Vehicle Miles Traveled
How Planning Fails to Solve Congestion
Solutions for congestion are never as simple and easy as armchair planners and engineers would like you to believe—especially those who suggest that congestion can be solved by forever building more roadway capacity.
Report: Northern Virginia Transportation Plans Will Induce More Driving
The Northern Virginia Transportation Authority’s plans to widen and expand the region’s highways will lead to a sharp increase in vehicle miles driven, a new study shows.
Planning and the Complicated Causes and Effects of Congestion
What do planners know about congestion, and what can they do about it? Explanations and solutions are less obvious than they seem (part one of a three-part series).
What Is VMT?
A measure of the demand for vehicle travel on public roadways, VMT provides a metric for evaluating the potential impact of road projects and developments and could become an increasingly useful tool for assessing road usage taxes.
San Diego County Weighs VMT Proposal
San Diego County could tax developers based on projected vehicle miles traveled as part of a new CEQA requirement that replaces Level of Service with VMT.
Puget Sound Transportation Plan Fails To Meet Emissions Goals
A draft regional transportation plan for the Puget Sound region does not go far enough to significantly reduce emissions and meet climate goals.
Parking Induces Driving, Study Says
New research published in the Urban Studies journal does the difficult work of connecting the dots between parking and driving.
Where the Pandemic Has Scrambled Traffic Patterns
The map of metropolitan areas that drive least, and thus emit fewer greenhouse gas emissions, has been completely redrawn by the pandemic, according to a recent report.
Report: Vehicle Miles Traveled Almost Fully Returned to Pre-Pandemic Levels
Reports last week that the U.S. economy is about 30 percent smaller than before the pandemic aren't reflected in driving trends.
Connecting Traffic, Air Quality, and Coronavirus Spread
Early in the pandemic, bike sales soared and vehicle miles traveled plummeted. As people have been driving more, more people have also been infected with the novel coronavirus.
Survey Finds Growing Support for a Mileage Fee Over the Gas Tax
An annual survey by the Mineta Transportation Institute found new levels of support for a change in the way the federal government raises money from, and for, highway infrastructure.
How COVID-19 Impacted U.S. Traffic Trends
Vehicle miles traveled, collisions, and collision-related injuries have been impacted by shelter-in-place orders nationwide. The level of impact, however, largely varies by region.
Dangerous, Distracted Drivers Take More Joyrides During Lockdown
Some motorists see open roads as an opportunity for stress relief. Transportation officials urge motorists to slow down, citing dramatically increased rates of speeding since the onset of the pandemic.
Ranking the Climate Impact of Transportation in the 100 Largest U.S. Metro Areas
This performance ranking separates the fakers from the legit operation to reduce carbon emissions from transportation.
Price Elasticity of Demand, Explained
Many transportation challenges could be solved by a more informed understanding of price elasticity of demand, according to this article.
Caltrans to Ditch Level of Service for Vehicle Miles Traveled
Unlike for land use regulations, state law doesn't require Caltrans to switch from Level of Service to Vehicle Miles Traveled in measuring the environmental impact of projects. The state department of transportation is making the change anyway.
Governor's Transportation and Climate Actions Stir Controversy in California
California Governor Gavin Newsom issued an executive order last month directing state agencies to consider climate goals in their spending and operations. Two weeks later, three highway widening projects were deleted, and locals are crying foul.
Did the Outlook for Electric Vehicle Sales in U.S. Just Nosedive?
With the formal announcement by the EPA and the U.S. DOT on Thursday that the "One National Standard" rule has been issued, California's zero-emission standard, which applies to ten other states, is essentially on hold.
Level of Service, the Wrong Performance Measure
The use of level of service (LOS) to gauge the success of roadway networks has shaped and influenced cities in many negative ways.
Gas Prices and Vehicle Miles Traveled Analyzed Since 2000
Urban economist Joe Cortright examines the connection between gas prices and driving in the U.S. over the last two decades. Prices matter: increased gas prices results in decreased driving, providing the prices persist for the long-term.
City of Costa Mesa
Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Universal City TX
ULI Northwest Arkansas
Town of Zionsville
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
