Andrew Bowen (he/him)
@acbowen.bsky.social
KPBS reporter covering housing, transit and local politics in San Diego. Union shop steward. Creator and host of Freeway Exit, a podcast about freeways. Gaily homosexual. I run @sdtrafficdeaths.bsky.social. https://www.kpbs.org/podcasts/freeway-exit
San Diego is building the *gayest* public space in history and I can’t wait for it to open The lithomosaic came out beautiful. We will have the only rainbow bike lane in all of North America!
Lights, shade and an avocado green trolley car: A peek at the design of Hillcrest’s Normal Street Promenade
Officials provided a tour of the worksite to preview the final design of the much-anticipated promenade off University Avenue.
timesofsandiego.com
Another good example here of how 1960s state planning laws in California spurred massive local downzoning, the effects of which were dealing with today in the form of brutal housing scarcity in coastal cities.
Andrew Bowen (he/him)@acbowen.bsky.social · last wk.I wrote about the history of downzoning in San Diego and how it shaped the city’s growth and development. www.kpbs.org/news/local/2...
I wrote about the history of downzoning in San Diego and how it shaped the city’s growth and development. www.kpbs.org/news/local/2...
How 'downzoning' shaped San Diego — and pushed growth into the suburbs
Throughout the 1960s, '70s and '80s, San Diego adopted stricter zoning laws that effectively banned apartments in many of the city's most walkable neighborhoods.
kpbs.org
Really wish I could make it to the Bicycle Film Festival tomorrow. If you’re in San Diego, check it out! www.kpbs.org/news/arts-cu...
Bicycle Film Festival returns to San Diego after 11 years
The festival at the Museum of Photographic Arts on July 25 will showcase 13 films from around the world about the joy of biking.
kpbs.org
Support public media (with your dollars and your attention).
Decoding Fox News@decodingfoxnews.bsky.social · 2w agoFox vs. PBS - How two networks covered the dramatic increase in cyclosporiasis cases. Fox described the parasite but didn't provide additional information. The PBS News Hour included an expert, Dr. Omer Awan, who said cuts to the CDC have made the outbreak much worse.
A lot of people are doing testosterone explainers, but you should read the one written by a trans man.
Assigned Media@assignedmedia.org · 3w agoTestosterone is a hormone surrounded in myths and misconceptions, which the Right loves to use to both demonize trans people as well as to fuel their weird beliefs about masculinity. Today, Jules Sherred dives into the science of testosterone and the reality of the effects it can have on the body.
San Diego is confronting an ever-widening gap between its promises on climate change and the actual results. Emissions should be 6% lower if the city were on track to reach net zero by 2035. The reason: cars.
Even as emissions fall, San Diego drifts further from path to carbon neutrality
San Diego's electricity is getting cleaner and natural gas usage is down. But emissions from cars and trucks remain stubbornly high.
kpbs.org
Kelly Davis was truly the best of the best. Her reporting was fearless, and always grounded in compassion and humanity. She did so much to foster community among San Diego journalists. Thank you, @byjeffmcdonald.bsky.social, for honoring her memory. www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2026/07/01/k...
Kelly Davis, intrepid reporter who exposed death and despair in San Diego County jails and gave voice to the downtrodden, dies at 53
The 2023 San Diego journalist of the year beat cancer for more than a decade before being diagnosed with a new tumor earlier this year; she leaves a lasting legacy in her adopted hometown.
sandiegouniontribune.com
Mission Hills NIMBYs: Apartments must be large or (preferably) nonexistent.
A great listen for anyone who’s seen the San Diego streetcar photos and wished we still had them.
Andrew Bowen (he/him)@acbowen.bsky.social · 2mo agoNew episode of Freeway Exit just dropped! It’s a crossover with The Finest, another amazing KPBS podcast. Hear me talk about San Diego’s bygone streetcar era, and how some are fighting to bring the streetcar back. www.kpbs.org/podcasts/fre...
Assigned Media is excited to announce our Founding Editor Evan Urquhart has been awarded the Sarah Pettit Memorial Award for the LGBTQ+ Journalist of the Year by the Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists @nlgjaofficial.bsky.social Our little newsroom is making waves, baby!
The San Diego Velodrome Association is no longer hosting bike races sanctioned by USA Cycling. After months of protest from members over USAC’s trans-exclusionary gender policy (and other things), SDVA’s board deadlocked on a path forward. www.kpbs.org/news/quality...
San Diego Velodrome drops plans for USA Cycling races after membership outcry
The velodrome, a bike racing track in Balboa Park, became embroiled in controversy over USA Cycling's policy excluding trans women from women's races.
kpbs.org
Around 1:30 a.m. today, a San Diego police officer struck and killed a pedestrian, white male in his early 20s, on Linda Vista Road near USD. Make/model of patrol vehicle unclear. Officer "felt an impact on his vehicle," turned around and rendered aid, but the man died of his injuries. #VisionZero
If you credulously do a segment about the vote in California in which you don’t say the president is lying, you’re spreading disinformation to your listeners.
New episode of Freeway Exit just dropped! It’s a crossover with The Finest, another amazing KPBS podcast. Hear me talk about San Diego’s bygone streetcar era, and how some are fighting to bring the streetcar back. www.kpbs.org/podcasts/fre...
The Finest: The legacy of San Diego's streetcars
Long before San Diego became defined by freeways, parking shortages and long commutes, electric streetcars connected the region's urban core to beaches, business districts and growing neighborhoods mo...
kpbs.org
NPR is shrinking its newsroom through layoffs and buyouts and is reducing staff dedicated to covering both climate and science. "The climate desk no longer exists separately but has been folded into the National Desk," writes Neela Banerjee, who headed the climate desk but was just laid off.
Good news in CA: @asmchrisward.bsky.social's AB 2222, a bill to help newsrooms retain and hire local journalists, passed out of the Assembly Appropriations Committee on a bipartisan 14–2 vote and added @buffywicks.bsky.social as a joint author. The bill heads to an Assembly floor vote next week.
Update: USA Cycling races are continuing in San Diego. The San Diego Velodrome Association says it will run all USAC races as gender neutral, but still advertise some as women's races. Trans racers/allies say they value inclusivity over competition and want USAC out. www.kpbs.org/news/racial-...
San Diego Velodrome plans workaround to avoid claims of anti-trans discrimination
Controversy over USA Cycling's policy on transgender athletes has caused a rift in San Diego's bike racing community.
kpbs.org
Huh. You'd think a comprehensive 6 episode audio investigation of youth gender medicine by a major US newspaper would include at least one interview with a trans young person or their parent.
Michael Hobbes@michaelhobbes.bsky.social · 3mo agoThis is embarrassing
Zero. Sympathy. They did this to themselves. Oh, and also? There definitely is an easy answer.
Four days after my story came out, the San Diego Velodrome has announced its race on 4/21 will *not* be sanctioned by USA Cycling (which bans trans women from women's races). They're promising "further communication and opportunities for direct feedback." My story: www.kpbs.org/news/racial-...
San Diego Velodrome begins hosting bike races that exclude trans women
The racetrack in Balboa Park recently began hosting events sanctioned by USA Cycling, which bans trans women from participating in women's races. More such races are planned, despite a city policy pro...
kpbs.org
This is an excellent story by @acbowen.bsky.social about my beloved home velodrome. I've ridden and raced on the track here since around '92. It's my second home, my happy place. We have built an amazing community, and it is in the news for the wrong reasons. www.kpbs.org/news/racial-...
San Diego Velodrome begins hosting bike races that exclude trans women
The racetrack in Balboa Park recently began hosting events sanctioned by USA Cycling, which bans trans women from participating in women's races. More such races are planned, despite a city policy prohibiting anti-trans discrimination at the velodrome.
kpbs.org
Very sad story about trans bike racers in San Diego.
Andrew Bowen (he/him)@acbowen.bsky.social · 4mo agoThe San Diego Velodrome has begun hosting bike races that exclude transgender women. This is despite a city policy prohibiting anti-trans discrimination at the racetrack. One trans racer told me the change made her feel “disposable.” Been working on this for a while, give it a read and share!
The San Diego Velodrome has begun hosting bike races that exclude transgender women. This is despite a city policy prohibiting anti-trans discrimination at the racetrack. One trans racer told me the change made her feel “disposable.” Been working on this for a while, give it a read and share!
San Diego Velodrome begins hosting bike races that exclude trans women
The racetrack in Balboa Park recently began hosting events sanctioned by USA Cycling, which bans trans women from participating in women's races. More such races are planned, despite a city policy prohibiting anti-trans discrimination at the velodrome.
kpbs.org
Today saw quite the bounty of bike lane obstructions. Submitted all via @bikelaneuprising.bsky.social 🫠
"And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward." -Matthew 6:5
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 4mo agoLeavitt begins the press briefing: "Could you hear our 'amen' in there? We just had a little loud prayer as a team. In this holy week, President Trump and the First Lady are joining in prayer with Christians celebrating the resurrection of our lord and savior, Jesus Christ."
The NYT is being disingenuous here. The AMA has *always* said that gender-affirming surgeries should generally be reserved for adults. That's part of why so few kids get them! The AMA reiterated this position and the NYT is characterizing it as a policy change. It's not.
NYTimes Communications@nytimespr.bsky.social · 4mo agoThe New York Times’s body of reporting on the American Medical Association’s stance on gender-related care for minors is accurate and factual, and remains so despite the recent statement from the Chair of the A.M.A. Board, which contradicts the A.M.A.’s own statements. www.nytco.com/press/fact-c...
The American Medical Association directly responds to New York Times coverage mischaracterizing their posiiton on gender affirming care for trans young people. cloud.e.ama-assn.org/newsletter?u...
