The Hub 6/4/2021: Clean Air Council’s Weekly Round-up of Transportation News
“The Hub” is a weekly round-up of transportation related news in the Philadelphia area and beyond. Check back weekly to keep up-to-date on the issues Clean Air Council’s transportation staff finds important.
Plan Philly: To reduce the increased number of deadly falls and jumps onto tracks at SEPTA stations over the past 5 years, SEPTA is launching a pilot program to install barriers along the tracks. SEPTA plans to install around 6 feet tall barriers along the edge of stations’ platforms to prevent falls. This will be launched at the Somerset station first.
The Inquirer: It’s time for Philly to put people before cars and parking spaces. This will provide a cleaner and more sustainable city. Many cities across the world have redesigned roadways to be people-centered, and they are currently experiencing benefits such as improved air quality. It also provides the opportunity to help solve long-term problems like flooding.
NextCity: Making mass transit a free service is a wonderful idea and many cities are in the exploratory phase. LA is the latest city to announce it’s pilot free-transit service. LA Metro is proposing a free transit service for students but needs to meet certain conditions, such as how to pay for it, before the project can proceed.
CityLab: Lyft is launching a new e-bike to their bikeshare fleet on June 6th in San Francisco, to help get workers back to the office. This updated model has accessibility and durability features that improves on their current battery-boosted bikes.
The Inquirer: Amazon beat SEPTA to the 29-acre abandoned industrial site that the transit agency planned to store and maintain their new light rail vehicles for the trolley modernization. But SEPTA’s plan remains intact as they search for a new location with one alternative site being a part of the Penrose Plaza shopping center at Island Avenue and Lindbergh Boulevard.
Image Source: The Inquirer
