Here is a look at some of the transportation headlines gathered by us and the Metro Library. The full list of headlines is posted on the library’s blog.

Cyclists shouldn’t ‘share the road,’ they should have their own (Grist)

A study of bicycle infrastructure in Montreal found that cyclists are safer and more abundant when they have their own bike paths that are separated from traffic by a physical barrier. Despite their success in encouraging biking, current federal guidelines discourage installation of such paths and some cycling groups disagree about whether bikes should be treated exactly the same as autos.

H.R. 1 transportation budget: fewer jobs, greater costs, more pollution, worse commutes (NRDC Switchboard)

The first draft transportation budget from the House of Representatives is raising some red flags among transit advocates. For the rest of the 2011 fiscal year, the proposal calls for a $430 million cut in transit infrastructure investment, which could dramatically affect the ability of cities to manage congestion and to provide an affordable alternative to driving.

Why are Americans driving less? (Infrastructurist)

Infrastructurist breaks down a few arguments made at the New York Times Freakonomics blog. You might have thought that it’s high gas prices. As it turns out, the amount that Americans drive started to decline in 2004, long before the price spiked in 2008 and then remained relatively high. The article instead suggests that the overall decline is due to less driving by merican youth, who tend to prefer living in walkable communities.

Here is a look at some of the transportation headlines gathered by us and the Metro Library. The full list of headlines is posted on the library’s blog.

It’s Friday and it’s sunny, so we’ll go a little lighter on the brain cells today…

Urban sprawl versus nature’s crawl (NPR)

Mitch Dobrowner has a series of photographs of Los Angeles that, says NPR, “blends the man-made with the wild, making it difficult to pinpoint where cities and nature end — or meet.” Hit the link above to check out his amazing photos of the L.A. Basin. And here’s Mitch’s website if you’d like to see more of his amazing landscapes.

A review of the latest in bike snow plows (Grist)

A little — or a lot — of snow isn’t going to slow down dedicated cyclists in chillier climes. This excellent post takes a look at some of the contraptions people have hooked up to bikes to clear their biking routes. The photo gallery shows, no surprise here, that a little snow doesn’t slow down the dedicated cyclists of Copenhagen. The video below explains one bike plow intended as an alternative to noisy, smelly gasoline-powered plows.

Requim for the polar bear (New York Times Green blog)

It may be freezing in many parts of the U.S. and Europe this winte, but it’s been unusually warm in the Arctic. Some experts blame climate change and the higher than usual temps have resulted in less sea ice. That’s a problem for polar bears who use the ice to hunt for seals in the winter, which allows them to fatten up for the more difficult months of summer. Attentive readers of The Source don’t need to be told that taking mass transit is a way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming that’s stressing the polar bear population.

Who needs the ‘burbs when you have a Lifepod? (inhabitat)

It’s a small, sustainable prefab that you can ship or take wherever you want and then plop down without — so they say — harming the environment. And, yes, there’s a satellite dish. Of course, you might need a monster SUV to reach the thing….but it’s Friday, so have fun checking this one out.

Here is a look at some of the transportation headlines gathered by us and the Metro Library. The full list of headlines is posted on the library’s blog.

Victims of deadly 2008 Metrolink crash in Chatsworth to meet train execs (Daily News)

A $200 million settlement fund for the victims of 2008′s Metrolink collision was approved last month – releasing Metrolink and Veolia Transportation from further liability for the crash. Executives from Veolia Transportation (the company who supplied the engineers for Metrolink) have agreed to meet with victims and families of victims behind closed doors. The victims lawyers hope this will give executives a sense of the human suffering caused by the tragedy and perhaps convince Veolia to provide more money to the victims if costs go beyond the $200 million mark.

Review of Last Week’s Metro “Service Enhancement” Hearings (Streetsblog LA)

Streetsblog’s Dana Gabbard reviews last week’s public meetings on bus service changes coming in June. His thoughts overall? “We are living in the world of The Jetsons not The Flintstones and stone age level outreach is unacceptable.” At the February 1st meeting the crowd of 150 was mostly comprised of Bus Rider’s Union members flatly opposed to all service changes and a group from East L.A. opposed to changes to line 30/31.

Four Models of Vehicle Use (Straight Outta Suburbia)

Straight Outta Suburbia blog offers an interesting take on the role of vehicles in city’s from an urbanist’s point of view. Rather than vilify the car, as is so often the case in urbanist discussions, Straight Outta Suburbia proposes a hierarchy of efficient and appropriate uses for cars in cities.