Ben Fried

Thanks to everyone who's given to Streetsblog and Streetfilms so far in our spring pledge drive -- we're nearly a quarter of the way to our fundraising goal of $40,000. I can't emphasize enough how crucial it is for readers to chip in and help us reach our targets. Your contributions keep us going so we can deliver news and commentary about the transition to safer city streets that work for people, not cars. So keep those donations coming!

Usually when we hear news from a Streetsblog Network member about the Missouri Department of Transportation, it's because the agency is blocking ideas like a complete streets bill or a highway-to-boulevard conversion in downtown St. Louis. The advocates at BikeWalkKC report that now the agency is feeling some grassroots resistance to its cars-first approach:

Since the 1970s, the Netherlands and the United States have taken different paths when it comes to engineering streets. While the Dutch tackled traffic deaths and injuries by designing local streets where walking and biking are safe, convenient ways to get around, the prevalent approach in America was to apply highway design principles to local streets -- wider and straighter was thought to be safer. The superiority of the Dutch approach turned out to be dramatic: In 1975, the traffic death rate in the Netherlands was 20 percent higher than in America, but by 2008 it was 60 percent lower. About 22,000 fewer people would die on U.S. streets each year if the nation had achieved safety outcomes comparable to the Dutch, according to Gary Toth at Project for Public Spaces.

After setting up transportation news sites covering New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and national policy, next Tuesday Streetsblog will be expanding for the first time in four years with the launch of Streetsblog Chicago.

On behalf of the staff of Streetsblog and Streetfilms I’d like to extend a warm thank you to everyone who donated to our year-end pledge drive. Reader support is what keeps us going, and this year everyone contributed in a big way.

Hello Streetsblog readers, here's the latest word on our end-of-year pledge drive. With the contributions pouring in, we're rounding the home stretch more than three-quarters of the way to our goal of raising $60,000 by the end of the year. Can you help put us over the top?

Here's a rather alarming update from Jef Nickerson at Greater City Providence, who alerts us to one of the not-so-imaginative responses to the current fiscal distress affecting many American cities. Providence is selling its streets:

One of the interesting developments to come out of the National Association of City Transportation Officials "Designing Cities" conference (currently in its second day) was the announcement of a wide-ranging new design guide to be released next year. NACTO's "Urban Streets Design Guide" will show how streets of every size can be re-oriented to prioritize transit, safe walking and biking, and public activity.

At last night's presidential debate in Nassau County, the best opening for Barack Obama and Mitt Romney to talk about transportation policy came when undecided voter Phillip Tricolla asked the following question of the President:

We're rounding the final turn in our spring fundraising campaign, and thanks to hundreds of generous donations to Streetsblog and Streetfilms the finish line is within sight. Just $3,500 in donations this week and we'll reach our goal of raising $30,000 by June 1. Your support enables us to produce high-impact content making the case for livable streets and green transport. So if you haven't given yet, no more holding back -- now's the time to contribute. The pledge drive ends Friday at midnight.