The agency’s director wants to change the city’s transportation priorities and provide more mobility options to residents.
Dallas established a Department of Transportation just last year, and Michael Rogers, the city’s new transportation director, envisions a more connected city less focused on cars. Rogers is taking steps to bring comprehensive transportation planning and multimodal networks to Dallas. In addition, he is behind the use of data analytics that brought electric scooters to the city and have helped guide pedestrian safety projects.
Emily Nonko reports that Rogers has also taken on the Texas Department of Transportation by challenging plans to widen Interstate 30 East, a move that city leaders described as "radical":
He pushed back, offering his own "guiding principles" for the redesign. They included better connections for cyclists and pedestrians, no highway expansion in height or width, and bringing the elevated portion of the road below grade to reconnect neighborhoods that have been torn apart by infrastructure development.
Rogers has plans to continue a shift away from a singular focus on road projects, develop a strategic mobility plan, and make public input an integral part of the planning process.
Still, Nonko points out that Dallas faces a long road and many hurdles in improving the region’s transportation system, particularly around transit. "A big criticism of Dallas Area Rapid Transit’s sprawling rail system: While the largest in the country, it’s inefficient and doesn’t effectively serve many dense neighborhoods."
FULL STORY: Dallas DOT Is Making Plans for a Better-Connected City
Dallas, Suburbs Clash Over DART Funding
The city voted to ‘fully fund’ its rapid transit system, but northern suburbs are moving to reduce funding.
Dallas Council Begrudgingly Keeps Downtown Streetcar Alive
Council members complain that the Oak Cliff Streetcar is a "vanity project" that drains money from other potential transit improvements.
The Right Planning Consultant Could Make All of the Difference
Between DART service optimization and deciding the fate of I-345, Dallas has big of decisions to make. The right consultant, who understands accurate framing of planning issues, could help choose a route that best serves Dallasites.
The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin
People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.
US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico
A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.
New Jersey’s second-largest city bans standalone data centers
Jersey City will continue to allow co-location facilities, such as those meant for research institutions that store their own data.
Amtrak not solely to blame for New Jersey commuter rail's unreliability, report finds
A new study from the Garden State Initiative found that NJ Transit’s budget grew 20% across a 4 year period, but reliability declined significantly over the same period.
EPA erases limits on planet-warming pollution from power plants
Under Monday’s plan, power plants would still have some limits on how much mercury, arsenic and other contaminants they can emit.
Phoenix announces new on-demand transit service, more frequent RAPID buses
Both new services will launch in October, and are part of Phoenix's Project Effective Access Solutions for Easing Congestion.
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.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association