Posts tagged Safety
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Most Metro trains are getting slower this week
Red, Orange, Silver, and Blue Line riders might have longer commutes beginning this week. There’s a new, 35 mile per hour speed restriction in place between Medical Center and Union Station, and between Rosslyn and the Minnesota Avenue and Benning Road stations as of Sunday the 13th. Speeds may not return to normal again for a year. Keep reading…
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In Petworth, students learn about street design in a “traffic garden”
Students in Petworth are learning about transportation with a “traffic garden,” a miniature city that demonstrates how our streets work. It’s part of a transportation-themed camp that Briya Public Charter School and The Bureau of Good Roads, a company that teaches people about street design, have hosted for the last three summers. Keep reading…
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Congress and auto industry move to ban cities from regulating self-driving cars
Autonomous vehicles should benefit cities, not the other way around, but legislation advancing through Congress would tie urban officials' hands when it comes to shaping AV policy. Keep reading…
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Adams Morgan considers closing 18th Street to some, or all, motor vehicles
In early June, a motorist on 18th Street in Adams Morgan struck three people. The incident rekindled an old discussion about how to make a neighborhood known for its busy nightlife safer for everyone who visits, works, lives, or passes through there. One solution might be closing the street to cars. Keep reading…
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Is scapegoating “Maryland drivers” racist?
“Maryland drivers are the worst!” I admit, I've said it many times. Keep reading…
It's a common joke heard around DC and on Twitter. At first scan, this joke might seem like the same regional scapegoating that happens everywhere (“Massachusetts drivers are the worst!,” ”California drivers are the worst!,” and so on). But when WAMU reporter Martin Austermuhle repeated this old saw recently, a listener reached out to him via email with a thought-provoking question: in our region, does this joke carry racist undertones? Keep reading…
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National stories: David Beckham agrees that there’s too much parking
Now that his playing career has wound down, David Beckham wants to build a soccer stadium in Miami that features zero parking spaces. Look at a great visualization of how China's cities have added subway systems. The recent tragedy in Times Square highlights how smart infrastructure keeps us safe, and highlights questions we should be asking moving forward. Keep reading…
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Metro kicks the automatic train operation can farther down the road
On Thursday morning, WAMU’s Martin DiCaro reported that Metro is cancelling plans to go back to having computers operate its trains rather than humans who do it manually. Automatic train operations (ATO) keeps passenger wait times down and, more importantly, keeps them safe. Metro should be using the technology. Keep reading…
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7 ways traffic danger hasn’t changed since 1928
Very little has changed over the last 90 years when it comes to traffic safety in DC. Want proof? Take a look at this 1928 traffic report and consider how eerily similar it is to something that could come out today. Keep reading…
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DC bars are pioneering a program to help prevent harassment
Research shows that alcohol is used as a weapon or an excuse in about 50% of sexual assault cases, putting bar staff in a unique position to help keep people safe. In DC, a number of bars are training staff on how to recognize harassment and how to prevent it from escalating to assault. Keep reading…
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Bow hunting in a suburban neighborhood: Is it wise? Safe?
When my family moved from Alexandria to West Springfield, we figured our home’s walk score would fall. What I didn’t expect was to stumble upon an official sign with a warning about county-sanctioned bow hunting in the middle of my neighborhood. Keep reading…