Infrastructure
Driverless Cars: A Boon to the Federal Budget?
The federal government is notorious for putting off road improvements. The good news? If driverless cars become a reality, they can keep putting them off—forever.
Opposition to Transportation Sales Tax Rides BRT in Gainesville
The Alachua County Commission and the Gainesville City Commission are considering a countywide referendum to raise sales tax revenue for transportation projects. Road repair is an easy political win, but bus rapid transit...not so much.
Friday Eye Candy: Stunning Overhead Perspectives on Human Interactions with Land
The “Daily Overview” website provides a compendium of high-altitude, overhead photography from around the world.
Air Traffic Shuffle Reopens Lakefront Development Possibilities in Cleveland
United Airlines recently decided to eliminate its hub at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. Some are hoping the city will shift traffic from the Burke Lakefront Airport into Hopkins, freeing up lakefront property for development.
Highway Trust Fund Projected to Become Insolvent Earlier than Expected
As we've noted numerous times, the Highway Trust Fund will become insolvent around the end of the fiscal year - Sept. 30, just when MAP-21, the transportation authorization bill, expires. We were wrong. The new HTF "ticker" explains the bad news.
Sustaining the New Orleans Success Story
A new report called “Sustaining Prosperity: A Long Term Vision for the New Orleans Region,” authored by Joel Kotkin, celebrates the rebirth of New Orleans and sets a five point plan for ensuring New Orleans’ long-term prosperity.
The Best Complete Streets Programs of 2013
More than 80 communities adopted complete streets policies in 2013, bringing the national total to 610 jurisdictions with such policies. The National Complete Streets Coalition examined the newest programs for the best examples.
Looking Back on the 5th Anniversary of the Federal Stimulus
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) was signed into law on February 17, 2009, less than a month into President Obama's first term. The Council of Economic Advisers recently presented its final quarterly report on ARRA's impacts.
San Francisco's Running Out of Room for Cars
In terms of land area, San Francisco’s a small city. Yet if current policies persist, the city will build 92,000 parking spots for residents by 2040, on just 49 square miles of land.
Subway Transfer Signage a No-Go in NYC
A recent guerrilla campaign designed to ease train-to-train transfer on the New York subway displeased both the MTA and regular commuters.
Bridge-gate Widens to Include ARC Tunnel Cancellation
Remember the $8.7 billion Hudson River rail tunnel project that Chris Christie canceled in 2010 shortly after becoming governor? N.J. legislators investigating the September lane shut-down on the George Washington Bridge are now connecting the dots.
Mapped Snow Routes Reveal the Logic of Transportation Infrastructure
A side-by side-comparison of several cities’ snow routes reveals the inherent logic (or lack thereof) of their transportation infrastructure.
Illinois Betting On Tolls to Cover Highway Costs
The state of Illinois is actively pushing two highway projects that might fail to pencil-out for users and for state taxpayers.
Obama Picks Up the Resilience Buzz with $1 Billion Fund Proposal
President Obama is in California today to pitch a $1 billion “resilience fund” to help communities dealing with the weather impacts of climate change—including the state’s current drought.
10 Unexpected Cities to Love
A valentine to ten cities around the world that are quietly creating urban paradigms to admire and emulate.
Forget Sunk Cost—What's the Best Way to Spend Bertha's Remaining Funds?
Seattle’s massive highway tunneling project delays while solutions are sought for the mechanical error that brought the project’s massive drilling machine, Bertha, to a halt. Some are starting to examine life after Bertha.
Business and Labor Agree: Boost the Gas Tax
At a Senate Environment and Public Works Committee meeting on Feb. 12, leaders from big labor, big business, AASHTO, and AMTRAK testified to the importance of keeping the Highway Trust Fund solvent. The first two specified increasing the gas tax.
A History of 'Jaywalking' Shame: Santa Claus, Boy Scouts, and Clowns
With jaywalking enforcement policies recently making news in New York City and Los Angeles, more of the media is pushing back on long-held assumptions about who rules the road. Here’s a primer on how jaywalking became a crime.
Ranking Freeways Without Futures
The Congress for the New Urbanism releases a Top 10 list highlighting the worst, most ready-to-be-junked urban freeways. New Orleans, Syracuse, and Detroit make the list. Boulevards are a viable and much-needed alternative, says CNU.
Will Development Follow RTD Light Rail in Aurora, Colorado?
The mayor of Aurora has lofty ambitions for a new “Main Street” along its forthcoming 10-mile light rail route, but will the market deliver, especially with the rise of real estate prices?
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Thousand Oaks
City of Wisconsin Rapids
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA)
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
