Government / Politics

Transportation planners in San Francisco are proposing "parking benefit districts" where residents control pricing and boundaries to make parking easier in the congested city.

July 23, 2009 - San Francisco Chronicle

While HUD's budget has decreased by 4%, the Federal Railroad Administration is up 35%. This is just one of the revelations to be found in this interactive graphic of the Obama Administration's proposed federal budget for 2010.

July 23, 2009 - wallstats.com

Thousands of stimulus-funded transportation projects are underway this summer, creating thousands of delays on the nation's roads.

July 22, 2009 - The Christian Science Monitor

Officials in Washington's Clark County are considering a plan to enact an annual fee for bicyclists to fund bike-related infrastructure.

July 22, 2009 - The Columbian

Opening city data to the public was a relatively new idea when the District of Columbia began publishing its data streams online recently. As applications using the data developed, some in the District got a little weary of the idea.

July 22, 2009 - Washington Monthly

The city of El Paso, Texas, considers whether to become the latest of several cities to impose new restrictions on billboards that amounts to a ban on future construction.

July 22, 2009 - El Paso Times

The former head of the NHTSA has admitted that he was encouraged to bury the results of a study showing the mounting risk of cellphone use by drivers. The study is being released today under a Freedom of Information Act request.

July 21, 2009 - The New York Times

Cities in the Southwest are drying up. With less water to go around, water-intensive plantings like vast lawns are becoming an environmental faux pas. Now some cities are compensating residents for getting rid of them.

July 21, 2009 - GreenBiz

The city of Washington, D.C. learns its police checkpoints aimed at reducing crime in hot spots are unconstitutional.

July 20, 2009 - Washington Post

In this radio interview covering high speed rail, streetcars, bicycling, and paying for the proposed $500 billion transportation bill, Chairman Oberstar of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee discusses the future of transportation.

July 20, 2009 - Living on Earth

New studies rank cities based on the extent to which they "criminalize homelessness."

July 20, 2009 - NPR

Water policies in Syria and Turkey are draining the Euphrates River dry, and neighboring Iraq is feeling all the hurt from it.

July 20, 2009 - The New York Times

Legislators in Oregon are making moves to allow residents to reuse graywater.

July 20, 2009 - The Statesman Journal

A dust-up between architects and the Prince of Wales over a speech and a £1b development is bringing the age-old battle between traditional and modern architecture to a head. Managing editor Tim Halbur summarizes the news.

July 20, 2009 - Tim Halbur

China's fast-paced development is making it into a major economic power. Its emphasis on urban policy is leaving the U.S. in the dust, writes Eugenie Birch.

July 18, 2009 - Citiwire

In a posh borough of London, empty homes are causing problems for officials, who are tasked with finding the owners of these vacant or abandoned mansions.

July 17, 2009 - The Wall Street Journal

A group of U.S. representatives has proposed the creation of a national trust fund for water infrastructure in the U.S.

July 17, 2009 - Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel

The ACLU and local clergy are fighting over the prayers recited at City Council meetings in San Marcos, Texas, near Austin.

July 17, 2009 - San Marcos Daily Record

Salon's Michael Lind argues that attempts to create "comprehensive reform" of anything is a recipe for disaster.

July 16, 2009 - Salon.com

An American-born transit planner who help usher in congestion pricing and smart transit card technology in London has been nominated to chair New York's transit system.

July 16, 2009 - The New York Times