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What Happens When a City Tries to End Traffic Deaths

Laura Bliss

November 21, 2019 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

Multi-Media |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Chicago, Illinois

An extensive investigation that, despite implementing an initiative called "Vision Zero" that aims to eliminate traffic and pedestrian fatalities, many cities still struggle to reduce the number of fatalities, year-over-year. Now, cities like Chicago and Washington D.C. are analyzing their failures - from lack of budget planning to missing coordination between government departments - in order to get on track to eliminating traffic deaths within a decade.

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Are D.C.'s Streets Finally Getting Safer?

Andrew Small

November 11, 2019 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Washington, District of Columbia

As the District lagged on its Vision Zero goals, bike and pedestrian advocates in Washington turned traffic fatalities into a rallying cry, and got results.

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A Little Paint Can Change a Community's Relationship to Its Streets

Andrew Small

October 29, 2019 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, New York, New York

New York City's Asphalt Art Initiative - created by Bloomberg Philanthropies - addresses pedestrian and traffic safety by taking to the streets and creating visual traffic flows with just a can of paint. Simple designs create more space for pedestrians and signal to drivers a larger curb or pedestrian area. Now, the organization is working to bring the simple concept to other American cities.

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Flock Safety Says Its License Plate Readers Reduce Crime. It's Not That Simple

Louise Matsakis

October 24, 2019 |

Wired |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Austell, Georgia

Cobb County, Georgia installed new license plate surveillance technology, loaned to them by the Atlanta-based company, Flock Safety. After installation, the test area saw a dramatic decrease in crime, to which Flock took credit for but experts say the connection could be due to a number of things. Furthermore, while surveillance technology has been correlated with decreased crime, communities have called into question issues of personal privacy versus public safety.

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San Francisco's Market Street Car Ban Is Overdue

Laura Bliss

October 17, 2019 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, San Francisco, California

A plan to redesign Market Street in San Francisco uses a controversial approach used by cities around the world: eliminating personal cars entirely. This bicycle, pedestrian and bus-oriented layout approach reduces traffic accidents and fatalities; San Francisco plans to move forward with their plan in 2020.

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Spain's Happy Little Carless City

Will Doig

October 11, 2019 |

Reasons to be Cheerful |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Spain, Pontevedra

In Pontevedra, Spain, the city has taken incremental action to reduce cars and congestion in the city center. As the city is small and walkable on foot, walking has become the foremost transportation option, not through extreme regulatory hurdles, but by engaging business owners, providing short-term parking and even free parking on the edge of town, and making sure pedestrians feel front and center. Through slight design changes, local government and citizens alike have been able to reimagine what a walkable city looks like, then put it into effect with great success.

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Street by Street, Amsterdam Is Cutting Cars Out of the Picture

Feargus O'Sullivan

October 07, 2019 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Netherlands, Amsterdam

In order to cut back on automotive emissions and traffic within the city center, Amsterdam has introduced road-dividing "cuts" - called "knips" in Dutch - along major roadways to make travel in the city center easier for pedestrians and public transportation users. These cuts consist of barriers set to close off short sections of a street, therefore disabling through-travel to cars. The city notes that a "knip" effectively cuts automotive traffic on a blocked-off road by 70 percent.

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Lessons From a Car-Free Street Fight in London

Laura Laker

September 27, 2019 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: England, London

In an effort to promote safe streets and bicycle and pedestrian safety, Officials in Tower Hamlets, an East London neighborhood, closed down a main community road to car traffic - and it didn't go well. But local officials learned from the pilot, recognizing a need to better prepare the community for any road closures as well as plan for alternative routes for car traffic.

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Vandalism Raises Questions About Loop Garage Security

Tim McNicholas

August 15, 2019 |

WBBM-TV |

Broadcast TV News |

Under 3 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Chicago, Illinois

Some public parking garages in Chicago are taking added measures to ensure the cars parked inside remain safe. In such easily accessible places, making sure the right people get in is important, which is why some garages have installed pedestrian doors that won’t unlock without the parking ticket issued at arrival. While most garages have security cameras, with unsecured spaces that are open 24 hours, taking added measures is becoming increasingly needed.

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Got a parking ticket? In some cities, you can pay for it with school supplies or cat food.

Marisa Iati

August 13, 2019 |

The Washington Post |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Muncie, Indiana

Across the United States, cities are letting residents pay off their parking tickets with donations to local organizations. For set periods of time, cities like Muncie and Las Vegas write off traffic tickets – as long as they aren’t related to public safety – when residents donate things like cat food to the local cat shelter, or school supplies to educational organizations. The initiatives have been such a success that people from around the country are sending in their donations, even without the trade-off of a paid parking ticket.

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