Newsroom

“Finally,” tweeted D.C. Councilmember Christina Henderson (I-At Large). “This is huge for D.C. residents who are serving time for marijuana possession charges at prisons across the country. It’s beyond time that the classification for marijuana be reviewed & changed.”

“If the fines are not changing behavior, we need to figure out what are the other mechanisms by which we can get people to slow down on our streets,” said D.C. Council member Christina Henderson (I-At Large).

“I am very clear-eyed in recognizing that this is a controversial conversation that we are going to have,” said Council Member Christina Henderson in an interview with DCist about the latter bill. “I am also very clear in knowing that when we talk about traffic violence, the vast majority of incidents are occurring in communities of color. And so we have to talk about this in a way that deals with that tension.”

If the D.C. Council approves the Automated Traffic Enforcement Effectiveness Amendment Act, District drivers would accumulate one point for moving violations caught by traffic cameras, including running stop signs and red lights, and driving at more than 11 miles per hour above the speed limit.

While the Metro for DC bill is limited to D.C. residents only, At-Large Councilmember Christina Henderson said she hopes the approach could expend to neighboring Maryland and Virginia. “As we modernize the system and look forward, I think this is one tool in our toolbox to help boost ridership and to add some additional funding,” Henderson said.

The D.C. Council is closer to making two big changes to traffic laws in the city. Lawmakers voted 13-0 Tuesday in support of the Safer Intersections Act, a bill that bans right turns at all red lights by 2025 and allows cyclists to treat stop signs as yield signs if the intersection is clear of pedestrians and vehicles.

Upon the D.C. Council’s return from summer recess last week, Council member Christina Henderson (I-At large) introduced the Educator Background Check Streamlining Act. In her comments, she said the legislation would balance the need for efficiency and student safety.

D.C. Council member Christina Henderson is spearheading a bill that would add points to driver’s licenses for traffic violations caught by the city’s automated enforcement system. Under the Automated Traffic Effectiveness Amendment Act of 2022 — co-introduced by Henderson (I-At Large), Brianne K. Nadeau (D-Ward 1), Brooke Pinto (D-Ward 2), Charles Allen (D-Ward 6) and Elissa Silverman (I-At Large) — the first infraction within a two-year period results in a warning, and any points imposed from automated enforcement would be waived if vehicle owners complete a traffic safety course.

School boundaries and feeder patterns not only shape the lives of children, they affect housing, travel patterns, and can contribute to citywide segregation. A 2019 Urban Institute report finds that these lines create unequal schools not only based on race and ethnicity, but on staffing, discipline, and test scores. Moreover, across the US, these boundaries hew closely to redlining maps — the racist, New Deal-era federal policy that determined who was and wasn’t worthy of home loans based on race. This conversation built on an ongoing GGWash series by Abigail Higgins and ventured behind the headlines for a virtual conversation with local experts on what school boundaries and feeder patterns are, and how they shape our lives. This webinar is part of Intersections, GGWash's recurring educational webinar series.

This conversation built on an ongoing GGWash series by Abigail Higgins and ventured behind the headlines for a virtual conversation with local experts on what school boundaries and feeder patterns are, and how they shape our lives. This webinar is part of Intersections, GGWash's recurring educational webinar series.

If you get caught by a traffic enforcement camera in the D.C. area, the ticket results in a fine. But some District lawmakers think the tickets also should include a point on the driver’s licenses of vehicle owners.

Flags and new 25-mile-per-hour signs now line two major commuter routes: Connecticut Avenue, NW and New York Avenue, NE.