Infrastructure

Empty Retail

Should Online Shopping Change How We Use Ground-Level Space?

Urbanist Jane Jacobs' support for mixed use development has long been seen as the best urban design strategy, but this vision assumed that the retail space under housing could be rented. What if that is no longer the case?

February 19, 2017 - Shelterforce/Rooflines

Toronto Sidewalk

Toronto Sidewalk Cafes Get Squeezed By Pedestrian 'Clearways'

Proposed rules to enforce wider paths on Toronto city sidewalks for pedestrians and the disabled is creating angst in local operators of sidewalk cafes.

February 18, 2017 - CBC

High-Speed Rail

California High-Speed Rail: Under Construction for Two Years Despite Obstacles

In spite of a host of problems, over 1,000 parcels have been acquired and construction is occurring in nine areas in the Central Valley, centering on Fresno. Limited service from San Francisco to Bakersfield could begin in 2025.

February 17, 2017 - San Francisco Chronicle

Portland

Portland Prepares for the Big One

A new report identifies key actions for the city of Portland to prepare for the certainty of a large earthquake.

February 16, 2017 - The Oregonian

Bus Stop

'Free to Ride' Explores the Disparate Impact of Transit Planning

A new feature-length documentary film raises the question of whether public transportation is a civil rights issue.

February 16, 2017 - Mass Transit

#NoDAPL

North Dakota House Rejects Law Legalizing Vehicular Violence Against Protestors

The North Dakota House of Representatives rejected a law designed to make it easier for drivers to run over protestors.

February 16, 2017 - OpenVote News

Lake Oroville Emergency

Oroville Dam Crisis Foreseen Over 11 Years Ago

Had federal authorities acted on the motion filed by three environmental groups in October 2005, nearly 200,000 people in three counties would not have been forced to evacuate due to a poorly constructed emergency spillway for Oroville Dam.

February 16, 2017 - The Mercury News

Hydroelectric Power

Lessons from Oroville: Resilience for Scarcity and Abundance

Swings in weather-related fortunes will continue to push to unprecedented extremes, in California, in Texas, in Boston, in Long Island, in Louisiana, and everywhere else.

February 15, 2017 - James Brasuell

Setback for Georgetown-Rosslyn Gondola Project

Funding for a feasibility study is always one thing. Funding for a project is always something else.

February 14, 2017 - The Washington Post

London Underground

What Transport for London Learned While Tracking Users for a Month in 2016

Public transit agencies don't normally get the kind of fine-grained location and navigation data made possible by tracking phones. London got temporary access to that info at the end of 2016, however.

February 14, 2017 - Gizmodo UK

Caltrain Electrification: Casualty of Republican Animus for High-Speed Rail?

California's GOP congressional delegation has written the U.S. DOT asking them to delay a vital $647 million grant needed to electrify the 55-mile, San Francisco-to-San Jose commuter line on which 92 diesel-powered commuter trains operate daily.

February 13, 2017 - The Mercury News

Highway Interchange

Do Shorter Travel Times Really Justify Highway Expansions?

It all depends on one thing: How much are travelers willing to pay for a shorter trip?

February 12, 2017 - City Observatory

How Fair Use Brought Pac-Man to the Streets of Seattle

Maybe we are going to jinx the city of Seattle by bringing it up, but not everything has to be expensive and litigious.

February 11, 2017 - Capitol Hill Seattle Blog

Los Angeles and Bowl

L.A. Voters Approved Parks Funding—Now What?

An overview of the projects in the L.A. County Department of Parks and Recreation pipeline, by L.A. County park planner Clement Lau.

February 10, 2017 - UrbDeZine

Capitol

Everyone in the Federal Government Seems to Want a New Infrastructure Bill

Deborah Fisher has proposed a highway bill, Chuck Schumer wrote an infrastructure bill, and Donald Trump campaigned on the issue. The shape the final bill will take is still in flux.

February 10, 2017 - The Hill

Dakota Access Pipeline

Army Corps to Grant Permit for Completion of Dakota Access Pipeline

Elections have consequences. Per a Jan. 24 executive memo, the Army Corps of Engineers indicated that it will grant Dakota Access LLC the final permit to tunnel under the Missouri River and complete the controversial pipeline.

February 9, 2017 - The Washington Post - Energy and Environment

Vermont BRT

A First Look at Big Bus Rapid Transit Plans in Los Angeles

A proposed bus rapid transit (BRT) route for Vermont Avenue in Los Angeles was approved in Measure M, the transportation sales tax approved by L.A. County voters in November.

February 9, 2017 - Urbanize LA

I-70

Bad on Purpose, Weird Highways

Breezewood Pennsylvania is home to a traffic bottle neck on the I-70, and could be a target of Trump's promised infrastructure spending.

February 9, 2017 - The New York Times

Atlanta International Airport

Ranking: Atlanta the Best City for Airport Transit

The best city for taking transit to the airport, according to one ranking, is also known for car culture and sprawl.

February 9, 2017 - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Port of Los Angeles

Where Trump's Trade Policies Are Likely to Have the Largest Effect

Time will tell whether President Trump is able to enact any of the ambitious trade policies he proposed on the campaign trail, but research shows the cities that will prosper or suffer based on the success of those initiatives.

February 8, 2017 - The Washington Post

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.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.