An investigation into Philadelphia's street cleaning program reveals a parking ticket program that doesn't benefit the city as much as it benefits the Philadelphia Parking Authority.
Aaron Moselle and Ryan Briggs shares the findings of an investigation by WHYY and PlanPhilly reporters into street cleaning practices in Philadelphia—namely, the city's willingness to write tickets for cars parking during sweeping hours while failing to actually sweep the streets.
"Over the course of one week in December 2018, the reporters did not observe any street sweepers on any of the posted routes before, during, and after the posted 'no parking' hours," according to Moselle and Briggs. "But even if sweepers don’t show up consistently, The Philadelphia Parking Authority’s agents do."
"Between 2007 and 2017, the state parking enforcement agency issued over 148,000 tickets to drivers for failing to move their cars on days designated for street sweeping, according to [Philadelphia Parking Authority] records."
The article digs into a lot more detail about the details of the city's very limited street cleaning program. None of the details reported in the article will make anyone who has received a street cleaning ticket in Philadelphia feel any better.
FULL STORY: PPA makes millions ticketing drivers for blocking street sweepers that rarely show

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

In Urban Planning, AI Prompting Could be the New Design Thinking
Creativity has long been key to great urban design. What if we see AI as our new creative partner?

Cal Fire Chatbot Fails to Answer Basic Questions
An AI chatbot designed to provide information about wildfires can’t answer questions about evacuation orders, among other problems.

What Happens if Trump Kills Section 8?
The Trump admin aims to slash federal rental aid by nearly half and shift distribution to states. Experts warn this could spike homelessness and destabilize communities nationwide.

Sean Duffy Targets Rainbow Crosswalks in Road Safety Efforts
Despite evidence that colorful crosswalks actually improve intersection safety — and the lack of almost any crosswalks at all on the nation’s most dangerous arterial roads — U.S. Transportation Secretary Duffy is calling on states to remove them.
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.
Appalachian Highlands Housing Partners
Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie