Opinion Posts
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Should Virginia bus systems go fare free permanently?
When the General Assembly created the Transit Rider Incentive Program (TRIP) as part of Gov. Ralph Northam’s 2020 transportation omnibus, the lion’s share of the funding was allocated to support new regional bus routes. With COVID’s cancellation of much commuter service across the commonwealth, those dollars are now being dedicated to TRIP’s secondary goal: fare free transit pilot projects. Keep reading…
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Three months after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, are public spaces making a comeback?
For more than a year, public life in DC has been gradually drained. First COVID-19 made it unsafe to congregate or interact with people outside our “bubbles.” Over summer 2020, authorities responded to widespread demonstrations by shutting off access to some of our most iconic public squares and parks. On January 6, the physical foundations of our cherished democratic institutions were egregiously assaulted, prompting even greater restrictions to places like the Capitol. Keep reading…
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Lyon’s legacy II: The backlash begins
Arlington County was once home to a community of former slaves so prosperous that tours were given to foreign dignitaries as evidence of America’s racial progress. Today, just about the only physical trace of Freedman’s Village is a plaque on a highway overpass. Some of the descendants of that community remain in Arlington today, but for others, exile has been made permanent. Keep reading…
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Make e-scooters work with transit, not against it
E-scooters have definitely become popular in cities across the US. But, in order for scooters to truly be an essential component of the public transportation system, they need to complement other transit options not compete with them. Keep reading…
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Our streets aren’t safe for children
Yesterday, a driver in an SUV killed a four-year-old child at the intersection of Georgia Ave and Kennedy Street NW. It’s not just the one driver who’s responsible for the loss this child, but a whole system that prefers, very demonstrably at the expense of others’ lives, people who are able to afford cars, at the fastest speed possible, on trips that, for the most part, they are making alone. Keep reading…
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After two years, the DC Council will likely fill DC’s second seat on the Metro Board of Directors
Two years ago, Mayor Bowser nominated her Deputy Mayor for Operations and Infrastructure, Lucinda Babers, to fill an open seat on the WMATA Board of Directors. But the Council didn’t take action until last month. So, what took so long? Keep reading…
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Can suburban counties in Virginia transform malls into spaces for urban living?
The booming demand for housing coupled with a wave of storefront closures has left suburban shopping centers in a slump and local leaders grasping for ways to retrofit forgotten malls for urban living. But can the plan to urbanize Virginia’s suburbs pay off? Keep reading…
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London calling: what car-free lanes and cameras can do for bus service
What can DC learn from London about how high-quality bus service is done? Keep reading…
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BikeMatchDC celebrates one year of getting butts on bikes. Here’s what we learned.
Almost one year ago, BikeMatchDC began matching essential workers and others with bikes. Nearly 200 bikes later, here’s what they discovered. Keep reading…
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DC can’t have statehood because… of parking?
On September 19, 2019, the House of Representatives held a historic hearing on a bill to admit DC (except for a core of federal buildings and lands) as the 51st state appropriately numbered HR 51. One of the weirdest arguments against statehood was from Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie (R), who said it would be too hard to park in DC if it became a state. Keep reading…