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US Congress approves bill granting warrantless private drone take-downs

06 Oct

Following approval by the House earlier this year, the United States Senate has passed the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act, which was delivered to the White House on October 3, 2018. Under this bill, which grants the FAA federal funding through 2023, law enforcement officials are given the authority to shoot down and/or confiscate private drones if they’re deemed a credible threat.

As noted recently by The Washington Post, the new bill allows officials to shoot down private drones if they’re “identified as high-risk and a potential target for unlawful unmanned aircraft activity.” In these cases, law enforcement isn’t required to have a warrant to take down or confiscate the aerial vehicle.

Last month, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) expressed concerns over the reauthorization bill, stating that it had been “stuffed with last-minute provisions that would strip people of their constitution rights.”

Among other things, the EFF pointed toward the warrantless downing of private drones, as well as the lack of a requirement to warn operators when they’re flying in restricted airspace. As well, “the bill still has no process for clearly stating what areas are “covered facilities,” so that the public can know where they are allowed to fly,” the EFF explains.

Critics worry the new authority will enable the Department of Homeland Security and other agencies to take down camera drones used during protests and by reporters, activists, and photographers, all without a warrant. Private drone owners also risk losing possession of their drone if it is confiscated without warning due to being labelled a “threat.”

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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London Approves Europe’s First City-Spanning Bike Superhighway

04 Feb

[ By WebUrbanist in Architecture & Cities & Urbanism. ]

london transit

Catering to some of the 170,000 cyclists that ride across London every day, this segregated bicycle lane will stretch from west to east, pass through the heart of the city and span 18 miles when completed. Approved by mayor Boris Johnson, a second route will also eventually span perpendicular to this first one, reaching south to north and crossing the first in the middle of the city.

london separated bicycle pathway

Allocating bikers lane space on par with that given to cars and separated by safety curbs, this plan represents a huge shift in how London treats cyclists and the largest such endeavor of its kind to date. Few long bike paths on the planet can boast such separation for bikers from city traffic, a move that makes bike lanes much more accessible to bikers of all ages and abilities.

london dedicated bike paths

As The Guardian‘s Peter Walker describes, “The effect is humanizing, civilizing, relaxing, enchanting. It makes the city immediately more appealing. Beyond all that it also rebuts the perennial complaint that the push for London bike routes is the niche hobby horse of a small coterie of middle-class, male cyclists. The whole point is that if you create safer cycling you necessarily create more inclusive cycling.”

bike path lanes

Building on a series original-but-modified proposals shown directly above and below, the new path with pass along the Victoria Embankment to connect Tower Hill and Paddington, re-purposing existing lanes used by motorists and linking up with a north-south route that would connect King’s Cross with Elephant and Castle.

bike path city

While the removal of motorized vehicular space has drawn complaints from some, it fits London’s larger vision of reducing car traffic in and through the city (dovetailing with existing strategies including a hefty congestion tax).

bike path urban

Other cities will be looking to the results of this radical change, which could have significant global influence on urban design strategies around city cycling for years and decades to come.