Travel banned: The European Union will continue to bar Americans from entering due to the uncontrolled pandemic at home ($). Mexico has also closed the border along Arizona to Americans.
Masks required: Businesses in Washington will need to begin turning away customers next week if they don’t wear a face mask.
Cleaner truck fleet: California has imposed a new cleaner medium- and heavy-duty truck rule to reduce emissions over time.
Pandemic fallout: Virginia is scrambling to help people in need as the state’s eviction moratorium lapses.
How long?: Washington, D.C. has cleaner air but with reopening will that be able to be maintained?
Tear down division: Monuments to racism and segregation also include highways and interstates ($).
Covid victim: Another King County Metro bus driver has died of Covid ($).
“Sacrificial lambs”: Yakima’s farmworkers have become have been disproportionately affected by Covid and left behind.
Design your streets: A new transportation simulator lets you design and test out streets as you like.
Police reform ahead: Police reform, including tear gas and chokeholds, will be a top issue in the next Washington State legislative session.
Mid-Century Modern: Capitol Hill’s historical society now wants to preserve Mid-Century Modern architecture.
CA HSR approval: Virgin Train USA’s XpressWest project gets approval to use I-15 right-of-way in California for high-speed rail.
Car tab saga: The Washington Supreme Court heard oral arguments on Tim Eyman’s anti-transportation initiative ($).
HK’s new law: A far-reaching “security” law has been adopted by the Chinese government ($) that will apply to Hong Kong.
Micromobility upside: Can corporate micromobility companies turn riders into street safety advocates?
Racist housing policy: America’s racist president wants to undo fair housing rules.
Camera enforcement stealer: In Toronto, someone is stealing newly installed speed cameras.
Flood risks growing: In America, millions of homeowners face flood risks and climate change is making that worse ($).
Fed funding pilot: Connecticut has won federal funding for the first automated bus program.
Connectivity: Early data suggests that connectivity, not density is a predictor of Covid susceptibility.
Progressive Paris: Paris has reelected Anne Hidalgo, a green socialist, as mayor with plans to further reorient streets for people to walk, bike, and roll.
Keep people biking: The pandemic has spurred more people to bike, but how can cities keep people wanting to choose biking after pandemic recovery?
Idle housing: Kent’s Covid isolation and quarantine center is operating at empty currently amidst a homelessness crisis.
National bike bills: Earl Blumenauer, a United States House of Representative from Oregon, is getting his bike-related bills to move ahead alongside a major infrastructure funding bill.
Green efforts: Stacey Abrams, a prominent Georgia politician, is leading an effort to move climate change as a major issue in the American South ($).
Stephen is a professional urban planner in Puget Sound with a passion for sustainable, livable, and diverse cities. He is especially interested in how policies, regulations, and programs can promote positive outcomes for communities. With stints in great cities like Bellingham and Cork, Stephen currently lives in Seattle. He primarily covers land use and transportation issues and has been with The Urbanist since 2014.