Faulted for lack of attention to pedestrian and bike advocates, the Oregon Department of Transportation will soon have opportunities to redeem itself.

Andrew Theen reports on the findings of a recent audit of Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) planning processes for highways over the past three years. The audit, performed by the Oregon Secretary of State's office, faulted ODOT for not doing enough outreach to bike and pedestrian advocates.
The report comes as the state is expecting to enter some of the busiest construction years in decades, buoyed by the 2017 statewide transportation package, which calls for several large-scale projects in the Portland area. Those may include the contentious Rose Quarter freeway project, which is expected to cost more than $715 million, and others on key roads in the Portland area.
The Rose Quarter freeway project lost critical local support earlier this year when the citizen group Albina Vision Trust withdrew support for the plan.
ODOT will also have a chance to improve its focus on safety and engagement if voters approve a $7 billion transportation plan this November, as proposed by the Metro Council, the metropolitan planning organization for the Oregon portion of the Portland area.
FULL STORY: Oregon could better reach out to bike, pedestrian groups before construction projects, audit finds

Planning for Congestion Relief
The third and final installment of Planetizen's examination of the role of the planning profession in both perpetuating and solving traffic congestion.

Car Noise Is Killing Us
It’s not just traffic collisions that kill—a new study from researcher at Rutgers finds that the loud noises emanating from cars has direct impact on heart health in Americans.

Acceptable Deaths
What can we learn from our Covid response?

Fare-Free Transit Hasn’t Reduced Car Trips, Data Says
Fare-free transit isn’t the climate change benefit that many have hoped, according to recent writing by David Zipper for Bloomberg.

Redevelopment Threatens Iconic, Affordable Chicago Homes
The ‘workers’ cottages’ are being replaced with larger, more expensive homes, threatening one of the city’s original forms of affordable housing.

Six-Story Parking Lot Nixed From D.C. Union Station Renovation Plans
The Federal Railroad Administration has removed a six-story parking facility included in a 2020 draft Environmental Impact Statement for a $10 billion renovation of Union Station in Washington, D.C.
City of Malibu
EMC Planning Group Inc.
Jefferson Parish
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Harvard GSD Executive Education
City of Rohnert Park
City of Hot Springs
City of Lakeway, Texas
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.
Hand Drawing Master Plans
This course aims to provide an introduction into Urban Design Sketching focused on how to hand draw master plans using a mix of colored markers.