From the sociological studies of Black northern migration from Horace Cayton Jr., and St. Clair Drake to Mary Pattillo’s exploration into the Black American middle class, the American Planning Association highlights 11 Black urbanists that may not be on the tip of everyone’s tongue.

Rosa Park’s birthday on February 4 was a day of action at Active Transportation Alliance’s Transit Equity Day event that gathered the Metropolitan Planning Council, Chicago Jobs with Justice, and U.S. representatives Jesus “Chuy” Garcia and Robin Kelly to make it clear why transit is a civil right.

American infrastructure (roads, ports, and buildings) was largely built on the backs of slaves, and The Conversation believes it’s time for reparations to help redistribute that wealth to Black communities that never saw a dime.

Finding safe transportation to get to your COVID-19 vaccination appointment is a big issue that Uber and Walgreens want to change with a free ride courtesy of a new pilot program that will help socially vulnerable communities get vaccinated in Chicago, Houston and El Paso, TX (Atlanta coming soon).

The Natural Resources Defense Council looks at electric carsharing efforts in five US metros—including SUMC’s own BlueLA EV outfit—that are shaping sustainable transportation networks with a keen focus on equity for underprivileged communities.

Ridehail for kids startup HopSkipDrive has teamed up with Spokane Public Schools to help students with special needs, experiencing homelessness, or in foster care get to class as the area works through tiered reopenings.

System-wide policy changes and “a Complete Streets approach…that ensures every road, bridge, transit stop, and trail built across this country is built with all people in mind,” is the only way to move transportation toward sustainability and equity, writes Transportation For America, Safe Routes Partnership, and the League of American Bicyclists in this Streetsblog Op-ed.

Stantec and Swiftmile intent to make micromobility hubs “smart” with a new partnership and plan to cover the essentials (parking, EV charging) and turn the hubs into beacons of connected tech for autonomous vehicle networks.

New York’s scooter pilot will invariably shift users away from other modes of transport, but will it take riders away from transit (Paris) or wean people off car-centric options (Chicago and LA)? Let’s ponder.

When it comes to COVID-19 relief funds for transit agencies, the $30 billion Congressional Democrats are planning is a good start, but it’s $9 billion short of the amount needed for essential workers to have reliable job access.

In 2015, Black transit-dependent riders in Baltimore were promised a Red Line light rail lifeline, but six years after its ultimate demise, a new proposed transit investment bill in Maryland might make up for unkept promises.

Advocacy organization Pittsburghers for Public Transit is pushing the Port Authority to help struggling riders on food assistance programs ride the bus for a free (or reduced fare) with a simple show of their SNAP benefits card. This should be standard.

In his latest analysis on our (possibly inevitable yet overhyped) self-driving future, transportation policy expert Andrew Salzberg asks, Are Autonomous Vehicles Relevant to Decarbonization? Read on his blog.

On that note, a new autonomous vehicle will be testing in Atlanta’s The Curiosity Lab innovation center using a 1.5-mile test track and an open-source platform to experiment with sensor and connectivity tech.

Unless transit agencies step up and set standards on interoperable, open MaaS platforms, the private mobility sector will have the majority of decision-making power—at least that’s what’s proposed in this report from mobility management pro Populus.

In an alarming reminder that climate change is deadly now, a report conducted in collaboration with three UK universities found that one in five deaths worldwide can be attributed to air pollution from fossil fuels.

Cars kill at slow speeds, and the heavier they are, the greater the risk of mortality emphasizes the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety in this eye-opening study.

The Guardian showcases Sweden’s Street Moves initiative to improve urban living via parking spots, part of their one-minute city plan, by using pop-up urbanism to re-use the spaces for micromobility, open seating, and restaurants.