Thing is: this should have been obvious BEFORE regulators greenlit Waymo. Having business be the tail that wags the dog of government--as neoliberal ideology would have it--simply privatizes gains and sticks ordinary people with the costs of being corporate guinea pigs.

These declines are MASSIVE. And the comparative silence in media coverage is absolutely DAMNING. “Why are ppl always so afraid of crime?” THIS is why. When crime goes up, media trips over itself to report it. Falls to pre-war (!!) levels? Just CRICKETS.

Year 1 data on congestion pricing in Manhattan… * Vehicle traffic: -11% * Foot traffic: +3.4% * Storefront vacancy: -0.9% * Pollution: -22% * Revenue for mass transit: $548M So YES this has been a huge success.

I keep going back to Bob Ferguson's press conference yesterday. No mention of making safety investments to prevent wholly preventable road deaths. No mention of people who don't drive places, no mention of public transit. We've gone backwards. tvw.org/video/govern...

Yes! We need casual references to the importance of public transit to make their way to cooking YouTube channels, “get ready with me” TikToks, Twitch streams…you name it.

Hi, we've been organizing since 1986 on behalf of Montgomery County MD residents who would like to drive less. Join us!

Working to change that.

A few thoughts on why the latent popularity of car-free living hasn’t translated to the funding changes necessary to make it possible: The millions of people who would like to drive less aren’t organized, so elected officials rarely hear from them, allowing the car-dominated status quo to fester.

I was thrilled to meet with Mayor Michelle Wu (@mayorwu.boston.gov) today at Boston City Hall. I can't think of anyone better to learn from about what it takes to be an effective, progressive big-city mayor.

Folks, do not take this advice! For the movement for better transit to succeed, we need less posting and more direct confrontation of do-nothing elected officials. If you have the bandwidth to do both, great! But by no means is the former an equal substitute for the latter.

Delighted to see more @chicagocta.bsky.social high frequency bus routes! Congrats to those who helped secure investment in public transit in IL, so we will see more network improvements (instead of the devastating cuts that were a real risk).

The climate crisis & cost of living crisis are deeply intertwined. Donate $5 to CCI today to help us reach our goal of $10,000 by Dec 31 and fuel climate policy that materially benefits the working class. secure.actblue.com/donate/clima...

Something I do want to point out is they used city RIPTA buses to transport students safely out of the area. A bus system that many people in our city government have been trying to gut. Buses are a public good that need to be protected.

I love reading positive stories about public transportation. I love when my tax dollars fund good things for people.

Americans need affordable, high-quality public goods and services, delivered expeditiously by fully-funded and empowered public agencies. Those of us trying to solve big structural problems - like transportation, climate, housing, and poverty reduction - should keep a laser focus on this goal.

Yeah I like waymo. Waymo public transit, bike lanes and benches!

“The MBTA’s investment in track upgrades is clearly paying off for Red and Orange Line riders,” Caitlin Allen-Connelly, TransitMatters executive director, noted. www-bostonherald-com.cdn.ampproject.org/v/s/www.bost...

US public transit advocates: Don't just envy Europe. Start by envying Canada. Great piece on Montreal's remarkably cheap new rapid transit system. macleans.ca/society/mont...

Many thanks to all of the transit legends that are still working today and keeping us moving 🫶🚂🚈🚌🚎⛴️🫶

This is for the “nobody rides the bus anymore” & “the buses are always empty” folks: RIPTA on a Sunday!!

Weird how there’s always a transit funding shortfall, but never a roads funding shortfall! 🤔

I was really proud to write an endorsement for @carterlavin.bsky.social's book, which is essential reading for anyone who wants to turn their theoretical love of stuff like biking, walking, buses, and mobility justice into political campaigns that actually change our world. Get a preview here. 👇

This is because our country has spent the last 100 years designing all of our infrastructure around cars. Some of the most expensive and desirable areas in any state are the dense, walkable areas. But people can't afford to live there.

So it turns out... the US air travel system was incredibly, deeply dependent on federal funding to just run day-to-day all this time, to the benefit of private airline shareholders, when everyone thinks that state-run trains are leeching off the government. Weird!

The northern suburbs in Dallas are trying to kill public transit to reinforce de facto segregation.

Via The Charlotte Ledger | On Tuesday, Mecklenburg County voters gave a thumbs-up to a sweeping transportation plan that aims to spend $25 billion over 30 years in perhaps the biggest public works initiative in state history. www.theassemblync.com/politics/mec...

Today on Volts: sustainable transportation policy is under comprehensive attack by the federal government, but states can soften the blow. Specifically, governors have a little-understood authority to transfer existing federal funds to EV charging, bike lanes, & transit. But time is running out!

Having good transit and good housing are winning issues

Per @capitolfax.bsky.social the heart of the Illinois transit funding package is a decision to use all state motor fuel sales taxes to fund mass transit instead of sending that cash to the Road Fund. chicago.suntimes.com/columnists/2...

This is great. Public transit is public space and public space should be more playful.

The transit fiscal cliff has been averted! Earlier today, Illinois lawmakers passed a $1.5B package to fund and reform transit. Thank you all for your support in getting us to this moment. We did it y'all! 🎉🎉🎉 Read the Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition's statement here: ilcleanjobs.org/2025/10/31/l...

The Illinois Senate last night passed significant transit & intercity passenger rail funding, with the House already having passed their version. Now on to Governor Pritzker to become law. Aside from NY’s Congestion Pricing, this is the best state response to fiscal cliff threats.

A seismic win for the people of Illinois thanks to the tireless work of transit advocates from across the state. Organizing works!!! 💪

“The allure of free buses is partly that many of these other interventions are harder.” www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

Transit agencies take so much heat for being “inefficient” while State DOTs have largely escaped scrutiny for continuously lighting money on fire.

"In the two years since the state started charging a 4% surtax on incomes over $1 million, the effort has created a $5.7 billion windfall, with the surplus being used to fund bridge repairs, bolster literacy programs and address the transportation system’s budget deficit." Taxing the rich works!

On Friday, I'm talking with a transit expert about the authority governors have to shift the final year of Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill funding away from highways, to EVs, transit, & pedestrians. Many governors do not know they have this authority! And this year is a crucial window! Questions?

people seriously underplay the strength of elected leaders, influential people and the like just saying a thing. just... like... say a thing and repeat it. its the core of politics and communications. you say a thing and say it over and over and it becomes the story. it works.

Reporting from New York Focus last year found that the Hudson Valley highway expansion would save drivers six minutes max, at a cost of $1.3 billion. nysfocus.com/2025/10/14/h...

Drives me nuts that things like bike lanes get painted as luxury goods or harbingers of gentrification when making it easy and convenient to get around your city by bike could save low-income households thousands of dollars a year.

Thanks so much to @emilypont.bsky.social for covering what might be the most underrated climate battlefield there is. As I say in the piece, in the Trump era, there is no clearer opportunity for state and local elected officials to make a tangible difference on climate than saving transit.

US public transit has plenty of good-news stories! www.smartcitiesdive.com/news/mbta-bo...

Your regular reminder that robustly funding public agencies to develop in-house capacity instead of outsourcing to consultants saves money and time.

Yesterday, NY; today: “WASHINGTON (AP) — White House budget director Russ Vought said the Trump administration will withhold $2.1 billion for Chicago infrastructure projects, expanding funding fights that have targeted Democratic areas during the government shutdown.” — apnews.com/article/gove...

Almost 1 in 5 people w/disabilities live in households without a car. Safe, reliable transportation should be accessible for all. Understand the reality of millions & join us for a #WeekWithoutDriving: buff.ly/QwYNZgH #TransportationOptions #Nondrivers #Research #AmericaWalks #ClimateAndCommunity

This is a fantastic new resource to counter the argument that we shouldn’t invest more in transit, biking, and walking because “this is America - everyone drives.” Nope, no they don’t. www.nrdc.org/resources/wh...

EVERY stop for public transportation should have sheltered benches where passengers can sit.

UCS’s @kevshen.bsky.social breaks down the surface transportation reauthorization, a process that decides the course of our transportation system but happens largely behind closed doors, favoring industry over community needs like affordable, climate friendly options.

Spending money to expand buses—even diesel powered ones—is a net good thing because it gets people out of cars

Check out the recording of the #TransitMonth2025 event "Transit and Hollywood: Telling the Story that Moves Us." Good bit from @awalkerinla.bsky.social about the gap between biking ON studio lots vs. biking TO studio lots www.youtube.com/live/fr8pVM-...