Ian Sacs

<p> Ostensibly, the <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE69648520101007">actions today</a> by NJ Governor Chris Christie to cancel the &quot;Access to Region&#39;s Core&quot; (ARC) tunnel project seem like a vicious blow to the future of rail in our country (fatal even, given the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/05/us/05rail.html?_r=1&amp;hp">recent commentary</a> from conservatives country-wide on opposition to the national high speed rail network projects).  I myself am extremely disappointed that our state&#39;s fiscal circumstances have led the Governor to make this decision, and I am sincerely empathetic to the construction and operational jobs and potential to improve mobility conditions that this cancellation jeopardizes. </p>

<p> Over the past year, we&#39;ve been guiding the City of Hoboken, NJ towards providing sufficient alternative modes of transportation such that owning a car for a large number of residents becomes more than unattractive, it&#39;s simply not necessary.  The goal is not to tell residents that they can&#39;t own a car, but to make life without a car so easy that every single family in Hoboken can freely choose whether owning a car is what they want to spend their money on.  For those who decide that a daily commute by car is most practical, my job is to make it possible to find a parking space and travel in and out of town without too much friction.  However, for the overwhelming majority of Hobokenites who commute daily on foot, bicycle, or via transit, life without a car should be as

<div>As young planners bursting into the real world we are anxious to create communities that are vibrant, fun, and speak to the urbanity that will host future generations of our civilization.  What we lack in experience we make up for in enthusiasm, and hope that our superiors guide us on the finer points of less crystallized aspects of critical infrastructure such as designing for the elderly, disabled, and those semi-attached to a stroller.  In traffic engineering, we often hear a common rebuttal to technical traffic analysis from communities; they say, “I drive these streets every day, so I understand traffic here better than you.”  Well, they’re right.

<div>On a day we remember how hate can be manifest into reckless slaughter, perhaps we can find a moment to also remind ourselves that the provision of mobility as a basic tenet of urban planning is one small but nonetheless fundamental way we can strengthen the brotherly ties between neighbors, nations, cultures, humanity. ~ian</div><div><br /></div><p>&nbsp;</p>

<p> <span style="word-spacing: 0px; font: medium 'Times New Roman'; text-transform: none; color: #000000; text-indent: 0px; white-space: normal; letter-spacing: normal; border-collapse: separate; orphans: 2; widows: 2; webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px" class="Apple-style-span"><span style="font-size: 10px; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" class="Apple-style-span">I frequently drive to an uncle’s house near the beach via the Garden State Parkway in New Jersey.  For years, that drive required a very late Friday evening departure and a similarly late Sunday evening return trip to avoid the wicked stop-and-go that always mires t