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Kea Wilson

@keawilson.bsky.social

8.6K followers 826 following 668 posts

Senior editor + advocacy journalist at Streetsblog USA covering the movement to end universal car dependency. Based in STL, reporting nationally. Tips to: kea@streetsblog.org or kwilson.52 on signal. Opinions are my own.

Posts Replies Media

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 14/10/2026

I think we don't talk enough about how car dependency sucks for everyone, including drivers, who don't actually want to live in constant fear of a $400 repair or to have to buy their kid an SUV the minute they turn 16 so they're not stuck chauffeuring them everywhere. Love when surveys confirm it!

usa.streetsblog.org

Study: Americans Already Doubt the Myth that 'Driving is Freedom' — Streetsblog USA

An overwhelming majority of US motorists say they feel they have zero choice in how much they get behind the wheel — and most of them explicitly want to flee a system that forces them to drive almost ...

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 13/10/2026

Wrote about the NAVI shutdown in Jacksonville, how advocates think it both is and isn't to blame for the transit agency's fiscal crisis, and why we have to re-focus on the boring but critical work of getting people where we they need to go.

usa.streetsblog.org

Is America's 'First Autonomous Transit System' Really Dead? — Streetsblog USA

And what should Jacksonville teach us all about the role of technology in our transit future?

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

As #WeekWithoutDriving challenge comes to a close and 51 Weeks of Forced Driving begins, I wrote about why it's important to center the joys and benefis of non-automotive transport, too, while also working to denormalize the (totally unnecessary and avoidable)"challenges" of mass automobility.

usa.streetsblog.org

Does the 'Week Without Driving' Give Car-Free Living A Bad Rap? — Streetsblog USA

The Week Without Driving should expose not just the injustices endured by people outside cars, but the joys they experience, too.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Okay, chat: how do you feel about an "autonomous bike," that can steer itself to its rider from wherever it's parked + help bike share outfits rebalance fleets?

Autonomous Bike: ETH Students Rethink Bike Sharing

YouTube video by ETH Zürich

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

I think in safe streets advocacy, we have a knee-jerk tendency to say that people speed for just one reason — because they can. But we actually make it impossible for cars to break limits, we have to sweat the psychology of individual drivers. Which, it turns out, is *all over the map.*

usa.streetsblog.org

The Five Types of Speeding Drivers — Streetsblog USA

It's easy to jump to conclusions about why so many drivers continuously break speed limits, whether you assume they just can't help it or just don't care about anyone but themselves.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Here's what I wrote about it back when it was first teased last year. Still just as colossally dumb as it was back then; still hilarious how this might inadvertently steer investment to blue states if they don't get very creative with the formula/exclude the "marriage" part.

usa.streetsblog.org

Why Trump's DOT is Promising More Money to States With Higher Birth Rates — Streetsblog USA

Supporting American families in the transportation realm doesn't mean giving low-population red states more money for highways — even if a new DOT memo suggests that's exactly what they'll do.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Oh great, this bullshit is back

Trump administration unveils plan to tie high birth and marriage rates to transit funding

The federal government is seeking to revamp a national program that supports rail and bus rapid transit.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

That said, weigh in if you disagree!! It's a design guide, not a thorough research paper, and there's a lot to debate and explore about how this plays out in reality.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

And that doesn't mean watering down the ambitions of the livable streets movement. It means giving us a fighting shot at actually achieving them at scale, because we're organizing in relationship to the actual power dynamics and transportation realities that exist in our world.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Basically: I think it's really easy be adversarial and say "we tried designing for drivers for 100 years, now it's time to refocus on people." I think it's a lot harder to reckon with the reality that *most people are drivers* and find ways to unwind blanket autocentricity that actually work.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Fascinated by this report, which argues a ton of things that sound questionable out context. E.g. walkability folks need to pay more attention to the needs of drivers, the "complete streets" model is failing us, we need to make parking easier. But in context ... I found myself agreeing a lot?!

usa.streetsblog.org

Walkable Cities Can Make Life Better for Drivers, Too — Streetsblog USA

Walkable cities are even better for drivers than ones designed with only the needs of motorists in mind — and in order to win, advocates for livable streets must embrace targeted strategies that make ...

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Excited to see this idea get an IRL deployment; *not* excited to see how many drivers were totally unmoved even when the city went out of its way to explain that road design changes needed to happen because a teenager died; still curious long term, to see how this strategy changes the conversation.

usa.streetsblog.org

Steal This Idea: 'Emergency Streets' Strategy Gets First Real-World Pilot — Streetsblog USA

A talked-about road safety strategy just had its debut in Spoken, Washington – and it inspired some strong community reactions.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Ha! Filing this skeet for the next time I request an image budget (which gets turned down every year, hence why I have to use stuff in the public domain even if it's not from the country I cover 😅)

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Seeing a lot of folks get tangled up trying to understand how on earth we were able to "extend" our federal infrastructure law for a few months, but somehow sneak big new cuts to transit and rail into the same bill we've had for the last five years. Here's an explainer + what comes next.

usa.streetsblog.org

Advocates Warn Short-Term Transit Cuts Could Foreshadow Deeper Long-Term Slashing — Streetsblog USA

A deeper dive on the transit cuts in the latest federal transportation extension bill – and how advocates are fighting back.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Lotta thoughts on this but mostly: this is sort of like doing a buyback program for AK47s, paying people who bring in their broken nerf guns, doing nothing re: upstream gun control, and being surprised when shootings don't stop.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

So this is nuts; Orange County did an "e-bike buyback" event where they paid people up to $1,000 for illegal e-motos...and smaller amounts for legal, unmodified e-bikes that are super unlikely to hurt anyone. At multiple points, the cops refuse to pay for "bikes" that can go up to 40mph.

Dave England at Orange County E-bike Buy Back Event

YouTube video by Dave England

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Wrote about why transportation reformers kind of suck at helping the public imagine getting around any another way, why it's essential that we learn, and how to be ambitious when we do it.

usa.streetsblog.org

Transportation Reform Has an Imagination Problem — Streetsblog USA

How can we make our cities less dependent on cars if our neighbors can't even imagine themselves getting on the bus?

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Spoiler: you may have doubts! But I had fun talking to the founder of Organic Transit about light electric vehicles and the role of bike design in encouraging mode shift. (Also: it is fun to imagine a world where I can bike with my very large dog.)

usa.streetsblog.org

Is It Time for the Era of the 'Bike-Car'? — Streetsblog USA

A quirky "velomobile" company is plotting a comeback. Will Americans buy it?

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

My big takeaway from this: at the end of the day big data centers and big urban highways are both just infrastructure designed to encourage the use of fossil fuels, no matter how their supposed "community benefits" are sold to us. and the movements resisting each one should absolutely join forces.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

There are a lot of reasons to oppose hyperscale datacenters for the impacts this slice of the AI industry has on society. But I hadn't seen anyone unpack their impacts on land use, transportation, and the fabric of our communities. Loved talking to Saul Levin of @thehumpod.bsky.social about it.

usa.streetsblog.org

Where the Battles Against Harmful Highways and Hyper-Scale Data Centers Collide — Streetsblog USA

Hyperscale AI data centers and highways are both harmful forms of fossil fuel infrastructure that get built without much community input — and it's time to fight back against both, one of our favorite...

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Fair point! The report authors didn't get into it but I'd love to see an op-ed exploring this POV if you (or someone else reading this) has more thoughts...

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Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Learned a lot from this report about why "fast, free buses" isn't necessarily an ambitious ask — and why it isn't just a New York thing. (Teaser: one of the most successful cities to attempt it so far is Birmingham, Alabama.)

usa.streetsblog.org

What Would It Take to Get 'Fast, Free Buses' Nationwide? — Streetsblog USA

Fast and free buses might sound crazy — but is it crazy enough to work, even as governments take aim at steep transit cuts?

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

I think it's really easy to talk about how car culture is accelerating our country's descent into becoming nothing more than a small handful of corporations in a trench coat (and I have!) But it's worth noting that transit is not immune, and it is not inherently more humane.

usa.streetsblog.org

How Your Car is Doubling as a Data Collection Device — And Who's Profiting — Streetsblog USA

Millions of low-income Americans are imprisoned by costs of compulsory car ownership and its associated fines, fees, forfeitures, and debts.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Really dug this one we repubbed from @mouthbreather718.bsky.social (lol), about the rising omnipresence of attention-destroying advertising on transit, and why "but agencies need revenue" is a really poor excuse for allowing public space to be blanketed in corporate slop.

usa.streetsblog.org

Are Brain-Rot Transit Ads Ruining Our Commutes? — Streetsblog USA

Advertisements give transit systems across the country badly-needed revenue. But how much is too much?

Reposted by Kea Wilson

Yonah Freemark @yonahfreemark.com · 18/09/2026

Jacksonville Florida, the nation’s 11th largest city, has approved 22% transit cuts. It’s a nightmare: —Most bus service will operate on Sat schedule —The city’s automated rail service will simply not run —A “Navi” automated bus service will become manual because they can’t afford the software

JTA planning additional layoffs as it works to cut $39 million from FY 2027 budget, suspend Skyway service in November

The Jacksonville Transportation Authority will reduce its Fiscal Year 2027 budget by $39 million, suspend passenger service on the Skyway and pause Navi service as it works to balance revenue and expe...

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Just leaving this here for other St. Louisans, and especially @repwesleybellmo.bsky.social : MO-1 is ranked among the top 20 most dangerous districts for pedestrians, and the only one in that top 20 that isn't in the Sunbelt/doesn't have year-round walking weather. Why isn't this a top priority?

smartgrowthamerica.org

2026 congressional district rankings - Smart Growth America

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Context check: he was predicting that gas demand would soften "as we move out of summer driving season" post-Labor Day and people start taking fewer road trips. But it's still fun to imagine a day when "fiscal conservatives" finally realize how fiscally insane mass car dependency has always been.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

3) Advocates have to get our elected officials to do two things: refuse to negotiate over the next bill until the executive branch stops holding the current one hostage, and then write a new one that throws out policies that we know aren't working. It won't be easy. But we can do this together.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

2) ...but Trump is by far not the only problem here. The bigger one is how little Congress knows or cares about how messed up our transportation system is, and how eager politicians on both sides of the aisle are to pass terrible bills just to say they had a "bipartisan win."

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

My big takeaways for advocates: 1) The current law is extended until Dec 11, and it should probably keep getting extended until the Trump administration proves it can follow *any* transportation law, even if the one we have now kind of sucks. And that includes restoring money it illegally rescinded.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Grateful to @bethosborne.bsky.social for getting me back up to speed on the federal transportation reauthorization post-leave. If you've lost track of this gargantuan process too (no shame, it's complicated!) here's a quick refresher:

usa.streetsblog.org

What You Missed in the Transportation Reauthorization This Summer — Streetsblog USA

Congressional negotiations over America's next big transportation law hit some speed bumps this summer, but there's more work to be done.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

I love this reframe; governments that love you find ways to offer you a ride when you need one, in ways that are meaningful and accessible to you.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

My dad was a private person so I didn't share photos of him in the article, but I think he'd be okay with me sharing this one in the ephemeral wash of social media, with his favorite horse at the equestrian therapy center where he volunteered for over a decade. I miss him every day.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Hi friends: I haven't written an article in three months. Here's why, and how my experience as a caregiver to a person I love with a disabling, terminal illness upended most of what I think about car dependency and transportation reform.

usa.streetsblog.org

Where I've Been — Streetsblog USA

How becoming a caregiver for a person with terminal illness changed the way I think about transportation reform.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

Loved this one we published on Memorial Day about the violent history of Route 66 you won't see in nostalgic tourist traps, and how that's shaped the roads we still drive on today

usa.streetsblog.org

The Forgotten History of 'Bloody 66' And How Public Memory Helps Perpetuate Traffic Violence — Streetsblog USA

Centennial events downplay the violent history of one of America's most "iconic" highways, and obscure how that violence persists to this day.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 18/05/2026

TBH it's been disturbing to see how Black Lives Matter has faded out of a lot of street safety conversations since Trump got back into power. Wrote about a new report that reminds us why that's a massive mistake, and why Vision Zero and criminal justice reform are fundamentally the same movement.

usa.streetsblog.org

Street Safety and Police Reform Are Two Sides of the Same Coin — Streetsblog USA

America's broken approaches to roadway safety and criminal justice are deeply interconnected.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 08/05/2026

Been a while since this happened and I think it's cool: this very cool journal translated one of our articles into Portuguese! It means a lot to me when my work resonants in other places around the world.

caosplanejado.com

“Não somos Copenhagen” não é desculpa para negligenciar pedestres e ciclistas | Caos Planejado

Leia o artigo de Kea Wilson sobre as cidades além de Copenhagen que estão gerando uma transformação na sua mobilidade ativa.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 08/05/2026

Even if you don't care about transit, you should be disturbed by how many different strategies this White House has found to subvert the will of Congress re: shared modes. Because it's writing a playbook that it can and will use to mess with things you *do* care about somewhere down the line.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 08/05/2026

This is in addition to illegal clawbacks, endless grant "reviews", slow-walking contracts until congress passes a budget rescinding the funds...on and on. And while the general public experiences all these as the same thing—their train and bus lines don't get built — the sheer variety is disturbing.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 08/05/2026

I've been writing about federal transportation policy for a decade and even I am amazed at how many new ways the Trump administration is finding to defund transit, and how breathtakingly hard it is to keep up with. T4 has a great breakdown on the latest one: stalling apportionment from the OMB.

USDOT’s historic failure to advance any new transit projects in 14 months may be a sign of things to come - Transportation For America

As in their first term, it appears the Trump administration is again attempting to slow down or stop transit capital expansion projects across the country. Unlike those previous attempts in 2017-2018,...

Reposted by Kea Wilson

California Transit Nerd @catransitnerd.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

Asking commuter railroads to hold 325-400M in insurance is crazy, class 1 railroads generally self insure given their size. We let road vehicles get away with basically nothing and people scream if you suggest at least 100k for personal Autos and 2.5M for trucks (both of which are still too low)

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

The thing about transportation reporting is that stuff that's really wonky and easy to glaze over (revisions to federal train insurance liability requirements) can have *massive*, dramatic impacts on our lives unless we lock in and speak up (commuter trains across America abruptly stopping service.)

usa.streetsblog.org

This Doomsday Law Could Stop Trains Across America In A Matter of Weeks — Streetsblog USA

Arbitrary insurance requirements set by Congress could easily kill commuter rail in the United States.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 22/04/2026

I cannot describe how exhausting it is to spend a career talking about induced demand, to see it become mainstream among average people AND their governments, to see and feel things finally changing... and then a president comes in who take us back to the 1950s.

usa.streetsblog.org

For Earth Day, the Trump Administration Wants To Expand Highways Across America — Streetsblog USA

US DOT wants states to build more roads and take space away from bikes and give it to cars. It's foolish on so many levels.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

In St. Louis you can do this with street trees ...and I may or may not know someone who's done it upwards of 100 times. :)

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

I would love to know how many U.S. families have lost multiple members to traffic violence, especially in separate crashes. Because this is not the first story on a husband and wife dying in exactly the same place that I've reported, and unless something changes, it definitely won't be the last.

usa.streetsblog.org

When Traffic Violence Hits The Same Family Twice — Years Apart, On Exactly the Same Street — Streetsblog USA

The deaths of a Colorado married couple has some mourning an eerie coincidence — and others outraged at two predictable tragedies that could have been prevented.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 15/04/2026

IMO, we cannot possibly underestimate how little our elected officials and their staff actually know about how transportation works. And when you really look it in the face, it's obvious why we have the transportation system we do, and what we need to do to fix it.

usa.streetsblog.org

“Why Do We Do This Bill?”: Preparing Congressional Staff for Surface Transportation Reauthorization — Streetsblog USA

A top advocacy organization is preparing Congress to take a critical look at the upcoming transportation reauthorization — and it's not easy.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 15/04/2026

In which I share my go-to "fuck around and find out" tactic when arguing with end-stage carbrain

usa.streetsblog.org

What If All Cars Were Autonomous, Electric, and Free? — Streetsblog USA

Can we really solve the problems of car dominance just by making cars less destructive?

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 01/04/2026

Really stoked about this news.

usa.streetsblog.org

Sustainable Action! Streetsblog Is Making a Feature Film — Streetsblog USA

A new franchise — and here's how you can be a part of it.

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 31/03/2026

Spoiler: there isn't an easy answer! But not building so many damn highways is a good start.

usa.streetsblog.org

How To Fix The Broken Gas Tax — Streetsblog USA

Drivers aren't paying their fair share — and no one else is getting their due. Is it time to rethink our federal road funding mechanisms?

Kea Wilson @keawilson.bsky.social · 30/03/2026

Wrote about why Trump's 'Freedom Means Affordable Cars' initiative (yes, they really called it that) is bullshit, why mass forced car dependency will never be affordable *or* liberating, and why the latest gas shock only makes it more obvious what this is all about: enriching automotive interests.

usa.streetsblog.org

Trump's 'Freedom Means Affordable Cars' Rings Hollow As Gas Prices Surge — Streetsblog USA

Real freedom is the freedom to choose how you get around — including not driving at all.