Streetsblog.net

But the agency sidestepped real commitments on reducing VMT, even though its leaders have acknowledged for years that reducing driving is key to meeting climate goals

Bus lanes? Guidance. Bike lanes? Policy foundation. Safe walking? Aspirational. Car capacity? Build it exactly as the plan specifies.

Let's pull back the cover on some seemingly shocking stats from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

As the city hopes to reduce its dependence on private automobiles in order to cut back on congestion, emissions and traffic violence, it’s also looking to expand its carshare program. So we talked to the head of Zipcar about the company's prospects in New York.

The new public space czar would become the central node to oversee the different agencies that affect all public realm policies and projects, including the departments of Transportation, Parks, and Sanitation.

"[Street design and land use] together are at the root cause of a lot of the traffic safety challenges we see across the country,” said Mike Lydon, founding principal of Street Plans. “And to completely fail to acknowledge that, to not internalize that and figure out that that's the responsibility of the engineer, is a problem and it’s misguided.”

Hopefully it's some comfort to the families of kids who were lost to traffic violence this year, that their stories helped bring about change that could prevent others from experiencing that kind of heartbreak.

This week, we’re joined by Sarah Kaufman of the NYU Rudin Center for Transportation for a chat at the RailVolution conference in Miami. Kaufman and I talked about autonomous vehicle policy, acceptable safety levels, and what will happen to the iconic New York City taxi.

Average fuel economy on new U.S. vehicles has hit a troubling plateau last year, a new federal report finds — and the reason why is particularly bad news for vulnerable road users, in addition to the planet at large.