First came the heavy rains. Then came the derailed train. On the morning of July 17, the Delaware Valley held its collective breath as reports came in that a freight train had derailed in Whitemarsh Township, a few miles from Philadelphia’s northwest border. The train carried rail cars containing hazardous materials and residents were evacuated
More
Since Philadelphia’s 30th Street Amtrak Station announced in late March that it would switch from steam power to gas boilers, activists have been pushing back on the station’s claims that the move aligns with a sustainable future for the city. “That is simply a false narrative,” Clean Air Council Executive Director Joseph Minott says. “Everyone
More
There’s something about our tax structure I think most people don’t understand: If you own a car, the American taxpayer subsidizes your ride. The more expensive and bigger your vehicle, the more socialism you get. The money set aside for roads has come less and less from gas taxes over the past 50 years and
More
Parking has ruined—and continues to ruin—cities. Don’t believe me? Just go to any zoning board hearing or street engineering meeting—or better yet, talk to your neighbors. You will likely hear that there’s not enough parking in your part of town, and any changes to the streets, or the landscape, or bringing in more residents, will
More
There are a lot of laws and disclaimers regarding what bicyclists should do when riding on the road. But there isn’t much public information about what they should do if a crash happens. Of course, no one should go through the traumatic experience of a crash with a driver—especially, as has become more of the
More
When the remnants of Hurricane Ida arrived in the Philadelphia region last month, it brought with it the kinds of chaos we used to just hear about: flooding, property destruction, mudslides and at least one dude back flipping into the sewage pit formerly known as I-676 in Center City. “I definitely thought about the water
More
Every Sunday in Manayunk, a swarm of cyclists meet in the Regal UA Main Street Theatre parking lot. One group stands out from the rest. More than 20 people of color pull bikes out of their vehicles and begin pumping their tires with air. Laughter and conversation fill the parking lot as the cyclists catch
More
Bloc delivery cofounder Alison Cohen believes people are much more likely to support local businesses if they do not have to leave their homes to do so. Her vision, a local alternative to Amazon that provides Philadelphia’s small businesses with a wider customer base—where all the deliveries are done by employees riding on a fleet
More
Philadelphia has long been a great biking city with poor biking infrastructure, but that is (slowly) changing. When you get on your bike today, you’re bound to see some new routes connecting various neighborhoods and attractions. By the end of the year, we’re likely to have a total of 20 miles of protected bike lanes
More
Four new warehouses are setting up camp in Philadelphia, and clean air activists are concerned about the pollution of their vehicles. The four new sites include an Amazon facility in Southwest, a redevelopment of the former Philadelphia Energy Solutions refinery in South Philly, a UPS site in the Northeast and a redevelopment of the Philadelphia
More
Imagine this: You’re at the northern tip of Maine. You’re on your bike. You can start riding now and stay on off-street, dedicated bike facilities for 3,000 miles, all the way to Key West, Florida. Your journey will take you through 25 major cities, 15 states and Washington, D.C. Someday, you won’t need to imagine
More