Along for the Ride #259
screaming angry cat energy x congestion pricing
Heya friends, happy Friday.
A quick note that you can still register for next week’s (in-person!) London Mobility Meet-up. It would be great to see you there if you’re in town! Secondly, I will rant about congestion pricing in a moment, but for now please accept the following stickers as a summary / preamble:
Screaming angry cat has actually been my alter ego since the election. Thankfully, it seems (somewhat) productive to keep writing. So let’s do that shall we..!
New York’s congestion pricing gets the cut
The cheeto puff strikes again. I am frustrated for *waves hands* all of the reasons, but I’m mostly kinda pissed wondering that if the leaders in charge had had the spine to do this months (if not years) ago, would the news cycle have moved along just enough that this wouldn’t have been such a hot button topic. That maybe it wouldn’t be such a pointed issue. We shall never know.
As somewhat of an aside, it seems the Federal government is being sued left, right and centre in the US, including for revoking the regulatory permissions for congestion pricing. At the very least, Americans will always have the spine to sue.
Washington, DC introduces app to help people with visual impairments
Good news? Good news. WMATA, the local transit agency in DC, has launched a new app in partnership with Waymap. The app offers step-by-step audio wayfinding directions spanning 11,000 bus stops on 325 routes, as well as 98 rail stations. This is incredibly impressive and I hope a standard that can be emulated elsewhere.
Trudeau announces high speed rail between Toronto and Quebec City
Well, after (yet another) study, but never the less progress. Trudeau announced that the trains will travel at 300 km/h and include stops in Toronto, Peterborough, Ottawa, Montreal, Laval, Trois-Rivières and Quebec City. The article correctly points out that Canada is the only country in the G7 without high speed rail (shaaame!!!), and the promise is really nothing more than the initial design and development plan.
DOT Secretary cancels / “investigates” high speed rail in California
The new DOT Secretary, Sean Duffy (of I kid you not…. reality TV fame….), went to California yesterday where he cancelled plans for a high speed rail project that would have connected San Francisco and Los Angeles. The good news is the foamers (my fav term) really showed up, chanting “No kings, only trains” and “No to kings, build the rail”. I miss Mayor Pete so dearly right now.
Elon Muck struggles to get FSD approved in China
China is Tesla’s second largest market, and they are struggling to gain regulatory approval for the company’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) feature. Originally, Tesla planned for approvals in the Spring, but now it seems that may never come. As the article kindly points out, this is “another illustration of how Musk's outrageous political activities put his companies at risk.”
“I do worry that an autonomous future, writ large, will eliminate everyday opportunities to connect with other humans, even fleetingly. These are moments that can further train our ability to see strangers as people with their own hopes and dreams, who might be someone's son or mother, to whom we might be able to extend compassion or understanding.”
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I finally feel like I’ve moved into my flat in London after … three months of it being relatively empty of art, my mother’s quilts, and life at large. But I’m currently hosting friends which makes it feel like it’s really come together which I am very grateful for. No greater joy than sitting on the couch with your people.
Speaking of good humans, my friend Max gave a presentation on Sunday about Aurora Mardiganian, an Armenian genocide survivor turned Hollywood actress. He has told the story in his podcast (!) Uncovering Roots, but it was great to see him share it in person and see all the work that went into gong through archives to authentically tell her story.
I read this piece about social mobility in America, how it ties to housing, and the impact of moving (e.g. relocating) and how it helps people learn to reach out and build deeper connections. I have lots of thoughts as somebody who grew up moving a lot (and continues to move). Lots of food for thought.
That’s all from me. Have a beautiful weekend friends.
Sarah
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