Entrepreneurs and transit agencies are trying to help riders cope with their fears of germs on trains and buses.
"This year, the TranStrap was launched in the U.S. It's a personal hand loop that you hook on the subway overhead bar, thus avoiding any unwanted contact. 'I found out that many people who use public transit do so under deep distress,' writes inventor Stan Dolberg on his website, transtrap.com. 'They worry about getting sick from sharing bars and poles.'
Then came the 'City Mitt,' a performance microfibre glove embedded with silver ions, which are naturally antimicrobial, says Emily Beck, the developer from Wilmington, Del., who also works in New York. When she moved to Manhattan and took the subway for the first time, she found it 'extremely dirty, and noticed that so many others felt the same way â€" balancing themselves on one finger on the chrome poles,' Beck says in an interview."
Additionally, the Toronto Transit Commission is planning to order the first subway cars with "an antimicrobial covering on all surfaces that are meant to be held, such as vertical and horizontal bars and metal handles."
FULL STORY: Howard Hughes would be so proud

Trump Administration Could Effectively End Housing Voucher Program
Federal officials are eyeing major cuts to the Section 8 program that helps millions of low-income households pay rent.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

The 120 Year Old Tiny Home Villages That Sheltered San Francisco’s Earthquake Refugees
More than a century ago, San Francisco mobilized to house thousands of residents displaced by the 1906 earthquake. Could their strategy offer a model for the present?

HSR Reaches Key Settlement in Northern California City
The state’s high-speed rail authority reached an agreement with Millbrae, a key city on the train’s proposed route to San Francisco.

Washington State Legislature Passes Parking Reform Bill
A bill that would limit parking requirements for new developments is headed to the governor’s desk.

Missouri Law Would Ban Protections for Housing Voucher Users
A state law seeks to overturn source-of-income discrimination bans passed by several Missouri cities.
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