Photo by erin_johnson on Flickr.

Transit will soon be second class again for feds

The federal employee transit benefit is likely to return to $120. For years it was about half the $230 parking subsidy federal employees can enjoy until the recent stimulus bill, but the temporary fix will expire December 31. (Post, Gavin)  (Tip: Gavin)  

Puerto Rico on the Potomac

If the GOP takes the House this fall, will Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) move forward with his bill to exempt DC residents from paying federal income taxes on income earned in DC? (Post letters)  

Nascent Metro bomb plot foiled

Authorities arrested a man in the early stages of plotting to bomb Metro stations. There was no danger since authorities discovered the plot early. (Post, Bossi)  (Tip: Bossi)  

Fare hike probably affecting bus ridership

After another month of lower than projected bus ridership, Metro is beginning to admit that the fare hike may have impacted ridership as well as the recession. (Post)  

No minimum parking means affordable housing, open space

A new project in Fort Greene, Brooklyn includes a variety of affordable housing, a playground, and other open space. None of that would have been economical if NYC hadn’t given the developer permission to waive all of the required parking. (Streetsblog)  

Early voting means less voting?

Early voting, which is going on right now in DC, tends to lower voter turnout. Early voters are 2% more likely to vote even when early voting doesn’t exist. The diminished importance of a single election day is thought to reduce the intensity of turnout drives. (NYT)  

Montgomery’s eruvim

The Capital Beltway, along with other borrowed and built architecture and landscapes, forms part of two eruvim, symbolic enclosures that relax of Sabbath rules on carrying for Orthodox Jews. (Historian for Hire)  (Tip: Historian4Hire)  

And…

Get your own next-bus/next-train display for only $200! (Planetizen) … Calgary has started reconstructing sidewalks with rubber tiles manufactured from old tires. (Calgary Herald) … Denver’s B-cycle is popular with students. (DU Clarion)