Exclusives

Two-lane street with pedestrian crossing island

PLANOPEDIA

What Is a Road Diet?

A road diet ‘trims down’ multilane roadways by reallocating street space to uses other than car traffic, improving safety for pedestrians, encouraging multimodal travel, and enhancing overall livability.

January 9 - Diana Ionescu

An e-bike is plugged into a public charger on a sunny day.

FEATURE

E-Bikes and the Bike Infrastructure of the Future

What will the future hold for cycling and bike infrastructure? With the introduction of e-bikes, the landscape of cycling, and even the definition of a bike, is changing.

January 9 - Eric Carlson

Single-family homes in a suburb of Dallas, Texas

BLOG POST

Is Exclusionary Zoning a Good Thing?

Some commentators defend exclusionary suburban zoning on the ground that it makes affluent suburbanites more willing to pay for public services. But does exclusion create losers?

January 3 - Michael Lewyn

Street in Paris Latin Quarter with row of bicycles, cobblestone street, and pedestrians

PLANOPEDIA

What Is a 15-Minute City?

The buzzword recently popularized by urbanists describes an urban form that dominated cities prior to the rise of autocentric planning.

December 28 - Diana Ionescu

People biking across the Queensboro Bridge

BLOG POST

U.S. Population Growing Again in 2022 After Flatlining in 2021

The U.S. Census released new population estimates last week, showing an increase in population growth just a year after national population growth crawled to an unprecedented halt.

December 27 - James Brasuell


A group of protests with signs and drums walk down the street.

BLOG POST

Songs About Places 2022: Songs of Protest

An annual list of songs about the places we call home, the places we miss, and the places we visit. In 2022, one of the most conspicuous songs about places took a stand on an ongoing moral crisis.

December 27 - James Brasuell

online education

FEATURE

The Top Planning Courses of 2022

A list of the top planning education resources, according to the users of Planetizen Courses.

December 21 - The Planetizen Team


Vacant boarded-up storefronts along Powell Street in San Francisco, California.

FEATURE

Planning Year in Review 2022: Downtowns, Transportation, Climate Change

Part two of a review of the major themes, debates, and events of the year in planning that was 2022.

December 19 - James Brasuell

Arizona Sprawl

BLOG POST

Is Sprawl the Only Answer to High Housing Costs?

A recent article argues that sprawl is the solution to high housing costs, pointing out that low-density Sunbelt cities are more affordable than some more compact metro areas. What's wrong with this argument?

December 15 - Michael Lewyn

The Golden Gate bridge viewed from Marin, with cars passing in either direction on a sunny day.

FEATURE

Planning in 2022: Year in Review

A review of the major themes, debates, and events of the year in planning that was 2022 (part one of two).

December 15 - James Brasuell

Kansas City Bus

BLOG POST

Free Transit, But at What Cost?

Opinion: The movement toward fare-free transit might have more to do with optics and politics than planning.

December 14 - James Brasuell

London Bikes

BLOG POST

Active and Micro Mobility Modes Can Provide Cost-Effective Emission Reductions–If We Let Them

What role can active and micro modes (walking, bicycling, e-bikes and their variants) play in reducing emissions? Far more than most current emission reduction plans will achieve. We can do better!

December 13 - Todd Litman

Bus bench with "armrests" to prevent lying down

PLANOPEDIA

What Is Defensive Urbanism?

If you’ve ever noticed a public bench split in half by a metal bar, or a series of seemingly ornamental boulders blocking the sidewalk under a high-rise overhang, you’ve seen what is often described as defensive urbanism or ‘hostile architecture.’

December 12 - Diana Ionescu

A computer generated graphic of a man loading 2022, approaching 2023.

FEATURE

Planetizen's Top Posts of 2022

The most popular articles on Planetizen in 2022.

December 12 - James Brasuell

Biketown

FEATURE

Roadways for People: The Necessity of Collaboration

Breaking down planning silos to ensure transportation options in a car-oriented world.

December 8 - Lynn Peterson and Elizabeth Doerr

The website for Project Sidewalk shows a street with a menu for identifying issues with mobility infrastructure.

FEATURE

Top Websites for Urban Planning - 2022

Every year, Planetizen collects the websites breaking new digital ground in the world of planning and related fields.

December 6 - James Brasuell

Colorful one-story wooden homes in the French Quarter, New Orleans, Louisiana

BLOG POST

How Short-Term Rental Restrictions Impact Urban Planning

Short-term rental regulations are a hot topic in the urban planning world. As more cities consider—or are already implementing—these regulations, they need to understand how they impact various urban landscape areas.

December 6 - Devin Partida

Books

FEATURE

The Top Urban Planning Books of 2022

An annual list of the must-read books related to urban planning and its intersecting fields.

November 28 - James Brasuell

An electric vehicle charger with an American flag sticker is shown plugged into a car.

FEATURE

Electric Vehicles Require Real Progress—Not Lip Service—on Equity

Communities of color are already being left behind as the nation prepares the infrastructure for an electric future.

November 28 - Marqus Cole

Ambulance driving down New York City street

BLOG POST

Ambulances vs. Pedestrians

Are the needs of emergency response vehicles inconsistent with nondrivers’ needs for slower, safer streets? Maybe not.

November 21 - Michael Lewyn

News from HUD User

HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research

Call for Speakers

Mpact Transit + Community

New Updates on PD&R Edge

HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Websites

The best of the Internet—since 2002.

Top Apps

Planning apps for a brave new world.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

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.

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