Joseph Yawn
@j-yawn.bsky.social
Senior Transportation Planner at ICF. Former Transportation Technology Administrator for the Atlanta Regional Commission. Changing the way we move. Opinions posted here are my own and do not reflect the views of my employer.
Bike lanes and complete streets create a safer environment for every roadway user. It's difficult to see where there is a commitment to enforcing the 'highest standards of safety' with actions like this.
usa.streetsblog.org/2025/03/12/b...
usa.streetsblog.org/2025/03/12/b...
U.S. DOT Orders Review of All Grants Related to Green Infrastructure, Bikes — Streetsblog USA
Now U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy is coming for our bike lanes!
usa.streetsblog.org
March 13, 2025 at 2:55 PM
Bike lanes and complete streets create a safer environment for every roadway user. It's difficult to see where there is a commitment to enforcing the 'highest standards of safety' with actions like this.
usa.streetsblog.org/2025/03/12/b...
usa.streetsblog.org/2025/03/12/b...
ICF recently convened a roundtable in DC with leaders from government, utilities, and the private sector about extreme weather, disaster mitigation, and resilience. Check out the key takeaways here: forwrd.it/r/6M8e/eyJlb...
Regional Extreme Weather Resilience: 3 Emerging Priorities
From wildfire risk to hurricanes to extreme heat and more, hazard mitigation and resilience efforts from utilities and state and local agencies are critical.
forwrd.it
March 12, 2025 at 1:20 PM
ICF recently convened a roundtable in DC with leaders from government, utilities, and the private sector about extreme weather, disaster mitigation, and resilience. Check out the key takeaways here: forwrd.it/r/6M8e/eyJlb...
This report is damning, y’all. Housing and transportation are also essential to economic mobility. If we’re serious about addressing this issue, the Region as a whole will have to change how we approach zoning and our transportation investments.
saportareport.com/metro-atlant...
saportareport.com/metro-atlant...
Metro Atlanta is dead last when it comes to economic mobility - SaportaReport
Read Metro Atlanta is dead last when it comes to economic mobility by Maria Saporta for SaportaReport here.
saportareport.com
March 5, 2025 at 9:20 PM
This report is damning, y’all. Housing and transportation are also essential to economic mobility. If we’re serious about addressing this issue, the Region as a whole will have to change how we approach zoning and our transportation investments.
saportareport.com/metro-atlant...
saportareport.com/metro-atlant...
My ICF colleagues put together a great summary on recent and potential upcoming NEPA changes.
www.icf.com/insights/env...
www.icf.com/insights/env...
NEPA Changes 2025
Recent executive orders (EOs),, the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) interim final rule, and federal court actions have changed NEPA compliance.
www.icf.com
March 5, 2025 at 1:40 PM
My ICF colleagues put together a great summary on recent and potential upcoming NEPA changes.
www.icf.com/insights/env...
www.icf.com/insights/env...
Reposted by Joseph Yawn
We have rail ridership data through 2024 now and it’s down compared to 2023. But MARTA says the drop doesn’t reflect actual ridership, only continued issues with fare gates that are either a) broken in the open position b) aren’t recording Breeze taps as a ride www.ajc.com/news/atlanta...
MARTA train ridership fell in 2024 despite gains nationally
Only two cities saw ridership fall more compared to the prior year, according to an Atlanta Journal-Constitution analysis of monthly ridership reports from the FTA.
www.ajc.com
March 4, 2025 at 1:54 PM
We have rail ridership data through 2024 now and it’s down compared to 2023. But MARTA says the drop doesn’t reflect actual ridership, only continued issues with fare gates that are either a) broken in the open position b) aren’t recording Breeze taps as a ride www.ajc.com/news/atlanta...
Reposted by Joseph Yawn
Atlanta narrowed three blocks of Peachtree Street in 2021 and installed a crosswalk. Then after opposition, the city converted the road back - partly: The crosswalk wasn’t removed, just left it to fade. Last month, a man was hit by a car in the crosswalk and killed. www.ajc.com/news/health-...
Pedestrian death at Peachtree Center renews crosswalk safety debate
Merchant killed by car at faded crosswalk after previous road safety measures were reversed.
www.ajc.com
February 28, 2025 at 12:05 AM
Atlanta narrowed three blocks of Peachtree Street in 2021 and installed a crosswalk. Then after opposition, the city converted the road back - partly: The crosswalk wasn’t removed, just left it to fade. Last month, a man was hit by a car in the crosswalk and killed. www.ajc.com/news/health-...
Trump Administration ‘Reviews’ Threaten to Delay Transportation Projects Nationwide - usa.streetsblog.org/2025/02/26/t...
Trump Administration 'Reviews' Threaten to Delay Transportation Projects Nationwide — Streetsblog USA
So much for the administration that said it wanted to cut red tape...
usa.streetsblog.org
February 26, 2025 at 7:38 PM
Trump Administration ‘Reviews’ Threaten to Delay Transportation Projects Nationwide - usa.streetsblog.org/2025/02/26/t...
Great Orange Slices interview with my ICF colleague John Rabin about his career in emergency management, including as a former FEMA Assistant Administrator, and his insights into current disaster management priorities.
forwrd.it/r/6IaG/eyJlb...
forwrd.it/r/6IaG/eyJlb...
ICF Vice President of Disaster Management John Rabin – Staying the Course while Looking to Leverage new State and Local Partners | OrangeSlices AI
forwrd.it
February 26, 2025 at 1:49 PM
Great Orange Slices interview with my ICF colleague John Rabin about his career in emergency management, including as a former FEMA Assistant Administrator, and his insights into current disaster management priorities.
forwrd.it/r/6IaG/eyJlb...
forwrd.it/r/6IaG/eyJlb...
Time for the periodic reminder that the gas tax hasn’t been raised since 1993 and does not cover the cost to build and maintain highways. Transit users, however, are expected to pay fares for each use. Good to keep in mind when discussing what’s fair in infrastructure financing.
February 20, 2025 at 12:31 AM
Time for the periodic reminder that the gas tax hasn’t been raised since 1993 and does not cover the cost to build and maintain highways. Transit users, however, are expected to pay fares for each use. Good to keep in mind when discussing what’s fair in infrastructure financing.
Reposted by Joseph Yawn
"Of the approximately $21 billion of funding that could be clawed back by the Department of Transportation, almost $7 billion is directed for projects in states that voted for Trump in 2024." @corrigansalerno.bsky.social for @reuters.com
www.reuters.com/world/us/bil...
www.reuters.com/world/us/bil...
Billions of dollars for US projects remain frozen by Trump, managers and advocates say
President Donald Trump has placed holds on tens of billions of dollars in congressionally-approved spending for projects across the U.S. that range from Iowa soybean farmers adopting greener practices to a Virginia railway expansion, a Reuters analysis found.
www.reuters.com
February 7, 2025 at 2:50 PM
"Of the approximately $21 billion of funding that could be clawed back by the Department of Transportation, almost $7 billion is directed for projects in states that voted for Trump in 2024." @corrigansalerno.bsky.social for @reuters.com
www.reuters.com/world/us/bil...
www.reuters.com/world/us/bil...
Reposted by Joseph Yawn
“Any disruption to the ACS — or Census data more broadly — would be massively disruptive to the U.S. economy. I hope that people understand that,” Walker told us. “These data power insights in every corner of the U.S. economy."
www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
Column | This data may vanish under Trump, so we charted it
When some of the most valuable datasets in human history briefly vanished from U.S. government websites, it felt like watching the Library of Alexandria go up in smoke.
www.washingtonpost.com
February 14, 2025 at 12:47 PM
“Any disruption to the ACS — or Census data more broadly — would be massively disruptive to the U.S. economy. I hope that people understand that,” Walker told us. “These data power insights in every corner of the U.S. economy."
www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
Interesting read from my ICF
colleague Maggie Poyant about how recent regulatory changes in Oregon could benefit both project developers and conservation efforts. bit.ly/3CUdMAJ
colleague Maggie Poyant about how recent regulatory changes in Oregon could benefit both project developers and conservation efforts. bit.ly/3CUdMAJ
Streamlining Permits While Protecting Oregon’s Waterways
After changes to Oregon's permitting process, ICF is reducing the time between proposal and project completion while ensuring that nature is adequately protected
bit.ly
February 14, 2025 at 12:51 PM
Interesting read from my ICF
colleague Maggie Poyant about how recent regulatory changes in Oregon could benefit both project developers and conservation efforts. bit.ly/3CUdMAJ
colleague Maggie Poyant about how recent regulatory changes in Oregon could benefit both project developers and conservation efforts. bit.ly/3CUdMAJ
“Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that cannot be limited without being lost” - Thomas Jefferson, 1786
"Today we were informed by the White House that if AP did not align its editorial standards with President Donald Trump’s executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America, AP would be barred from accessing an event in the Oval Office."
www.ap.org/the-definiti...
www.ap.org/the-definiti...
AP statement on Oval Office access | The Associated Press
The Associated Press issued this statement on Tuesday from Executive Editor Julie Pace: As a global news organization, The Associated Press informs
www.ap.org
February 11, 2025 at 9:39 PM
“Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that cannot be limited without being lost” - Thomas Jefferson, 1786
Reposted by Joseph Yawn
"Farmers who signed contracts with the USDA under those programs paid up front to build fencing, plant new crops and install renewable energy systems.... Now, with that money frozen, they’re on the hook."
www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/...
www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/...
Farmers on the hook for millions after Trump freezes USDA funds
The White House had repeatedly said the funding freeze would not affect benefits that go directly to individuals.
www.washingtonpost.com
February 11, 2025 at 8:37 AM
"Farmers who signed contracts with the USDA under those programs paid up front to build fencing, plant new crops and install renewable energy systems.... Now, with that money frozen, they’re on the hook."
www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/...
www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/...
Reposted by Joseph Yawn
You are not powerless, and he is not unstoppable. Look at, and learn from, the funding freeze and how quickly he was forced to surrender.
February 10, 2025 at 3:26 PM
You are not powerless, and he is not unstoppable. Look at, and learn from, the funding freeze and how quickly he was forced to surrender.
Government crackdowns on the church’s ability to serve our refugee and immigrant neighbors is where actual anti-Christian bias is occurring.
"The decision to love and serve the stranger, the refugee, and the foreigner with charity is a hallmark of the Christian faith, such that a government crackdown on this work seems to be a threat to Christian practice itself," Elizabeth Bruenig writes:
‘A Very Christian Concept’
The faith’s mandate is more arduous than J. D. Vance’s account seems to allow.
www.theatlantic.com
February 9, 2025 at 8:20 PM
Government crackdowns on the church’s ability to serve our refugee and immigrant neighbors is where actual anti-Christian bias is occurring.
Dismantling USAID doesn’t just have impacts abroad. It has impacts on Georgia Farmer’s as well.
www.gpb.org/news/2025/02...
www.gpb.org/news/2025/02...
What is USAID's impact on Georgia? This peanut product manufacturer says it's 'massive'
The United States Agency for International Development remains in turmoil as federal government agencies are targeted, with suppliers and recipients awash in confusion. Georgia farmers and peanut prod...
www.gpb.org
February 9, 2025 at 3:00 PM
Dismantling USAID doesn’t just have impacts abroad. It has impacts on Georgia Farmer’s as well.
www.gpb.org/news/2025/02...
www.gpb.org/news/2025/02...
Being a scattered team up and down the East Coast may limit our chances to meet in person, but it is a lot of fun when we have opportunities to do that!
February 7, 2025 at 2:13 PM
Being a scattered team up and down the East Coast may limit our chances to meet in person, but it is a lot of fun when we have opportunities to do that!
ICF’s team of experts share four key focus areas for state DOTs and MPOs to consider when applying for grants, and highlight the key benefits and features of community-based transportation plans. Check it out. bit.ly/42JLOlN
Community-Based Transportation Plans: How To Secure a Grant
Federal planning grants can provide the necessary funding to help state DOTs and MPOs implement innovative and effective community-based transportation plans.
bit.ly
February 5, 2025 at 5:07 PM
ICF’s team of experts share four key focus areas for state DOTs and MPOs to consider when applying for grants, and highlight the key benefits and features of community-based transportation plans. Check it out. bit.ly/42JLOlN
Reposted by Joseph Yawn
As President Trump opened what could become a global trade war, a growing number of countries, including America’s closest allies, are forging their own economic partnerships without the U.S.
One Response to Trump’s Tariffs: Trade That Excludes the U.S.
A growing number of countries, including American allies, are striking trade deals as the Trump administration erects a higher fence around its global commerce.
www.nytimes.com
February 3, 2025 at 4:12 PM
As President Trump opened what could become a global trade war, a growing number of countries, including America’s closest allies, are forging their own economic partnerships without the U.S.
Reposted by Joseph Yawn
Do Americans really want to live in car-centric suburbs, or are they forced to because that's where most of the housing is built?
Monday's Headlines Question Sprawl — Streetsblog USA
Do Americans really want to live in car-centric suburbs, or are they forced to because that's where most of the housing is built?
usa.streetsblog.org
February 3, 2025 at 2:06 PM
Do Americans really want to live in car-centric suburbs, or are they forced to because that's where most of the housing is built?
With car prices already near all-time highs, tariffs are making vehicle ownership all the more expensive. Now more than ever, investing in public transportation is essential to providing affordable mobility options.
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Car Prices Face $3,000 Increase as Trump Tariffs Hit Auto Sector
President Donald Trump’s tariffs against Canada and Mexico will threaten production at automakers across North America and send record vehicle prices even higher, with about a quarter of a trillion do...
www.bloomberg.com
February 2, 2025 at 7:43 PM
With car prices already near all-time highs, tariffs are making vehicle ownership all the more expensive. Now more than ever, investing in public transportation is essential to providing affordable mobility options.
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Starting a trade war with our three biggest trading partners.
two men are sitting in front of a crowd and one of them is talking on a phone
ALT: two men are sitting in front of a crowd and one of them is talking on a phone
media.tenor.com
February 2, 2025 at 1:52 AM
Starting a trade war with our three biggest trading partners.
From the coldest January that I remember in a while, to shorts and a T-Shirt the first day of February. Welcome to winter in the South.
February 1, 2025 at 2:30 PM
From the coldest January that I remember in a while, to shorts and a T-Shirt the first day of February. Welcome to winter in the South.
“It’s never a good time to bow down to a tyrant. Don’t give into the lies. Don’t give into the fear. Hold onto the truth and hope.”Jim Acosta
January 28, 2025 at 4:58 PM
“It’s never a good time to bow down to a tyrant. Don’t give into the lies. Don’t give into the fear. Hold onto the truth and hope.”Jim Acosta