Breakfast links: Fight for infrastructure

Stadium delay

A council hearing on the new soccer stadium set for today has been delayed until after the election, making some question if a deal can pass before the council adjourns in December. (Post)

Pay to play

Loudoun County pays for high school stadiums but not its elementary school playgrounds, instead relying on parents and community members to raise funds. But now the school board wants to explore public funding. (Post)

Bikeshare buyout

REQX Ventures bought out Alta, the company that operates Capital Bikeshare and New York’s Citibike. REQX plans to double the Citibike fleet, but can it quickly fix the supply chain problems that have limited cities’ expansion? (Streetsblog)

Bourgeois bikeshare

Bikeshare systems across North America still struggle to reach low-income riders. Are barriers like credit card ownership, poor infrastructure, and perception to blame? Or do cities not put stations in low-income areas? (CityLab)

Streetcar “referendum”

Many see the Arlington County Board elections as a referendum on the Columbia Pike streetcar with a rematch between pro-streetcar Alan Howze and opponent John Vihstadt, who wants buses. (WAMU)

Not a war

Responding to a reader who charged DC is waging a “war on cars,” Bob Thomson responded, “I can’t see how trying to protect pedestrians amounts to a ‘War on Cars.’” (Scroll to the 7th question.) Thanks, Bob.  (Post)

A bad deal

An SUV driver deliberately hit a cyclist in New York. Prosecutors pursued charges, but then the Manhattan DA offered a $250 plea bargain deal. (Gothamist)

Put a parking garage on it

Last year, Portland passed a law to require new buildings to have parking. Now those garages sit mostly empty as residents opt for free street parking or biking. (Bike Portland)

Happy birthday

New York City’s subway turned 110 years old yesterday. 150,000 people rode the subway on its very first day to much fanfare: “…in two days it will seem to New York as if it had never ridden anywhere but in the subway.” (CityLab, NYT)