The Global Mayors COVID-19 Recovery Task Force, representing cities on every continent, has announced a proposal for a post-pandemic "new normal" that will de-emphasize cars and carve out more room on the streets for bicyclists. The C40 Mayors Agenda for a Green and Just Recovery, issued July 15, seeks to create conditions that will proactively prepare cities for future pandemics, while addressing systemic injustices and keeping global warming below the 1.5°C goal of the Paris Agreement. The Agenda calls for substantial investments in affordable housing and public transportation, the permanent banning of cars from many thoroughfares, an end to public investment in and subsidies for fossil fuels, and an embrace of the "15-Minute City" paradigm now being pioneered by Paris.

"We are reaffirming our commitment to the principles of the Global Green New Deal—to protecting our environment, strengthening our economy, and building a more equitable future by cutting emissions from the sectors most responsible for the climate crisis," the proposal's executive summary states. The Task Force was formed this April by C40 Cities, a network that has now expanded to more than 90 of the world's major cities committed to confronting climate change. (Grist, BizCommunity)