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Transportation
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Division News
Crashes
Media & PR 405-521-6000
July 24, 2020
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7/24/2020 TVEyes Media Monitoring Suite - [Reports]
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KFOR-OKC (NBC) 7/24/2020 5:03:30 AM [Media Center]
Local Viewership: 9,019
LocalPublicityValue:$405.60
Note:>> an accident believed to be fatal leave one man with just minorinjuries. a glass truck and semi crashed on the turner turnpike neardouglas yesterday, the highway patrol originally telling us that oneperson had died while hours later they corrected that...
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KOTV (CBS) 7/24/2020 3:40:23 AM [Media Center]
Local Viewership: 3,921
LocalPublicityValue:$157.44
Note:news". >> i'm ed o'keefe reporting from the cbs studios variouswashington. thank for staying with us. the summer travel season hasbeen stopped various its tracks. those who venture out are likely tofind empty airports and quiet rail stations. america's passengerrailroad...
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KOKI (FOX) 7/23/2020 7:23:28 AM [Media Center]
Local Viewership: 18,412
LocalPublicityValue:$663.79
Note:small town hit the streets. >> we wanted to say thank you and weare behind you and we love and appreciate you. >> take a look,they're painting a blue stripe down the middle of the road. she saidshe got the idea after seeing something similar on facebook....
Items in this report: 3
Total Local Viewership: 31,352Total Local Market Publicity Value: $1,226.83
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Crash: Turner Turnpike
Coronav irus / Rail / Amtrak
SH-20 / Unauthorized Pavement Painting // Div. 8
ODOT’s Legislative Round-Up 7-24-2020
Autonomous Vehicles https://transportationtodaynews.com/news/18949-lawmakers-advocate-expeditious-autonomous-vehicle-regulations/ COVID-19/Amtrak https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/2020/07/23/amtrak-passengers-now-face-removal-trains-not-wearing-masks/5496638002/ COVID-19/Traffic https://www.routefifty.com/public-safety/2020/07/people-are-driving-less-during-pandemic-greater-risk/167129/ https://thehill.com/policy/transportation/508675-americans-at-higher-risk-of-dying-in-motor-vehicle-crash-for-third COVID-19/Transit https://www.masstransitmag.com/management/article/21147102/small-and-midsized-transit-agencies-join-call-for-second-round-of-emergency-funding Electric Vehicles https://in.reuters.com/article/us-autos-electric-new-york/new-york-to-invest-750-million-to-expand-electric-vehicle-infrastructure-idINKCN24H3DD Environmental https://www.odot.org/newsmedia/press/2020/ENO%20July%2024_Administration%20Issues%20Final%20Changes%20to%20NEPA.pdf https://transportationtodaynews.com/news/18943-ata-praises-trump-administration-decision-to-reform-nepa/ https://www.routefifty.com/infrastructure/2020/07/state-ags-section-401/167156/ Federal Funding https://www.odot.org/newsmedia/press/2020/ENO%20July%2024_House%20Appropriators%20Advance%20FY21.pdf https://www.odot.org/newsmedia/press/2020/ENO%20July%2024_Another%20Coronavirus%20Response%20Bill%20Expected%20in%20Senate%20Next%20Week.pdf https://www.politico.com/news/2020/07/23/senate-still-quiet-as-house-moves-forward-on-infrastructure-380176 https://aashtojournal.org/2020/07/24/aashto-industry-letters-highlights-immediate-fiscal-need-of-state-dots/ https://transportationtodaynews.com/news/18956-usdot-announces-90b-in-savings-due-to-regulatory-reforms/ Interstate Conditions/TRIP Report https://aashtojournal.org/2020/07/17/report-interstate-highway-system-facing-multiple-challenges/ US Army Corps of Engineers https://www.enr.com/articles/49746-spellmon-is-confirmed-as-army-corps-next-chief Waterways https://www.odot.org/newsmedia/press/2020/ENO%20July%2024_Biennial%20(and%20Bipartisan)%20Water%20Resources%20Bill.pdf https://aashtojournal.org/2020/07/17/house-ti-committee-advances-wrda-2020-bill/
7/24/2020 ODOT seeking input on transit services for seniors and disabled Oklahomans | Oklahoma | woodwardnews.net
https://www.woodwardnews.net/oklahoma/odot-seeking-input-on-transit-services-for-seniors-and-disabled-oklahomans/article_c1bc423d-d2dd-5934-9… 1/3
https://www.chickashanews.com/community/odot-seeking-input-on-transit-services-for-seniors-and-disabled-oklahomans/article_f479fbfa-cd18-11ea-aa08-ff8f0cc67b7b.html
ODOT seeking input on transit services for seniors and disabledOklahomansODOTJul 23, 2020
ODOT
The Oklahoma Department of Transportation is hosting several regional telephone town hallmeetings to present information and get public input on transit services, gaps and unmet needs forseniors and disabled Oklahomans in communities statewide.
Due to COVID-19 precautions, participants will take part via a telephone call rather than attendingan in-person meeting. The Department encourages participation from transit service organizationsas well as senior citizens, disabled Oklahomans and caretakers who use public transit.
Transit Plan / Public Involvement
7/24/2020 ODOT seeking input on transit services for seniors and disabled Oklahomans | Oklahoma | woodwardnews.net
https://www.woodwardnews.net/oklahoma/odot-seeking-input-on-transit-services-for-seniors-and-disabled-oklahomans/article_c1bc423d-d2dd-5934-9… 2/3
Those who want to participate will need to visit https://vekeo.com/okdot/ to pre-register for themeeting in the region in which they live or use transit service. Participants will receive a call on theirdesignated date and time to be connected to the meeting.
The regions are set by county as follows:
Region 1 – Canadian, Cleveland, Garvin, Grady, Lincoln, McClain, Oklahoma, Payne,Pottawatomie, Seminole
Region 2 – Alfalfa, Blaine, Craig, Creek, Delaware, Garfield, Grant, Kay, Kingfisher, Mayes, Noble,Nowata, Osage, Ottawa, Pawnee, Rogers, Washington
Region 3 – Beaver, Beckham, Caddo, Cimarron, Comanche, Cotton, Custer, Dewey, Ellis, Greer,Harmon, Harper, Jackson, Jefferson, Kiowa, Major, Roger Mills, Stephens, Texas, Tillman, Washita,Woods, Woodward
Region 4 – Coal, Haskell, Hughes, Johnston, Latimer, LeFlore, Love, McCurtain, McIntosh,Marshall, Murray, Muskogee, Okfuskee, Okmulgee, Pittsburg, Pontotoc, Pushmataha, Sequoyah,Wagoner
A map of these regions is include below for reference.
The Tulsa metro area program is administered locally by the Indian Nations Council of Governmentsrather than ODOT, and will not be included in the regional groups on this call. Transit stakeholders inthe Tulsa area with questions about service for the elderly and disabled in their communities shouldvisit the INCOG website www.incog.org or call INCOG at 918-584-7526.
Regional Human Services Transit Plan – Telephone Meeting Schedule
Pre-register at https://vekeo.com/okdot/
Tuesday, July 28
Region 4 meeting – 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Region 3 meeting – 2-3 p.m.
7/24/2020 ODOT seeking input on transit services for seniors and disabled Oklahomans | Oklahoma | woodwardnews.net
https://www.woodwardnews.net/oklahoma/odot-seeking-input-on-transit-services-for-seniors-and-disabled-oklahomans/article_c1bc423d-d2dd-5934-9… 3/3
Thursday, July 30
Region 2 meeting – 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Region 1 meeting – 2-3 p.m.
This opportunity for stakeholder input is part of the Coordinated Human Services TransportationPlan, which will provide recommendations to better serve the elderly and disabled as ODOTassumes responsibility for the Federal Transit Administration’s Section 5310 program previouslyadministered by the Oklahoma Department of Human Services. This program provides federal fundsfor nonprofit and community organizations which provide public transportation services for seniorsand Oklahomans with disabilities.
Members of the public with questions about the pre-registrations or meetings can contact the ODOTOffice of Mobility & Public Transit at 405-464-3251 weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. oremail [email protected].
To request an accommodation please contact the ADA Coordinator at 405-521-4140 or theOklahoma Relay Service at 1-800-722-0353, no later than 72 hours before any scheduled event. Ifyou have any ADA or Title VI questions email [email protected].
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7/24/2020 Page A1 | Tulsa World E-edition | tulsaworld.com
https://tulsaworld.com/eedition/page-a1/page_b1a317b5-d6ba-5a5c-afc9-65bdaebd4fb9.html 1/3
Local
TOP STORY
Tulsa County DA declines charges inMay 31 collision on Interstate 244during protest
By Samantha Vicent Tulsa World 07.24.20
The Tulsa County District Attorney’s Of�ce has declined to prosecute the motorist who drove through a crowd of
protesters on Interstate 244 in May.
But District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler on Thursday encouraged the Oklahoma Highway Patrol to work toward
identifying people who were in the path of the vehicle for possible prosecution.
“Although the claim may be that this was a peaceful protest, there was nothing peaceful about the targeting and attack
upon this family,” Kunzweiler said in a memo the Tulsa World obtained Thursday afternoon. “Crimes were committed upon
this family and the individuals responsible should be held accountable.”
He said his of�ce would instead like the Highway Patrol to identify individuals seen in photos or on video doing what he
described as “using weapons and throwing projectiles and damaging the property of this family,” whom he did not identify.
Truck drives through crowd of protesters in Tulsa
Crash: Pickup Drives through Protesters / I-244 // Div. 8
7/24/2020 Page A1 | Tulsa World E-edition | tulsaworld.com
https://tulsaworld.com/eedition/page-a1/page_b1a317b5-d6ba-5a5c-afc9-65bdaebd4fb9.html 2/3
A 32-year-old protester, Ryan Knight, was paralyzed when he fell from a highway overpass during the melee and broke his
neck and back, and he remains in extensive rehabilitation.
Attorney Jonathan Nation, who represents another person who was injured, told the Tulsa World on Thursday evening
that Kunzweiler’s stance is “essentially blaming the protesters and essentially blaming the victims for their own injuries.”
The May 31 protest in downtown Tulsa was part of demonstrations nationwide in the wake of the killing of George Floyd
by Minneapolis police six days earlier.
On the day of the incident, demonstrators had been marching near John Hope Franklin Reconciliation Park downtown.
A group of protesters at one point walked onto I-244 and an access ramp, stopping traf�c on the highway. A Tulsa World
photographer captured an image of the driver, who was in a pickup hauling what was described as an “empty gooseneck
horse trailer,” displaying a gun on his dashboard before pulling forward through the crowd.
The encounter, Kunzweiler wrote, was in the westbound lanes of Interstate 244 between Elgin and Detroit avenues. His
memo says authorities identi�ed three people who were injured, including Knight and a woman who sustained bone
fractures.
Sarah Stewart, a spokeswoman for the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety, said Wednesday that the agency provided
the results of its investigation to federal and state prosecutors on Monday. Though Stewart did not say what DPS
recommended, Kunzweiler said “no af�davit requesting charges was submitted with this report, nor was there a request
for charges.”
Nation said his client is looking at initiating a civil case. “I’m really concerned the DA has decided not to take a neutral
stance and is trying to pin the blame on those who were out peacefully protesting,” he said.
“There was also a car that had been let through just prior to the truck-trailer without any incident, so to say these were
violent protesters mischaracterizes what the footage is.”
Similarly, the Rev. Eric Gill of Metropolitan Baptist Church, who helped organize the May 31 protest, said Kunzweiler’s
announcement was “unfortunate.” However, he said, he was not surprised by the outcome.
“When an assault takes place against individuals participating in a demonstration that called for law enforcement to be
held accountable for morally compromising actions and the individual isn’t held accountable, this is the reason why there’s
doubt and a divide between law enforcement and the community,” Gill said.
“It’s not surprising because oppressive systems have a way of protecting and perpetuating (themselves.)”
In declining to �le charges, Kunzweiler wrote that the family in the pickup — including two children — reported fearing for
their safety during the encounter and sustained property damage, including to the windshield.
The father reported that “an older black male motioned for him to drive forward and follow the initial lead automobile
which was being allowed passage,” Kunzweiler wrote. “This statement is corroborated by a camera video which shows an
older black male securing passage for the initial lead automobile. The black male can be overheard telling protestors to
allow the automobile and the truck passage. However, soon after the truck begins to move forward protesters descend
upon it and begin striking it.”
7/24/2020 Page A1 | Tulsa World E-edition | tulsaworld.com
https://tulsaworld.com/eedition/page-a1/page_b1a317b5-d6ba-5a5c-afc9-65bdaebd4fb9.html 3/3
Kunzweiler also wrote: “The mother described herself as being in fear for her life and the lives of her family members as
their truck was repeatedly struck by protesters with their hands and objects which appeared to be bricks, metal bars,
skateboards, bottles and other items. The father described his fear for his own life and the lives of his family as their family
truck was surrounded by protestors who began to beat upon the truck with their hands and various weapons, to include
projectiles thrown at the vehicle. At one point the front windshield was broken and glass fragments �ew upon him.”
Kunzweiler said that “one child described the sound as if they were in a hail storm. The children’s mother echoed her
children’s statements and described them as so scared they got on the �oorboard of the truck, screaming and crying.”
Nation told the World previously that he thought the driver should face a reckless endangerment charge and said
Thursday that his actions, malicious or not, at least warrant a traf�c citation.
Kunzweiler said Thursday that his of�ce had jurisdiction in deciding the case because the collision site is not within the
Muscogee (Creek) Nation’s boundaries.
It remains unclear whether the U.S. Attorney’s Of�ce in Tulsa also has jurisdiction to pursue a case following the U.S.
Supreme Court’s 5-4 ruling that much of Oklahoma remains legally Indian Territory for purposes of enforcing federal
criminal law. A spokesman for the of�ce declined to comment on the subject Thursday evening.
Curtis Killman contributed to this story.
Gallery: Protests in Tulsa in May, June
Updated gallery: Protests in Tulsa end with tear gas, pepper balls after truck drove through crowd
Related content
Tulsa World editorial: Law enforcement needs to release information about I-244 incident with pickup driver and
protesters
Law enforcement continues to investigate encounter between motorist, protesters on I-244
OHP investigating but releasing few details after truck drove through protesters on Tulsa interstate
Pickup rolls through protesters gathered on Interstate 244; state troopers questioning driver
COVID-19 Has Been 'Apocalyptic' for Public Transit. Will Congress
Offer More Help?
BY ALEJANDRO DE LA GARZA – TIME MAGAZINE
JULY 21, 2020 5:03 PM EDT
W hile trying to get to work over the past few months, Brittany
Williams, a Seattle home care worker, has often been passed by two or three
buses before one stops to let her board. Buses in her area that once carried
anywhere from about 50 to 100 passengers have been limited to between 12
and 18 to prevent overcrowding in response to coronavirus, and Williams’
commute, typically a half-hour ride, now takes more than double that time.
Other Seattle transit riders have described budgeting as much as an extra
hour per trip to account for the reduced capacity, eating into their time at
work, school or with family.
Even with the ridership limits in place, Williams, 34, doesn’t feel safe on
public transit. Some passengers don’t wear face coverings, and bus drivers
sometimes ignore capacity limits, she says. On one ride with her seven-year-
old son, she decided to get off at a stop far from her home after a driver
allowed a crowd of people to board. “It’s very trying. I’ll put it in those
terms,” Williams says. “These past couple months have been really hard.”
(Seattle’s public transit operator, King County Metro, says it’s asking
customers to allow for additional travel time, and that it has instructed
drivers to call in more service on overcrowded routes.)
Coronavirus / Transit 1/12
Adding more buses could help boost capacity while reducing overcrowding.
But King Country Metro is in dire financial straits, making that next to
impossible. System officials are projecting what they’re calling an
“unprecedented loss” of more than a quarter of a billion dollars this year
due to falling fare revenue and sales tax collections. While King County
Metro received some federal aid for short-term survival, its prospects in the
longer term are dismal, with the agency projecting more than $600
million in lost revenues through 2022. Last month, the agency announced
fall service would be cut 15% from pre-coronavirus levels.
What’s happening to public transit in Seattle is happening across the
country. Public transit use has plummeted nationwide as people work from
home or avoid buses and subways for fear of contracting COVID-19,
resulting in less revenue from fares. And as the economy cratered, so too
have the tax revenues upon many which many transit systems rely.
Philadelphia’s SEPTA is looking at upwards of $300 million in lost revenue
through mid-2021. Maryland’s Transportation Trust Fund is contending
with a $550 million shortfall in the fiscal year ending June 30, with similar
losses expected next year. Los Angeles Metro is preparing for $1.8 billion in
pandemic-related revenue losses. Chicago’s CTA is facing a half-billion
dollar falloff in 2020. “I’ve been in this industry for over 30 years, and I
have never experienced anything like what we’ve been dealing with in this
pandemic,” says CTA President Dorval Carter, Jr. “There was no playbook
for what we encountered.” In New York City, home to
the largest transportation agency in the country, losses could add up to a
staggering $8.5 billion in 2020. “‘Apocalyptic’ is a good description,” says
Sarah Feinberg, who was appointed interim president of New York City
Transit after the resignation of former president Andy Byford in January
following repeated, high-profile clashes with New York governor Andrew
Cuomo.
2/12
In these cities and more, public transit is the backbone of the local
economy, and serves a wide swath of residents across socio-economic
groups. If cities are to recover post-COVID, a thriving public transit system
will surely have to be part of the mix.
Economically, U.S. public transit systems have endured a devastating one-
two punch. Ridership rates have been decimated (subway ridership
was down as much as 92% in New York at the height of the outbreak there)
severely cutting into fare collections. And with the economy floundering
more broadly, tax revenues that help subsidize transit systems have also
taken a dramatic hit. But many transit systems’ costs are up as they engage
in expensive cleaning campaigns meant to keep their buses and trains safe.
Furthermore, many systems have been reluctant to cut service, which could
result in dangerous overcrowding that could exacerbate viral spread.
Wearing a protective mask, Alejandra Ceja with S.J. Cleaning Services wipes down the window of a bus at the MBTA Charlestown bus garage during COVID-19 pandemic in Boston on May 15, 2020.
David L. Ryan—The Boston Globe/Getty Images
3/12
Some help has already pulled into the station. The CARES Act, a $2.2
trillion stimulus bill signed in March, included $25 billion for public
transportation relief, which covered some of this year’s funding gaps. But as
the COVID-19 crisis worsens in much of the country, it’s becoming clear that
the nation’s transit systems will need more help from Congress.
An independent analysis commissioned by the American Public
Transportation Association (APTA), a non-profit advocacy group, found
that, even after the CARES Act, public transit agencies nationwide still face
a $23.8 billion shortfall through the end of 2021. “The CARES Act probably
put a band-aid on the problem,” says Robert Puentes, president of the non-
profit Eno Center for Transportation.
Another big issue with the CARES Act: the formula used to divvy out the
funding gave enough money to smaller transit agencies to tide them over for
a longer stretch of time, but left larger systems with only a few months of
respite, according to an analysis by TransitCenter, a transit advocacy group.
(That’s partially because larger transit systems tend to rely less on
government funding, and more on fares and dedicated taxes, two income
streams that the analysis projected would take a bigger hit during the
pandemic.) Those major systems not only carry the most riders, some are
also located in areas hardest-hit by COVID-19 early on, like New York and
Seattle. For the 10 largest transit systems, the analysts estimated that the
CARES Act funds would cover shortfalls for about five to eight months. In
Seattle and New York City, which got 15% of the total CARES Act relief
despite handling more than a third of national transit ridership, the funds
were predicted to last less than six months.
More help from Washington could be on the way. Congress returned to work
on July 20, and passing further COVID-related economic relief is top of
mind for most lawmakers. But it’s unclear what the next major relief bill
4/12
might look like. Back in May, House Democrats passed the $3 trillion
HEROES Act, which included nearly $16 billion for public transit assistance,
aimed primarily at the big systems that got relatively stiffed by the CARES
Act. But Republicans called the bill a “liberal wishlist,” and the GOP-
controlled Senate has refused to take it up. Republican leaders are expected
to unveil their version of a relief bill as soon as this week. With August
recess quickly approaching and plenty of political points on the line, it’s
likely that Congress will pass some form of additional relief soon—what
such a bill will ultimately include for buses, subways and rail is, at this
point, anybody’s guess.
Not everybody is mourning the sorry state of American public
transit. Some have long viewed it as a waste of government spending and
resources, and say we’re better off letting it die. Transit opponents often
point to data showing that national ridership had been slumping since 2014
as evidence that Americans were choosing other forms of transportation
even before the pandemic, though the dropoff began to reverse last year.
“We had very strong trends before the pandemic that transit was becoming,
outside of New York City, increasingly insignificant and irrelevant in
America,” says Randal O’Toole, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute, a
libertarian think tank. “What the pandemic has done is just underscored
that and accelerated that and maybe in some places brought it to a final
conclusion.”
But public transit’s defenders have a laundry list of reasons why it ought to
be saved: it reduces the number of private vehicles on the road (generally
meaning better air quality and less congestion); it results in fewer fatal car
wrecks; and, when done well, makes urban mobility more accessible across
socio-economic groups. “You can decry what you see as an inefficient
5/12
system, but I don’t know how you have a functioning economy without
people being able to get to their jobs,” says Beth Osborne, director of
advocacy group Transportation for America.
For those who don’t rely on mass transit, heated debates over budget cuts,
canceled routes and so on seem far afield. But transit is a lifeline for
millions of Americans. Take, for example, the nearly half-million Chicago-
area residents who live in “transit deserts.” Long before the pandemic, areas
like the city’s Far South Side were starved for transit options, making it
difficult for residents to get to work and access other essential resources. If
Chicago’s CTA winds up reducing service even further because of COVID-
related funding issues, advocates say, such a move could disproportionately
affect people who’ve already been cut off from the rest of their city.
“If they cut service any more that would be a tragic thing for people who
depend on transportation, not just to go to work but just to get to the
grocery store,” says Andrea Reed, a transit advocate and co-chair of the
Coalition for a Modern Metra Electric, a local advocacy group. “They can’t
cut where people are already down and hurting.”
6/12
A commuter wearing a protective mask looks at a mobile device while riding a Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) train in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., on Wednesday, June 3, 2020.
Christopher Dilts—Bloomberg/Getty Images
Any cuts in public transit service stand to disproportionately impact non-
white Americans, who have already beared the brunt of the pandemic in so
many other ways. People of color account for less than 40% of the U.S.
population, but make up 60% of transit riders, according to the APTA.
Further underscoring non-white Americans’ reliance on public transit, a
CityLab analysis published in June found that, during a period at the height
of the outbreak in New York, subway ridership dropped substantially more
in whiter neighborhoods compared to less-white areas, perhaps because
white New Yorkers were more likely to be able to work from home or afford
alternate modes of transportation, like Uber rides. Furthermore, public
transit has throughout the pandemic offered essential workers of color from
doctors and nurses to kitchen staff a reliable way to get to their jobs; 67% of
essential workers using transit are non-white, according to an April
TransitCenter analysis.
7/12
With these disparities in mind, some transit agencies are trying to ensure
equitable service amid the pandemic, despite the drain on their resources.
Chicago’s CTA, for example, has been running at full service since the
beginning of the outbreak in an effort to avoid overcrowding. “We had to
make very tough operational decisions that were not necessarily in the
financial best interests of the CTA, but were necessary because we recognize
the importance of the people we were serving,” says Carter, the CTA
president.
But good intentions don’t negate financial realities. “When the CARES Act
money runs out, I don’t know what the system’s going to do,” says Stephen
Schlickman, former executive director of the Regional Transportation
Authority of Northeastern Illinois (RTA) which oversees the CTA. “This
pandemic is clearly going to go into next year. The COVID money is
expected to maybe stretch into early next year, so what happens after that?
It’s a big unknown.”
Perhaps nowhere is public transit more vital, or the budget crisis
more serious, than in New York City. The Metropolitan Transportation
Authority, which oversees the city’s subways, busses and commuter rail
lines, dwarfs other U.S. transit agencies in size, serving a colossal 40% of
the nation’s total public transit users. Over the spring, New York City
experienced what remains, for now, the worst coronavirus outbreak in the
U.S.: more than 226,000 people have tested positive in the five boroughs as
of July 20, and nearly 23,000 have died. Ridership in the city plummeted as
people stayed home or sought out alternate modes of transportation they
perceived to be safer. Furthermore, the city’s transit workers were hit
particularly badly: more than 4,000 MTA employees have gotten sick so far,
and 131 died. “It’s like being in a hospital, but without [personal protective
8/12
equipment],” says MTA subway conductor William Mora, 50, who was out of
work for a month with COVID-19; two coworkers he knew died of the virus.
The MTA received the most CARES Act money—$3.9 billion—of any public
transit agency, but it was still shortchanged relative to its size, according to
a TransitCenter analysis. The MTA, which anticipates a $10.3 billion
loss through 2021, expects to burn through its CARES Act funds this month;
it requested nearly $4 billion in more federal relief back in April.
“This is just the worst of all possible outcomes if we don’t get federal help,”
says Andrew Albert, chair of the Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to
the MTA (PCAC) which represents riders’ interests. He cites the possibility
of layoffs, service cuts, fare hikes or even abandonment of transit lines. “I
just don’t want to anticipate what could be happening,” Albert says.
The pandemic struck just as the MTA was turning a corner. Subway on-time
performance had been deteriorating for years. Safety was becoming an
issue, too, underscored by a 2017 subway derailment that left 34 people
injured. But just before COVID-19 struck, reliability was improving, with
weekday on-time performance hitting 83.3% in January, up from a
dismal 58.1% two years prior. A massive $51.5 billion capital investment
plan went into effect at the start of 2020, $15 billion of which was to be
funded by a new congestion pricing plan wherein drivers would be charged
when entering the heart of Manhattan. But the pandemic and ensuing chaos
has left that plan facing about a year of delays due to holdups over a Federal
Highway Administration environmental review. Transit insiders say the
New York system now stands to lose its recent progress.
“Right now we’re seeing that the region is coming out of pause, but the MTA
is going into pause as relates to its construction program, and that could
9/12
have even more long-lasting, dire consequences, not just for riders but for
the entire economy of the region,” says Lisa Daglian, the PCAC Executive
Director.
A passenger wearing a surgical mask a daily newspaper while riding an uptown subway in New York City on March 18, 2020.
Robert Nickelsberg—Getty Images
Public transit’s future is equally uncertain nationwide. While it’s
likely many systems will receive at least some federal help, that probably
will not be enough to get them off life support, at least until some degree of
normality returns. Despite studies that show fears of COVID-19 infection on
mass transit could be overblown, it may not be until a vaccine is widely
available that riders who have a choice between private and public
transportation will feel safe enough to once again pack into buses and
subway cars. “People are expected to keep away from each other, and that
just doesn’t work out for mass transportation,” says Schlickman, the former
Illinois RTA boss.
Some transit advocates see opportunity in this crisis. In an effort to free up
badly needed public space for safe enjoyment of the outdoors, many cities
10/12
across the U.S. and worldwide have closed some streets or entire areas to
car traffic. As residents saw first-hand the benefits of having fewer cars
around—more space, safer streets, less air and noise pollution—some cities
have moved to make those changes permanent. Seattle, for instance, closed
20 miles of streets to most cars in May. Other cities are building or
revamping their cycling infrastructure, opening up yet another form of
transportation for many residents. “If we use this as an opportunity to do a
makeover of our transit systems, our transit funding, and our transit
infrastructure itself, we could come out of this exceptionally strong,” says
Alex Hudson, executive director of Seattle-based nonprofit Transportation
Choices Coalition.
But in general, the mood among transportation officials and advocates is far
from cheery. Large systems still await short-term relief, while a gigantic new
infrastructure proposal has stalled in a deadlocked Congress. Transit
planners have little to go on in guessing when the money, and riders, will
return. If transit systems are left to die, some say, their cities will die along
with them. “New York city is tied to their transit system,” says Philip Plotch,
a professor of political science at Saint Peter’s University and author of Last
Subway: The Long Wait for the Next Train in New York City. “It’s like if
you have a big hundred-story building and the elevators were having a
problem.”
Plotch, who served as director of World Trade Center redevelopment and
special projects at the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, has
watched his city recover from a devastating crisis before, and he’s optimistic
it can do so again. “It wasn’t clear in the days after 9/11 if anybody wanted
to work in a skyscraper ever again,” he says. “The people who had that sort
of dark outlook were totally wrong.” But even if transit systems recover in
11/12
the long-term, the millions of Americans currently relying on mass transit
to get to work are desperate for those buses and trains to keep running.
“We depend on [transit] not just to go to our clients, but to do their grocery
shopping, pick up their medicine…go out and pay their bills,” says Williams,
the Seattle home care worker. “It’s a very dangerous slope if they take
transit away. It’s part of what I would call another signature on the death
certificates of thousands of Americans.”
12/12
7/24/2020 'Zipper merge': Merging late recommended by states, experts
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2019/07/23/zipper-merge-merging-late-recommended-states-experts/1748026001/ 1/2
CARS
Drivers, you're merging all wrong: Beingpolite is causing traffic jams, experts sayMorgan Hines USA TODAYPublished 5:45 p.m. ET Jul. 23, 2019 Updated 9:59 a.m. ET Jul. 24, 2019
Commuting in heavy traffic can be a pain and merging can make it even more stressful –especially when it seems that drivers are playing by different rules.
A lane is closed ahead: Two lanes of vehicles will soon be narrowed to one. Somedrivers merge early and get to the correct lane as fast as possible, then wait for traffic toadvance. Others don't seem to have a problem zooming ahead and "cutting" in line.
But according to many experts, the driver trying to be polite is probably making traffic worsethan the driver who jumped ahead.
William Van Tassel, American Automobile Association Manager of Driver TrainingPrograms, said that AAA recommends using the "zipper" approach to merging.
The zipper method, in which drivers merge late, is based on the idea of a zipper's"teeth." Just as a zipper smoothly comes together, a zipper merge can keep traffic flowing inboth lanes by bringing some organization to the merging process, AAA says.
"The zipper merge has shown to keep traffic moving more smoothly, compared to a lessstructured approach," Van Tassel said.
A zipper merge is recommended because leaving a lane unoccupied as a result of earlymerging is inefficient. It only makes traffic heavier, proponents say.
Highway patrol pulls over hearse: in Las Vegas high-occupancy vehicle lane. Is the bodyan occupant?
Cash raining down on Atlanta highway: Stops drivers in their tracks
The Colorado Department of Transportation encourages drivers to use the zipper mergetactic. And it can reduce delays up to 40%, it said.FYI: Traffic / Zipper Merge
7/24/2020 'Zipper merge': Merging late recommended by states, experts
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2019/07/23/zipper-merge-merging-late-recommended-states-experts/1748026001/ 2/2
"We all learned in kindergarten not to cut in line, and there are lots of people who thinkzipper merging is cutting in line,'' Fort Collins traffic engineer Joe Olson told the Coloradoan."Zipper merging is for the greater good, but people still don't see it that way.'
Some states' drivers are resistant to the more efficient, but seemingly less polite maneuver.According to Wired, Minnesota launched a media blitz to encourage drivers to zipper mergein 2011, with billboards and more.
Drivers in California have had trouble coming to an agreement on whether late merging isacceptable. In 2017, the Sacramento Bee searched for a tie-breaker on what was appropriatemerge etiquette in the state, but a highway patrol spokesperson simply told them that driversshould merge cordially and safely.
No matter what, it's important to remember that merging isn't a race.
"When merging, your goal should be to maximize your smooth 'flow' forward through traffic,not to 'beat' other drivers," said Van Tassel.
Follow Morgan Hines on Twitter: @MorganEmHines.
7/24/2020 Pandemic grips commerce, hits railroader Union Pacific – The Journal Record
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A Union Pacific train travels through Union, Neb. (AP file photo/Nati Harnik)
Pandemic grips commerce, hits railroader Union Paci�c
By: Associated Press July 23, 2020 0
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – UnionPacific’s second-quarter profit fell28% from a year ago as carloadrevenue tumbled in thecoronavirus pandemic.
The railroad expectsimprovement in the second halfwith full-year carload volumes tobe down around 10% comparedwith 2019, assuming there isn’t asecond wave of virus-relatedeconomic shutdowns.
CEO Lance Fritz said he expectsfreight volumes to be down 9%
to 10% in the second half as businesses continue to recover. “We’re growing our optimism here in the near term,”he said.
Union Pacific made $1.13 billion from April through June, or $1.67 per share, beating Wall Street estimates. Analystspolled by FactSet expected earnings of $1.56 per share. Revenue of $4.24 billion was down 24% for the period,slightly below Wall Street projections.
In the second quarter big freight users such as automakers were forced to close their factories for weeks in aneffort to slow the spread of the virus.
As a result, Union Pacific’s freight revenue fell as pricing gains were offset by lower volumes and decreased revenuefrom fuel surcharges, the company said Wednesday in a prepared statement.
“We’ve never experienced such a steep and deep decline in our carloads,” Fritz said in an interview. “We’ve reallyclimbed out pretty steadily since, call it early May, which is really encouraging.”
The number of rail cars generating revenue tumbled 20% for the quarter, led by a 64% drop-off in the auto sector.Coal fell 24%, while industrial chemicals and plastics were down 10%. Metals and minerals were off 19%. Emptycars transported by the railroad don’t generate revenue.
Company executives said freight volume is recovering enough for them to start recalling furloughed employees. ButFritz said that due to productivity gains such as running fewer trains that are longer, Union Pacific won’t need asmany workers as it did before the pandemic began.
The railroad is getting more engineering work done with fewer people, it’s using fewer locomotives, and fewer carsare needed because they’re traveling more miles per day, he said. The number of trains also has decreased, hesaid.
“You put that all together, there’s no doubt that when we recover fully and start growing from last year, it’s going tobe done with fewer people than we had last year,” he said.
The railroad has cut about 22% of its workforce in the past year and now has about 30,000 full-time workers, whichFritz said will still grow as freight volumes increase. Coronavirus / Rail
7/24/2020 Pandemic grips commerce, hits railroader Union Pacific – The Journal Record
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Interim studyrequests reflectpandemic, financeconcerns July 23, 2020 American, Southwest
add to airlineindustry’s 2Q losses July 23, 2020
Coronavirus impactsaps AT&T revenue;3M sign-ups at HBOMax July 23, 2020
The railroad’s customers see spotty, slow recoveries, but no significant shutdown like the country went through inMarch and April, Fritz said. “Given the fact that there is some pent-up demand and there is some restocking thatneeds to occur, it feels to us like sequentially for sure things are getting better,” he said.
Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten,or redistributed.
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7/24/2020 State seeks continued environmental authority - The Oklahoman, 7/24/2020
digital.newsok.com/Olive/ODN/Oklahoman/PrintArticle.aspx?doc=DOK%2F2020%2F07%2F24&entity=ar02000&ts=20200724085810&uq=201910110… 1/2
This image is a U.S. Supreme Court exhibit showing boundaries beforeOklahoma’s statehood. [THE OKLAHOMAN ARCHIVES]
State seeks continued environmental authorityBy Jack MoneyBusiness writer [email protected]
Oklahoma is asking the EPA togrant it the authority tocontinue regulatingenvironmental issues acrossareas of the state designated asIndian Territory beforestatehood.
The state seeks the authorityunder a provision that is part ofthe Safe, Accountable,Flexible, EfficientTransportation Equity Act(SAFETEA) of 2005.
Its request comes as Oklahomaand the Five Tribes continue to
discuss ramifications from the U.S. Supreme Court's 5-to-4 decision that Congress failed to dissolve theCreek Nation's reservation in 1907.
While the case dealt specifically with a criminal matter that happened within the Creek Nation's prestateterritory, tribal and state officials interpreted its outcome more broadly applicable to areas of eastern andsouthern Oklahoma held by the Five Tribes before Oklahoma joined the union in 1907.
“What this does is maintain the status quo for programs Oklahoma administers for the EPA,” said KennethWagner, Oklahoma’s secretary of energy and environment. “We have worked with the tribes for years andyears and years on these cooperative programs with the federal government. This isn’t a surprise to thetribes — they are aware of it.”
Under SAFETEA, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Andrew Wheeler is authorized togrant Oklahoma the continued authority to administer environmental programs his agency previouslyallowed the state to oversee.
If granted, Oklahoma would continue to have authority to administer environmental programs on landswithin the Five Tribes historical territories that aren't Indian allotments, held in trust by the U.S. on behalfof an individual Indian or tribe or owned by a tribe.
Involved programs include:
• Resource Conservation and Recovery Act programs, including those that govern the handling ofhazardous and nonhazardous solid wastes and coal residuals.
FYI: Environmental / Eastern Oklahoma McGirt Decision
7/24/2020 State seeks continued environmental authority - The Oklahoman, 7/24/2020
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• Underground Injection Control oversight programs for wells that pump saltwater or other industrialwastes into subsurface formations.
• Clean Air Act programs including air monitoring and emissions standard rules and leadbased paintoversight programs.
• Clean Water Act programs including sewage and animal feeding operations discharge standards andsurface and groundwater rules and water quality standards.
• Underground petroleum storage tank monitoring and remediation programs.
Oklahoma’s
Department of Environmental Quality, the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry, theOklahoma Water Resources Board and the Oklahoma Corporation Commission have historically overseenthose programs.
Wagner noted the state asked for and received authorization to continue administering those programs in2019 under the SAFETEA measure while justices on the U.S. Supreme Court considered a related casetied to the question of whether or not Congress had officially terminated the Muscogee (Creek) Nation’sreservation when Oklahoma became a state.
Oklahoma’s request to Wheeler, sent by Gov. Kevin Stitt, was applauded late Wednesday by the PetroleumAlliance of Oklahoma.
“Gov. Stitt delivered for all Oklahomans, regardless of whether they are tribal members or non-Indians,”Brook A. Simmons, the alliance’s president, stated as part of a news release. “He acted to make suretrusted and experienced state agencies … can continue to enforce regulations delegated to the state by EPAin Indian country.”
7/24/2020 Stitt’s chief of staff announces resignation - The Oklahoman, 7/24/2020
digital.newsok.com/Olive/ODN/Oklahoman/PrintArticle.aspx?doc=DOK%2F2020%2F07%2F24&entity=ar00302&ts=20200724085810&uq=201910110… 1/2
Junk
Stitt’s chief of staff announces resignationBy Carmen FormanStaff writer [email protected]
Gov. Kevin Stitt's chief of staff announced Thursday he is stepping down from hisrole, effective July 31.
Michael Junk cited personal reasons for his impending resignation.
Junk has three young children and commutes to Oklahoma City several days a weekfrom his home in Tulsa.
"Not only has the commuting been a drag, but it’s been hard on my family — theyhave paid the ultimate sacrifice," he said. "I typically watch my son’s baseball games
on FaceTime."
Junk has served as Stitt's chief of staff since the first-term governor took office in 2019.
Choosing to leave the administration was difficult, Junk told The Oklahoman.
"I approached the governor over a month ago and said, 'we want to make this a smooth transition, we needsomeone with fresh legs,'" he said.
In a statement, Stitt praised his top aide.
“Michael Junk has been a steady hand that helped guide us through a number of historic challengesthroughout my first 18 months in office,” the governor said. “The State of Oklahoma is better because ofthe long hours and tireless effort he has provided, and I cannot thank him enough for his service.”
Serving as a governor's chief of staff is a highpressure job that doesn't include much time for sleep orvacation. It's not unusual for two-term governors to have three or four chiefs of staff over the course oftheir time in office.
But the coronavirus pandemic compounded an already stressful job. In the early days of the pandemic,Stitt's staffers weren't getting much sleep, Junk said.
Staffers could rarely sleep through the night without a problem cropping up — after working 16-18 hourdays, Junk said. In the early months of the pandemic, Stitt had daily coronavirus briefings seven days aweek.
"I’ll never forget the moment when somebody mounted up the courage to ask the governor if we couldcancel the Sunday briefing to take a little bit of time off and move back to a six-day week," Junk said."When he said 'yes,' it was like the roof came off the place."
Junk didn't want to leave in the middle of the pandemic, but he said he feels confident the governor's teamhas learned to function with some semblance of normalcy, instead of just putting out fires. He also praisedthe leadership of the Oklahoma State Department of Health under Commissioner Lance Frye.FYI: Gov. Chief of Staff resigns
7/24/2020 Stitt’s chief of staff announces resignation - The Oklahoman, 7/24/2020
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As for highlights from his time in the governor's office, Junk said Stitt's first legislative session was a rushbecause the governor accomplished all of his top priorities for the year.
"Every little thing that we had set out on this is our to-do list for session, we got to say we completed," hesaid. "That is an immediate high. It also brings a challenge because it’s hard to repeat something like that."
Junk regrets Stitt's office isn't further along in implementing the governor's vision for improved health carein Oklahoma, but he said he feels comfortable with the direction health care is headed.
Stitt seeks to implement Medicaid managed care, which could face pushback from legislators and theOklahoma Hospital Association. Managed care, which seeks to drive down costs while improving healthoutcomes, has been tried before in Oklahoma.
"We’re finally committed to deploying a full, managed care program to the state," Junk said. "I think it’sgoing to be a game changer for us."
As for the governor's ambitious push to renegotiate the state's tribal gaming compacts, which hasconsumed a large part of the last year, Junk said Stitt's heart is in the right place.
"It’s a complicated issue, but we continue to move forward," he said. "It’s messy on the outside, but there’stremendous and healthy dialogue between the state and the tribes. There are a lot of areas where the stateand the tribes continue to work together."
Before joining the Stitt administration, Junk had a long history of working in politics and policy. He servedas the deputy mayor of Tulsa after working as G.T. Bynum's campaign manager. He also worked underU.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe and former U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn.
Junk said he has his next job lined up, but declined to say where he'll be working.
Stitt's deputy chief of staff, Zack Lee, will serve as interim chief of staff while the governor continues tosearch for a permanent successor.
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News
Stitt Chief of Sta� Michael Junk toleave o�ce, return to working inTulsa
By Barbara Hoberock Tulsa World 07.23.20
OKLAHOMA CITY — Gov. Kevin Stitt’s chief of staff, Michael Junk, is leaving, adding to the list of key players in his of�ce
who have departed.
Asked by the Tulsa World on July 17 whether Junk was leaving, Stitt’s chief of communications, Charlie Hannema, said:
“Senior staff members are constantly rumored to be leaving political of�ces. Michael Junk and the rest of Governor Stitt’s
team are fully engaged in supporting the governor.”
Junk did not respond to a phone call seeking comment last week.
But he said Thursday that “we have a gig lined up in Tulsa.”
“That’s been the �rst priority,” he said. “It’s not because of anything good or bad in the Governor’s Of�ce.”
Junk has been commuting to Oklahoma City from Tulsa.
He would not disclose his new job, but he said he is not going to work for another elected of�cial and is looking forward to
spending time with his kids.
Deputy Chief of Staff Zachary Lee will take over as interim upon Junk’s departure. The search for a permanent
replacement is ongoing, according to Stitt’s of�ce.
On Nov. 27, Stitt announced that Junk, then Tulsa’s deputy mayor, would be his chief of staff. Prior to that post, Junk
served as G.T. Bynum’s mayoral campaign manager. He also has worked for U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe and the late U.S. Sen. Tom
Coburn.
Two of Stitt’s Cabinet secretaries, Jerome Loughridge and Dr. Kayse Shrum, announced last month that they were
stepping down to return to full-time jobs. Loughridge served as secretary of health and mental health. Shrum served as
secretary of science and innovation.
Stitt’s secretary of Native American affairs, Lisa Billy, resigned in December, accusing Stitt of being committed to an
unnecessary con�ict with the state’s tribal governments.
Donelle Harder, a Stitt adviser and spokeswoman who served as his campaign manager, also left the of�ce earlier.
Randy Krehbiel contributed to this story.
Featured videoFYI: Gov. Chief of Staff resigns
7/24/2020 Interim study requests reflect pandemic, finance concerns – The Journal Record
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Interim study requests re�ect pandemic, �nance concerns
By: Steve Metzer The Journal Record July 23, 2020 0
OKLAHOMA CITY – Numerous studies proposed by state lawmakers reflect deep concerns about the pandemic andits effects on Oklahoma’s finances and future.
Rep. Chelsey Branham, D-Oklahoma City, said that as the state tries to make up for a decline in revenue projectedto exceed $1.36 billion this year, she would favor a comprehensive review of numerous “tools” used by lawmakersin the past to shore up budgets during times of crisis. Strategies for stabilizing budgets have ranged from offeringtax breaks to corporations to allowing for expansion of tribal gaming. Branham also cited tax amnesty programs,decisions to tap state reserve funds, short-term borrowing from retirement plans, allowances of various tax credits,repeals of tax incentives, creation of tax rebate programs, incentives to encourage tourism, and incentives forindustrial development, among others.
The lawmaker said she proposed the study to determine which strategies have been successful and which, if any,have turned out to be actually bad for the state’s bottom line.
“Since 2000, Oklahoma has experienced multiple economic downturns resulting from housing issues, energy sectordisruption, revenue shortfalls, mass layoffs, and lately COVID-19,” Branham wrote in her proposal for the study. “Inresponse, Oklahoma has deployed multiple tools to stop the events from reaching peak devastation. … We have aduty to ask if they work.”
Branham said it will be especially important this year, a year that has witnessed tens of thousands of job losses anda precipitous decline in oil and gas drilling among serious financial setbacks, to have a strong playbook in hand forstabilizing revenues and budgets of state agencies.
House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka, is due to decide by Friday whether 88 studies proposed by staterepresentatives will be launched during the interim period between meetings of the Legislature. State senators alsohave proposed studies. Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat, R-Oklahoma City, is due to relay topics tocommittees. Leaders of committees then will decide which to pursue. Studies are to be completed before Oct. 30.
Branham said a review of options for responding to economic challenges of the pandemic also should amount to areview of efforts made in recent years to diversify the economy and steer Oklahoma away from its overreliance onthe energy industry. She suggested that tax incentives and other strategies deployed in the past have focused toomuch on attempts to curry favor with big corporations or to coax investment by major companies. She said it mightbenefit the state’s finances more to focus on encouraging growth and investment in small businesses.
“We’ve seen calls for diversifying the economy over and over again, but we never quite seem to get there,” shesaid.
Failed efforts to diversify the economy and stabilize revenue streams have resulted all too often in budget cutsforced on state agencies, Branham said. Indeed, most agencies this year face cuts in the range of 3-4%. She saidpainful effects of previous cuts at places like the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission have been keenly feltthis year.
“We’ve seen the legacy of that cutting and of those tactics not just at the OESC,” she said. “They’ve been harmful toall state agencies.”
Branham added that she believes Oklahoma would benefit from a comprehensive review and potential overhaul ofits entire tax system, and especially the state’s reliance on “regressive” taxes on things like gasoline that weighheavily on everyday Oklahomans.
FYI: Legislative / Interim Studies
7/24/2020 Interim study requests reflect pandemic, finance concerns – The Journal Record
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More than 3,000receive help at OESCclaims events inTulsa July 23, 2020
Tulsa group: OCCregional officeunderstaffed July 23, 2020
Horse sale moves toLazy E July 23, 2020
Other proposed House interim studies reflect concerns of lawmakers for the economy and the future of the statepost-COVID-19.
Kevin West, R-Moore, asked for a review of the Catastrophic Health Emergency Powers Act, how it works andhow it might be altered to better meet the needs of the state in the future. Invoked for the first time in April, theCHEA gave Gov. Kevin Stitt increased authority to coordinate a state response to the pandemic. Described at thetime as the equivalent of a “wartime powers act,” it allowed the governor to suspend policies and even laws asnecessary for purposes of responding to the health emergency.Rhonda Baker, R-Yukon, and Rep. Sherrie Conley, R-Newcastle, proposed an examination of how educationalsystems have responded to new challenges posed by the pandemic. Baker also asked for a study of internetconnectivity and broadband needs in the state as schools may have to turn more to online instruction.Tammy West, R-Oklahoma City, proposed a review of “lessons learned” and current and future actions that maybe needed to protect vulnerable adults in long-term care facilities from COVID-19.John Waldron and Melissa Provenzano, both Tulsa Democrats, proposed an examination of eviction rates in thestate, both pre- and post-COVID-19. Prior to the pandemic, they wrote that urban areas in Oklahoma had someof the highest eviction rates in the country. Their study would explore potential ways to benefit both tenants andlandlords.Monroe Nichols, D-Tulsa, suggested exploring strategies for encouraging entrepreneurship in a post-pandemicworld. “Post COVID, it will be the states that invest in and support entrepreneurs across sectors that build thestrongest and most resilient economies,” he wrote in his proposal.
Tagged with: INTERIM STUDIESINTERIM STUDIES OKLAHOMA LEGISLATUREOKLAHOMA LEGISLATURE REP. CHELSEY BRANHAMREP. CHELSEY BRANHAM STATE LEGISLATURESTATE LEGISLATURE
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COVID-19: 737 new cases reportedwith 3 more deaths in Oklahoma
From Sta� Reports
07.23.20
The Oklahoma State Department of Health announced another 737 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday.
The state also saw three additional deaths, one in Grady County and two in McCurtain County, with one having been
identi�ed in the past 24 hours.
Thursday’s totals bring the state to 28,802 con�rmed positive cases and 477 deaths since the pandemic began in March,
while hospitalization numbers fell to 607 on Wednesday.
Interactive graphic: See number of active COVID-19 cases by county
Coronavius cases update
7/24/2020 Page A12 | Tulsa World E-edition | tulsaworld.com
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Local
Watch Now: Stricter COVID-19measures remain 'very much on thetable' as COVID-19 infects 1% of TulsaCounty population
By Harrison Grimwood Tulsa World 07.23.20
Measures stricter than mandating masks remain possible as COVID-19 continues spreading in Tulsa County.
One percent of Tulsa County residents have been infected with the disease. As of Friday, that was 6,856 cumulative cases
among the county’s approximately 651,500 residents.
“I cannot think of a time in the history of our city where 1% of our population was diagnosed with an infectious disease in a
six-month period of time from its origin,” Tulsa Mayor G.T. Bynum said.
It may be a much higher percentage of the population when undetected cases are considered. Earlier in the pandemic,
state of�cials estimated that the total case count was actually �ve times higher than the con�rmed case count.
Eighty-nine Tulsa County residents have died from the disease.
On May 9, as state businesses and activities were reopening, 14 people were hospitalized due to COVID-19 in Tulsa
County. Earlier this week, the number was around 185 people.
Coronavirus / Tulsa restrictions
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Bynum described it as a “remarkable rate of spread,” saying that is why social distancing is encouraged, masks have been
mandated and state guidelines are being enforced.
Tulsa County health of�cials and other leaders briefed reporters and the public Thursday about the spread of COVID-19
in the county. Bynum used the time to remind people that face masks — a simple piece of cloth — are the best stop-gap
measure.
But while masks and face coverings, in conjunction with social distancing and basic hygiene practices, are highly effective
at slowing the spread of the virus, harsher prevention measures remain “very much on the table,” Bynum said.
He was referencing shelter-in-place and safer-in-place orders issued in March and April as the virus began spreading in
the region.
A leaked July 14 document prepared for the White House Coronavirus Task Force but not publicized indicated that
Oklahoma and 17 other states should revert to those stringent measures to reverse the trend toward more infections. The
measures include limiting social gatherings to 10 or fewer people; closing bars and gyms; and asking residents to wear
masks at all times in public.
It is the hope of public of�cials that broader acceptance of mask-wearing will allow “us to avoid those kinds of measures
that are more harmful to our economy,” Bynum said.
Health of�cials highly discouraged residents from using memes and dubious postings on social media to inform themselves
about COVID-19 and masks, encouraging them instead to seek information from a health care provider.
By following those simple guidelines, Tulsa Health Department Director Bruce Dart said, “you’re helping slow the spread
of COVID-19 and helping keep other Tulsa County residents healthy.”
COVID-19 is most commonly spread through respiratory droplets, so public health of�cials encourage people to wear a
mask or cloth face covering and to stay at least 6 feet from people who don’t live with them.
“The prolonged use of surgical or medical masks can be uncomfortable; however, it does not lead to CO2 intoxication, nor
oxygen issues,” Dart said.
Masks provide, for the most part, protection from the wearer. They signi�cantly reduce the spread of respiratory droplets
from people who may not yet know they are COVID-19 positive or who are asymptomatic.
Dart said masks provide some protection to the wearer from contracting the virus, as well, so long as the mask is used in
conjunction with social distancing and enhanced hygiene practices.
Bynum said protecting life is a major driving force behind the push for mask-wearing.
“I think it’s really important to remember why we’re doing this: We lost a nurse practitioner named Aimee Williams this
week to COVID-19,” Bynum said.
Williams was a nurse, a wife and a mother to a young son. She battled COVID-19 and its effects for months before dying
on Saturday.
Masks are vital when social distancing is dif�cult. A snug �t that covers the mouth and nose is the most effective,
according to public health of�cials. In addition, people should avoid being in group or mass gatherings.
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Hands should be washed prior to putting on the face covering and before taking it off. People should avoid touching their
face.
Frequent and thorough handwashing with soap and water or the use of hand sanitizer also can help prevent the spread of
the disease, health experts say.
Those seeking to be tested for COVID-19 may �nd resources on the Oklahoma State Department of Health’s website,
where testing sites are listed by county.
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Local
Expressway work to close West 31stStreet for a month starting Monday
From Sta� Reports
07.24.20
West 31st Street between South 54th West and South 57th West avenues will be closed for a month for contracting work
starting Monday, Tulsa County of�cials said.
Gilcrease Constructors, the prime contractor for the �nal leg of the Gilcrease Expressway, will close West 31st Street on
Monday and the closure will last through Aug. 28.
During the closure, crews will be reconstructing an existing City of Tulsa water line immediately adjacent to the south
edge of West 31st Street, which will require trenching to depths between �ve and 12 feet.
Crews will also be installing a double six-by-four-foot precast drainage structure across West 31st Street, which will
require excavating to a depth of eight feet and a width of about 20 feet.
Crews also will be transporting hundreds of thousands of cubic yards of material across West 31st Street to construct
mainline roadway embankments.
Detours around the area will be marked. Motorists and nearby residents are asked to use caution around the area and stay
alert as large equipment and crews continue to move the project forward, the county said in a news release.
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Gilcrease Expressway Project Update / Turnpike // Div. 8