The Detroit News

Speed Cameras Have Proven Record of Reducing Speeding, New Study Says

A study released by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety on September 1 showed steep reductions in speeding in Montgomery County, Maryland, where speed cameras has been in effect since 2007, reducing fatalities and severity of injuries.

September 3, 2015 - The Detroit News

Wild Detroit

How Risky Lending Hollowed Out Detroit

Over one half of Detroit's foreclosed homes are blighted or abandoned. Buyers who purchased the homes for as little as $1 have little incentive to keep them in good shape—or pay taxes.

July 6, 2015 - The Detroit News

Detroit's M-1 Rail Line Credited for Delivering Investment—A Year Before Opening

The 3.3-mile M-1 Rail line in Detroit has been described as a boondoggle of unparalleled proportions. Boosters of the project, however, have gathering evidence of investment in neighborhoods along the route.

June 24, 2015 - The Detroit News

Ahead of Schedule: Detroit Wrapping Up Installation of 40,000 LED Streetlights

In perhaps the brightest sign yet of recovery, the Detroit Public Lighting Authority has made incredible progress on a project to install 40,000 LED streetlights around the city's residential neighborhoods.

June 16, 2015 - The Detroit News

Why Raise Gas Taxes When Surplus General Funds are Available to Fix Roads?

In Michigan, after voters defeated a sales tax hike that would have triggered a gas tax hike, General Fund revenues are dedicated to roads. South Carolina legislators, eying a gas tax hike, may direct surplus General Fund revenues to roads instead.

May 25, 2015 - The Detroit News

Better Late Than Never: A Regional Transit Plan for Metropolitan Detroit

Detroit is infamous for its lack of regional transit (or local transit for that matter), but the Regional Transit Authority of Southeast Michigan this month launched a master planning process that could finally fill some of the region's gaps.

May 21, 2015 - The Detroit News

Commute

Peak Driving Record Shattered

So long 2007. Hello 2014. According to new DOT data, peak driving is no longer in the rear view mirror but ahead of us thanks to cheap gas getting even cheaper, the rebound effect, an improved economy, and warmer weather.

January 25, 2015 - The Detroit News

Redevelopment Plans Finalized for Site of Detroit's Defunct Tiger Stadium

Tiger Stadium was demolished in 2008 after a failed bid to preserve the historic ballpark. Recently, however, a new mixed use development, including a baseball diamond for youth sports programs, was approved to take its place.

December 17, 2014 - The Detroit News

Michigan May Drop Fuel Excise Tax for Wholesale Sales Tax

The Republican-controlled Michigan State Senate voted November 13 to increase the state's 19-cents per gallon fuel tax by converting it to a wholesale fuel sales tax, resulting in an anticipated $1.2 billion annual revenue increase.

November 18, 2014 - The Detroit News

110-mph Talgo Trains Headed to Michigan [Corrected]

If the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) approves the order, two Wisconsin-manufactured Talgo train sets will reduce travel times from Detroit to Chicago by as much as two hours while significantly increasing on-time performance.

September 17, 2014 - The Detroit News

Detroit Bankruptcy Breakthrough: Regional Water Authority Moves Forward

One of the most politically treacherous proposals of Detroit's bankruptcy plan has finally gained approval—a regional water authority.

September 10, 2014 - The Detroit News

Fences

Editorial Supports Blocking Access from Detroit to its Suburbs

Grosse Point Park, which borders Detroit, has blocked streets that connect its commercial district from the east side of Detroit. An editorial from the Detroit News says that the focus should be on making Detroit a better neighbor.

August 15, 2014 - The Detroit News

North view

Detroit Reaping Economic Development Benefits from Urban Farming

Urban farming has taken root as Detroit transforms. Now, farmers and entrepreneurs must continue to find new ways to profit from the city's new farming business model.

July 7, 2014 - The Detroit News

Tough Times Falling on Detroit's Casinos

First floated as a redevelopment strategy in 2007, Detroit's gamble on casinos has yielded a mature market. Now come reports that even a big name investor hasn't been able to turn around the Greektown Casino.

May 28, 2014 - The Detroit News

Amsterdam Electric Car

An Electric Car the CEO Doesn't Want You to Buy

Please, don't buy the Fiat 500 E, stated Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO Sergio Marchionne during his presentation on a Brookings panel on May 20. It's not because it's a bad car—it's because his company loses $14,000 on every sale.

May 23, 2014 - The Detroit News

Detroit Residents Plant 15,000 Trees in a Day

The story of Hantz Woodlands—and a local philanthropist's vision to transform urban blight into an urban forest.

May 19, 2014 - The Detroit News

Troy Transit Center Complete—But Off Limits

Transit users in Troy, located to the north of Detroit, spent the weather standing outside waiting for trains and buses while a $6.3 million (indoor) transit facility sat unused due to a legal dispute.

March 20, 2014 - The Detroit News

Holiday Cheer Boosts Businesses Along Main Street

Eight years after downtown Rochester sparked a retail resurgence along its Main Street with a holiday light display, small towns across Metro Detroit are following suit to create a sense of place and lure shoppers away from boring big boxes.

December 2, 2013 - The Detroit News

Getting to Know Decaying Detroit, Parcel-by-Parcel

An "unprecedented" effort being led by Detroit’s new Blight Task Force will document the city's crumbling and vacant properties. It's part of a multi-pronged effort to combat Detroit's widespread blight.

November 26, 2013 - The Detroit News

Detroit Contemplates Privatizing Parking Assets

In his quest to leave no source of potential revenue unexplored, Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr is looking into selling Detroit's parking lots, meters and garages. The experiences of other cities who've trodden a similar path offer cause for caution.

August 30, 2013 - The Detroit News

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