Infrastructure

Community Benefits Package for Amazon's HQ2 Takes Shape
Details of the community benefits package promised as part of Amazon's HQ2 development deal with Arlington County, Virginia made news this week.

Caltrans to Ditch Level of Service for Vehicle Miles Traveled
Unlike for land use regulations, state law doesn't require Caltrans to switch from Level of Service to Vehicle Miles Traveled in measuring the environmental impact of projects. The state department of transportation is making the change anyway.

Op-Ed: Detroit's QLINE Is 'At Times an Embarrassment'
Randy Essex details why it is that "rely" isn't a word that comes to mind for many Detroiters when they think about downtown's QLINE streetcar system.

Why New York City's Flooding Its Own Subway Entrances
MTA reassured disoriented New Yorkers that it's flooding subway entrances on purpose, to test barriers that it hopes will guard the system against another Sandy.

How One Wealthy, Historic Neighborhood Maintains an Exclusionary Status Quo
Philadelphia Inquirer architecture critic Inga Saffron has had enough with the exclusionary planning tactics of the neighborhood of Society Hill to start calling it the "Republic of Society Hill."

The Top Urban Planning Books of 2019
The decade wraps up with another engaging crop of highly readable and recommendable books on the subject of urban planning. There's a lot to learn, on many related subjects, among this year's top planning books.

D.C. Speeds Up Protected Bike Lane Plans
The District Department of Transportation last week promised to double the pace of its planned construction of protected bike lanes, but advocates say the District still isn't doing enough to provide safe accommodations for people on bikes.

Baltimore's 'Big Jump'
A temporary bike and pedestrian path is changing the street design game in Baltimore.

Congestion Pricing Under Discussion in San Francisco
An expanding number of major U.S. cities are exploring the idea of charging drivers to drive into certain heavily trafficked parts of town. San Francisco is the most recent to explore the idea of congestion pricing (also known as cordon pricing).

A New Suburban Rail System for Moscow
Two of a planned five new suburban rail routes, modeled on examples in Paris and Berlin, opened last week in Russia.

Op-Ed: NYC Making Progress on Bike Network Access, Should Do More
2019 was the first year in which New York City's Department of Transportation kept affected bike lanes open during the UN's General Assembly. That should be a sign of things to come, advocates argue.

$1.6 Billion Highway Improvement Program Announced in Colorado
The Colorado Department of Transportation will spend big on highway projects over the next three years.

A Pedestrian-Forward Vision for Toronto Roadway
Toronto’s iconic Yonge Street is heavily used by pedestrians, and, according to this article, it's time for a revamp that acknowledges all of the street's users.

California's Priorities for Electrification and Resilience
CEC Chair David Hochschild shares the commission’s strategy for improving the current grid system and how California has been, and will continue to be, a global leader in clean energy innovation.

$3.5 Billion Development With Room for 10,000 Homes Planned Near Forth Worth
When complete, the Rolling V Ranch will be one of the largest residential developments in the state of Texas.

Santa Monica Designs Greenest Municipal Building in the World
Amber Richane, Project Manager for the city of Santa Monica's new City Services Building, on the city's commitment to building the world's most sustainable public building.

Nashville Loses Out on Federal Transit Grant, Adding to Agency's Budget Woes
WeGo Public Transit did not receive a grant to build a transit center, and transit advocates say it’s a sobering setback in light of the agency’s other budget challenges.

A Bold Vision for a Car-Free Boston
As other cities take daring steps to reclaim their streets, a car ban in downtown Boston doesn’t seem so implausible.

Big Bike and Scooter Rental Shakeup Coming to Denver
Publically-owned bikeshare company B-Cycle will be scrapped and eventually be replaced, and the city is also planning to overhaul it's pilot dockless bike and scooter rental program.

China's Global Power Play
China's Belt and Road Initiative, a massive program to develop infrastructure in dozens of countries worldwide, may be the largest construction project in history. Its benefits to host countries—and to China itself—remain far from certain.
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