Today’s headlines: Should city buses have seat belts?

Should city buses have seat belts? That’s the question being asked by some after a city bus crashed into a truck last month, killing the pickup’s driver.

Eight people from the bus were taken to the hospital, and video from inside the bus shows passengers being thrown several yards across the bus upon impact.

The Federal Transit Administration doesn’t require city buses to have seat belts because:

(1) Local busses usually aren’t going that fast.

(2) Riders get on and off frequently.

(3) Some people are standing.

Starting in 2016, motor coaches and large buses must have seat belts, but it hasn’t yet trickled down to municipal buses.

TRAFFIC HEADACHE: This could throw a wrench into your daily commute. Parts of five Charlotte roads will be temporarily closed in the coming days. They are:

– South Church Street between West Third Street and West Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard will close at 9 a.m. Friday and reopen by 9 p.m. Sunday. (The closure is for utility work for the 300 South Tryon Street project.)

– Southbound South Caldwell Street between East Third Street and East Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard will close at 7 a.m. Saturday for crane work on the Embassy Suites and reopen at noon the same day. Northbound travel lanes will remain open.

– East Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard between South Brevard and South Caldwell streets will close at noon Saturday and reopen by 7 p.m. the same day for the crane work.

– The 2200 block of Donald Ross Road, between West Boulevard and Wilkinson Boulevard, will close at 7 a.m. Monday and reopen at 5 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30, for storm water line maintenance.

– The 2100 block of Commonwealth Avenue between The Plaza and St. Julien Street will close at 7 a.m. Monday and reopen at 5 p.m. Nov. 16 for storm water line maintenance.

BIKE FRIENDLY/MEAN: Charlotte is becoming more bike friendly, which seems like a great thing. One downside: Bike thefts are on the rise. Through June, police had investigated 169 bicycle thefts, more than the 145 over the same period last year.

Most thieves are teenagers looking to joyride or people who see a crime of opportunity. One man, Brazell Young, has been connected to 27 bike thefts.

In happier bike news, there are three big events coming up later this week:

– The annual N.C. Bike Summit is being held at UNC Charlotte’s uptown campus starting Thursday and on Friday will feature Gil Penalosa, an urban planner and founder of 8 80 Cities.

– Sustain Charlotte’s Biketoberfest is Saturday. It’s a ride and scavenger hunt that will end with a party at Triple C Brewing.

– Also Saturday, Mecklenburg County and the city of Charlotte will unveil the finalized route of the Cross Charlotte Trail.

Photos: Robert Lahser/Charlotte Observer; Davie Hinshaw/Charlotte Observer

This story was originally published October 14, 2015 at 9:32 PM with the headline "Today’s headlines: Should city buses have seat belts?."