Ben Fried

I'm pleased to announce that Streetsblog is adding a new service: the Streetsblog jobs board. If you have a job opening in the fields of urban planning, transportation engineering, or livable streets advocacy, you'll reach a talented pool of people by placing the position on Streetsblog.

(Update:  Apparently we only rolled this out on NYC Streetsblog thus far, but we'll be adding this to Los Angeles Streetsblog soon. - Damien)

A little weekend viewing from the west coast of England. Since the summer of 2009, neighbors in Bristol have organized "Playing Out" events on seven streets, setting aside car-free hours for kids to play in the street without constant parental supervision. Watching this video immediately brought to mind Clarence's Streetfilm of the 78th Street play street in Jackson Heights.

I promise this will be quick, and probably even fun.

In most of the United States, the general rule about harming people with automobiles goes like this: Stay at the scene, and if you're sober, you probably won't be looking at anything more substantial than a moving violation. Recent laws passed in Oregon, New York, and Delaware promise to hold motorists to a higher standard of care (if law enforcement employs the new tools), but one part of the country seems to be taking a step backward when it comes to condoning reckless driving.

After yesterday's electoral drubbing, the Obama administration will have to deal with a starkly different Congress when they make their expected push for a multi-year transportation bill early next year. We know that some influential House Republicans, like John Mica, don't necessarily believe that bigger highways will solve America's transportation problems. And we know that some pro-transit voices in Washington originate from the right. But no one expects the GOP ascendancy to make transportation reform any easier.

You may have noticed a new byline popping up on Streetsblog lately, and it's time to finally make it official: We're pleased to announce the arrival of Tanya Snyder as our new reporter tracking the national transportation policy beat.

Editor’s note: Our search for a national reporter to take over Streetsblog Capitol Hill wouldn’t be complete without putting out a call to the audience with the greatest passion for livable streets and sustainable transportation policy — our readers. We are looking for a talented professional journalist, eager to make an impact, to take over … Continued

We’ve got an update today on a storyline we’ve been following for months: The Ohio Department of Transportation’s refusal to build a path for biking and walking when they replace Cleveland’s I-90 Innerbelt Bridge. Back in December, cyclists rallied to urge the DOT to include such a path, which would create a direction connection to downtown. In the face of ongoing pressure from local activists, as well as Congressman Dennis Kucinich and Senator Sherrod Brown, DOT Commissioner Jolene Molitoris has continued to stonewall the idea.

Last week, USA Today reported rather gleefully that the U.S. gas tax has never been lower. Having remained unchanged at 18.4 cents per gallon since 1993, American drivers are now paying half as much in inflation-adjusted gas taxes, per 1,000 miles driven, that they did in 1975. We can pretty much forget about investing in new and expanded transit systems — or even just holding up our bridges — as long as this is the case.