Monday’s Headlines 02/22/2021 and Safe Walking Means Safety for Black Lives, Too

Traffic Violence Report: 10 People Have Died in 2021, Compared to Five in 2020 (Streetsblog Denver)
On Friday morning before 8:30 a.m., a driver hit a person walking at E. 46th Ave. and Leaf Ct. The driver fled the scene, and the pedestrian went to the hospital with a possible broken foot. If you have any info, call Crime Stoppers at 720-913-STOP. (DPD Twitter, Fox31)
A driver hit and seriously injured a person walking at W. Jewell and S. Grove on Saturday evening (DPD Twitter)
Independent review faults Aurora police for stop preceding Elijah McClain’s death, subsequent investigation (Colorado Sun, Aurora Sentinel, Westword, Denverite, 9News)
- Safe walking, biking, and transit means more than safety from drivers. Streetsblog Mass said it well: Streets Need to Be Safe for Black Lives, Too

16th Street Mall Revitalization Moving Forward After Difficult 2020 (CBS4)
How the Central 70 Project has progressed during the pandemic with fewer commuters (9News)
Denver City Council meetings this week: Mon 5 p.m. General Public Comment Session; Mon 5:30 p.m. Full Council Meeting; Tue 9:30 a.m. Mayor-Council; Tue 10:30 a.m. Land Use Transportation Infrastructure Committee; Tue 1:30 p.m. Finance Governance Committee; Wed 10 a.m. (note early start time) Safety Housing Education Homelessness Committee; Wed 1:30 p.m. Business Arts Workforce Aviation Services Committee; Thu 9:30 a.m. Budget and Policy Committee; Fri 9:30 a.m. Council Good Governance session 2 of 4 (Agendas and links to watch)
Denver Air Quality Index: 8 a.m.: 44 (Good). Yesterday’s max: 44 (Good).

RTD hires three clinicians to assist customers experiencing mental health issues  (RTD)
RTD features Black-owned businesses on L Line and 15/15L bus route for Black History Month (RTD)
Longmont council to discuss RTD in closed session on Tuesday (Longmont Times-Call)
Guest opinion: Nicholas Garza: RTD Needs to build the Northwest Rail Line now, not by 2050 (Boulder Daily Camera)
RTD could sacrifice parking for more housing near stations (Denver7)
RTD to ask for community feedback on train quiet zones, horn usage (Colorado Politics)
RTD Board meetings this week: Tue 5:30 p.m. Board Meeting, and – confusingly – a simultaneous Special Board Meeting with the same Zoom info, including unanimous consent on a new Equitable Transit-Oriented Development Policy (Agendas and links to watch, GM’s report)

Notable Colorado road projects that aren’t funded, including $70 million for Denver metro area arterial transit improvements (Denver Post)
Colorado’s attempts to pay for transportation improvements fall far short of other states… because TABOR (Denver Post)
Historic Bridges are #1 on Colorado’s Most Endangered Places Just Announced by Colorado Preservation, Inc. (YourHub)
CDOT says Bustang Park-n-Ride will open near Berthoud by end of 2023 (Loveland Reporter-Herald)

Monday’s Headlines to Kick it Off Right (Streetsblog USA)
‘Land Bridge’ Seeks To Restore Minnesota Black Neighborhood (Streetsblog USA)
Amtrak Is Ready to Grow. Will it Finally Get the Subsidy It Deserves? (Streetsblog USA)

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