Breakfast links: Bad and good news in Virginia

VA must identify transportation priorities

A panel of Virginia legislators and transportation officials in Virginia acknowledged the Commonwealth lacks priorities when it comes to choosing and funding transportation projects. (WTOP)

Falls Church man struck and killed

The driver of a van struck and killed a 64-year old man on W. Broad Street in Falls Church on Sunday. A developer paid the city to put a signal at that intersection more than 6 years ago, but it was was never installed. (Falls Church News-Press)

Virginia launches offshore wind panel

Days after President Obama reversed his initial decision to allow limited offshore drilling on the east coast, Virginia launched a panel to explore the scientific and business potential for offshore wind farms. (WTOP)

Region’s unemployment down

Unemployment in DC, Maryland and Virginia are down from a year ago. Virginia dropped 0.1%, Maryland, 0.3%, and DC, a whopping 2.2%. DC’s unemployment remains the highest in the region. (WUSA)

Bike sharing comes to College Park

Capital Bikeshare may not have gotten TIGER funding to expand to College Park and elsewhere, but some UMD graduates created their own bike sharing program, which works more like Zipcar (you have to return the bike to where you got it). (Rethink College Park via TheWashCycle)

Pushing back against Walmart

Resistance to a new Walmart is gaining ground in Ward 4, where residents hope to shape the plans of the mega-retailer before the project begins construction. (Housing Complex) … The Supreme Court will hear an employment discrimination case against Walmart brought by 1.5 million female employees. The Court will decide if the women have enough in common to constitute a legal class. (Post)

Lots and lots of parking coming to Ward 5

Fort Lincoln’s supposedly “green” upcoming big-box development will be mostly surface parking lots, and a Lowe’s with about as much parking as the Home Depot (though in a 3-story garage) may appear next to the Walmart on New York Avenue. (Housing Complex)

We have a surplus of parking

A new nationwide inventory has tallied a whopping 750 million parking spaces, three times more than there are cars and trucks, and more than double the number of people in the US. (ABC News)

How Metrobuses got their names

Ever wondered why the Metrobus map is a jumble of numbers and letters in no apparent order? WeLoveDC traces bus route names from their streetcar history. (We Love DC)

New reckless driving laws ignored?

A truck driver backed down Madison Avenue in New York and killed a pedestrian, but police don’t intend to file any charges despite 2 recent laws specifically passed to handle situations like this. (Streetsblog)