DC utility pipes by Bossi licensed under Creative Commons.

Disinfectant wipes are clogging wastewater systems. A look at how highways have reshaped downtown cores. A case of density vs. crowding.

Stop flushing wipes: As the coronavirus pandemic continues, officials in Cincinnati and Rhode Island are asking residents not to flush disinfectant wipes down the toilet. Wipes are often reinforced paper or fabric and designed to remain intact under friction so they do not disintegrate in water. Consequently, they are clogging municipal wastewater systems requiring costly repairs. (Katie Pyzyk | Smart Cities Dive)

Visualizing the footprint of US highways: Visual Capitalist prepared six animations that depict how highways reshaped the downtown cores of six American cities. As new demand for downtown life surges across the country, these visualizations demonstrate just how much space these highways took from urban cores, and possibly how to repurpose them. (Nicolas LePan | Visual Capitalist)

Crowding, not density: New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has said that New York City’s severe coronavirus outbreak stems from its density. Former Vancouver, BC chief planner Brent Toderian argues that the problem is crowding, wherein large groups of people gather. Toderian says that if Cuomo’s language continues, it may have long-term consequences for the future of cities. (Brent Toderian | Streetsblog NYC)

Modeling traffic after infectious disease: New research in the journal Nature Communications says that we should model traffic after infectious disease rather than macro theories. The process looks at traffic as something spreading from a source. As such, the researchers categorize traffic as being susceptible, infected, or recovered. (Sarah Wells | Inverse)

A civil rights group wants more testing transparency: In Chicago, black residents accounted for 52% of positive COVID-19 cases and 72% of deaths from coronavirus complications, despite making up only 30% of the population. As similar patterns emerge nationwide, a civil rights group is demanding more transparency on race and ethnicity among COVID-19 testing results. (Kathleen Foody | AP Newswire)

Quote of the Week

“In fact, far from bringing networks to their knees, COVID-19 is driving the most rapid expansion in years. To make sure they meet demand, internet giants like Netflix and Equinix, which operates 200 data centers around the world, are rushing out upgrades as quickly as possible. Equinix is in the middle of upgrading its traffic capacity from 10 to 100 gigabytes. The work was going to have been carried out over a year or two—but it is now being done in a few weeks.”

Will Douglas Heaven in MIT Technology Review discussing how he believes the internet is getting stronger due to the crisis.

This week on the podcast, Chris Nelder of the Rocky Mountain Institute shares how utilities and cities can get ready for vehicle electrification.