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 Transportation Headlines online newspaper, which you can also access via email subscription (visit the newspaper site) or RSS feed.

Howdy, Source readers. Back in the saddle again after a couple weeks in the Beaver State. I even went to hear the Bend, Ore., mayor speak at a community event held in a bar, the first time I can recall enjoying a beer while listening to an elected official. It was quite awesome and the mayor even talked about transportation — specifically the need for Bend to bulk up density on its transit corridors to encourage ridership so bus service “pencils out” and for the need to incentivize bike travel rather than punish car travel. Incentives, the mayor said, work the best. Otherwise, here’s the best way to get around Oregon:

Upper Klamath National Wildlife Refuge as seen from a canoe. Photo by Steve Hymon.

Pasadena bike plan sent back to the drawing board (Pasadena Star News)

Wow. The Pasadena City Council — after two years of inaction — has decided that its bike plan update would do little or nothing to improve bike safety. Four cyclists have died in the city since 2010, including one last month. There are a few bike lanes here and there in Pasadena, but the city for years has relied on marking busy streets as “bike routes” while doing absolutely nothing to help cyclists navigate them. The obvious question for media members — not asked or answered in this article — is whether any Pasadena Council Members have ever tried to navigate their own city on a bike. The key, I’ve found, is to stick to the many residential streets to get around and then say a few prayers before riding on the likes of Del Mar, California, Lake, etc.

Shh! Obama Administration puts brakes on Xpress West high-speed rail project (The Foundry) 

The Heritage Foundation doesn’t sound too disappointed at the news that the U.S. Department of Transportation has suspended its review of a federal loan application for the Victorville-to-Las Vegas rail project. Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) and Senator Jeff Sessions (R-Alabama) take credit, saying they originally opposed the project. I’m not exactly falling out of my seat in shock; the project needed a federal loan on the order of about $5 billion to get built — not likely from a tight-pursed Congress — and I’m not sure any politician outside Nevada is going to help Vegas gaming interests when so many states have gaming interests of their own to protect.

Perris Valley Line: $3 million settlement reached with environmental group (Press-Enterprise) 

The deal clears the way for an extension of Metrolink’s Riverside Line to Perris, with tracks running mostly adjacent to the 215 freeway. The settlement involves setting aside some funds for homeowners near the tracks to soundproof their homes, along with money for sound dampening the tracks and some bike and foot trails. Construction is expected to begin this year.