Today’s Headlines

It's Day Two at the National Association of City Transportation Officials' annual conference in L.A., where I have still not used a car (I've been on the bus, used my feet and ridden a bike so far). On tap today? I'll be taking in a few plenaries, attending a few workshops and sitting in on a panel by New York City DOT legends Janette Sadik-Khan (emeritus) and Polly Trottenberg (current). I'll be the guy heckling in the back row (kidding!).

This week, I'll be at the National Association of City Transportation Officials convention in sunny Los Angeles, to report on street design innovations, to hear from the bus lane experts, and, of course, to get you all that good gossip from the Peoria DOT that you crave. Check back all week for updates on my effort to spend four days in L.A. yet never use a car.

I can't believe how many people were talking about non-street safety topics yesterday! But while America was going up in flames, I spent the afternoon schooling WABC Radio hosts Curtis Sliwa and Rita Cosby on why cars are bad, why bike lanes are good, and why politicians need to actually support public transit instead of talking about supporting public transit. The one-hour Curtis and Cosby "Tri-State Transportation Panel" is archived here. Give a listen.

We know what you'll be doing today, but if you want to listen to an entirely different history-making event, tune into WABC-77 today at 1 p.m. as I debate car-loving Curtis Sliwa and Rita Cosby on a broad range of transportation topics. All the info is here.

I'm sorry, but I've ridden the bus with many unsavory creatures over there years (looking at you, Curtis Sliwa!) but the story that there may be bedbugs on MTA buses is all I'm thinking about right now. Bedbugs. On the buses. Read all about it here. And here.

Everyone needs to chill out for a second. I tweaked my pal Roger Clark of NY1 yesterday and Twitter responded like WWIII had broken out. To recap, Clark posted a picture of himself in the driver's seat of a car as he headed out to cover UN gridlock (which is no small obsession of mine). So, sure, I might have lectured him about getting out of his car to see how the other half commutes, but I swear, it was all in good fun! The guy is a national treasure, and all.

It's the first weekday of the United National General Assembly, so welcome to a gridlocked hell created entirely by cars and mitigated made worse by important completely made up NYPD "security" protocols that punish cyclists.

Happy Friday! There is so much to be angry about today. So let's get to it!

A verdict is expected today in the trial of the bus driver who killed cyclist Dan Hanegby — and Streetsblog will be there to wipe that question mark off the New York Times's headline, "First Fatal Citi Bike Crash: Was the Bus Driver to Blame?" Memo to Metro Desk: Buses have brake pedals, too.