Needed (Tribune)
- More Good News About the Green Line: Emanuel Wants to Overhaul South Leg (Sun-Times)
- SUV Driver Killed Brother & Sister as They Pulled Out of Driveway in Maywood (CBS)
- Red Line Delayed This Morning by Man on Tracks at State/Lake (Chicagoist)
- Security Images Released of Suspects in Green Line Cell Phone Robberies (DNA)
- Protest Against Plan to Evict Tenants From Building Near Kimball Stop, Evict Tenants (DNA)
- New HQ for C.H. Robinson at Webster & the River Will Have Nearly 200 Car Spaces (DNA)
Get national headlines at Streetsblog USA
Note: Streetsblog Chicago will be on vacation next week.
Wicker Park / Bucktown Plan Has Great Ideas for Improving Transportation
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Fixing the North/Damen/Milwaukee intersection, adding bike lanes on Milwaukee Avenue, and making the viaducts by the Clybourn Metra stop safer and more pleasant are all scenes we'd love to see.
To Get More People on Bikes, Louisville Needs to Raise Its Game
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Louisville is making an effort to build out its bike network, adding a number of buffered bike lanes and beginning a network of low-stress "Neighborways" along residential streets. It's a start, but peer cities like Indianapolis and Pittsburgh are doing more to make cycling an appealing way to get around.
Today’s Headlines for Tuesday, February 14
|- After Opposing Cornell Plan, Hairston Asks Obama Foundation for More Input (DNA)
- An Architect’s Proposal for the New Damen Green Line Station (Curbed)
- Drunk Driver Who Killed 3 Chicago Women in Milwaukee Hit-and-Run Pleads Guilty (WISN)
- Could the Jewel at Sheridan & Montrose Be Replaced With a TOD? (Curbed)
- Metra Riders Share Pet Peeves, Which Will Be Highlighted in Upcoming Campaign (WGN)
- Map: Lots of Infrastructure Improvements Planned for the 33rd Ward (DNA)
- A Valentine Video to Encourage Ridership on the Lincoln Ave. Bus (DNA)
- A Realistic Depiction of the Streets of Chicago on Minecraft (Chicagoist)
Get national headlines at Streetsblog USA
Note: Streetsblog Chicago will be on vacation next week.