Breakfast links: Metro’s automated trains aren’t coming back, after all
Metro puts automated trains on the backburner
Metro has abandoned its plans to bring back automated trains this year, and has also stopped replacing track circuits, citing a need to focus on higher priority issues within the system. Metro spent $106 million to repair track circuits after the crash at Fort Totten in 2009, and had plans in 2015 to resume automated trains in 2017. (Martin Di Caro / WAMU)
Homeless shelters for Wards 3 and 5 clear major hurdle
The final two homeless shelters in Mayor Bowser's plan to replace DC General received approval from the zoning board yesterday. The sites for Wards 3 and 5 will begin construction along with the site in Ward 6 starting in November. (Rachel Sadon / DCist)
New DC bill seeks $120 million for affordable housing
DC Councilmember Anita Bonds has proposed a bill that would streamline how the Housing Production Trust Fund would receive its funding, along with a $20 million bump in guaranteed funding, for a total of $120 million. (Andrew Giambrone / CityPaper)
Will cleaning the Anacostia promote gentrification?
Other cities that cleaned long-polluted rivers have seen massive economic shifts, so how should DC approach the long-awaited cleanup and how can it promote equitable development? (Henry Gass / Christian Science Monitor. Tip: LEW)
University of Maryland will help students during SafeTrack closure
UMD's Dept. of Transportation services will lend students a helping hand with more bus service and discounted parking while the College Park-U. Md. Metro station is closed later this month for SafeTrack's Surge #14. (Julia Heimlich / Diamondback)
How much does it cost to be comfortable in DC?
DC residents need about $80,000 per year to live “comfortably,” according to an analysis from GoBankingRates.com. The site ranked DC at #3 for most expensive city, just behind New York and San Francisco. $80,000 is $9,000 above the median income for DC. (Jeff Clabaugh / WTOP)
Reducing segregation through migration
Adults migrating into or out of the city can decrease segregation. A recent study found that an influx of young adults increased the ethnic diversity of counties across the United States. The opposite seems true for older adults, who decrease ethnic diversity when they move. (Joe Cortright / CityCommentary)
Portland bike-share hit with mass vandalism
Over 200 bikes across 12 stations in Portland's BIKETOWN bike-share system were vandalized earlier this week by a group trying to make some form of 'anti-corporate' message. Some of the bikes are back on the road now, thanks to bike-share staff and local bike shop owners who volunteered to help make repairs. (Frederick Kunkle / Post)