Government / Politics

Ideally, the best way to encourage sales of non-polluting electric vehicles would be to price carbon emissions. But if that isn't possible, why not reward EV owners with perks such as free parking; or would that be a distortionary incentive?

July 24, 2013 - UC Berkeley: Energy Economics Exchange

Tired of the private shuttles ferrying tech workers to Silicon Valley campuses clogging city streets and illegally using 250 city bus stops, San Francisco's Municipal Transportation Agency has proposed a plan for regulating their operation.

July 24, 2013 - Next City

The federal government has a role to play in the financial crises afflicting cities across America, and most notably of late, in Detroit. Should Washington also play a role in helping them to recover?

July 23, 2013 - The Nation

Janette Sadik-Khan and Amanda Burden have been among the most visible proponents, and benefactors, of the progressive planning initiatives that've transformed New York City over the last decade. They'll take on the post-Bloomberg transition together.

July 22, 2013 - Crain's New York Business

The bike helmet requirement will ultimately destroy the success of the planned Seattle bike share program, writes Danny Westneat, Seattle Times staff columnist, after experiencing first-hand the world's most successful bike share program in Paris.

July 21, 2013 - The Seattle Times

Over the heckles of hundreds of residents opposed to higher density and the two regional planning agencies making the decision, the Bay Area's growth plan designed to cut carbon emissions 15% by 2040 through better planning was approved.

July 20, 2013 - Pleasanton Weekly

As the Occupy Movement, Gezi Park protests, and everyday urban reclamation projects demonstrate, power and politics are embedded in place. As public spaces disappear, reclaiming the commons becomes increasingly important, say Leo Hollis.

July 20, 2013 - Aeon

Gina McCarthy's confirmation has been stalled by Senate Republicans who claimed she hadn't answered the 1,000 questions they gave her. Her confirmation vote, 59-40 on Thursday, results from a filibuster compromise that the Senate reached on Tuesday.

July 19, 2013 - Los Angeles Times

Yesterday, Detroit became the largest municipality in U.S. history to declare bankruptcy. Such an action is unprecedented, so the path forward is murky. Yet one word seems to signify what lies ahead over the next year: battles.

July 19, 2013 - Detroit Free Press

After months of speculation, and decades of mismanagement and population decline, Detroit has filed for bankruptcy. The milestone is the culmination of a turbulent half-century for the city. But some see it as a chance for a new start.

July 18, 2013 - Jonathan Nettler

The CIA, in partnership with other U.S. government agencies, is funding a $630,000 scientific study into the plausibility and potential effects of climate engineering to reduce global warming. Let the conspiracy theories begin.

July 18, 2013 - Grist

Efforts by local leaders to revive a $3.4 billion plan to replace the bridge linking Portland, Oregon to Vancouver, Washington is just the latest example of a trend in metropolitan innovation in the face of federal and state gridlock.

July 17, 2013 - The New York Times

With $4.4 billion in additional revenue expected to be generated from a new gasoline tax over the next six years, Maryland's new transportation secretary will have a historic role in shaping the state's transportation and land use patterns.

July 17, 2013 - The Washington Post

The low-income housing and new-markets tax credits are two of the most effective tools for stimulating affordable housing creation and the revitalization of low-income neighborhoods. Don't let them fall victim to tax reform, argues Michael Rubinger.

July 16, 2013 - The New York Times

Art, architecture, and incarceration collide in essays on prison design from the Panopticon to the Golden Gulag.

July 16, 2013 - Places Journal

Keith Laing, with help from Josh Schank of the Eno Center for Transportation, describes the reality facing the new Secretary of the Department of Transportation. With gas tax revenue dwindling and MAP-21 expiring next year, securing funds is crucial.

July 15, 2013 - The Hill

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's progressive transportation advocacy isn't limited to the five boroughs. From bike lanes in Turkey to auto-rickshaws in India, his philanthropy is funding transportation and road safety projects worldwide.

July 15, 2013 - The New York Times

Reporting from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where a 2008 flood devastated 14% of this city of 126,000, John Eligon writes of the extensive rebuilding that has occurred in the flood plain - largely without protection from future floods.

July 14, 2013 - The New York Times - U.S.

While Staten Island and Rockaway, Queens also suffered devastation from Superstorm Sandy; Broad Channel, an island in Jamaica Bay, Queens, may be the lowest lying area in the City and endures tidal flooding regularly, not just from storm surges.

July 12, 2013 - The New York Times - N.Y. / Region

Analysts have noted a change in the president on climate change in his second term. Call it a "message shift". Rather than addressing it in terms of the need for clean energy and renewables, he now speaks directly to the perils of climate change.

July 11, 2013 - The Hill