An analysis of geotagged tweets reveals that city dwellers express positive emotions in green spaces and restaurants, while bus stops and transit elicited more frustrated reactions.

What parts of the city spark joy? Which parts fill citizens with sadness or rage? Those were the questions at the heart of a new study that analyzed close to 2 million tweets, geotagged at various locations in London and San Francisco, and compared their locations to the emotions they conveyed. Sri Taylor describes the results of the study in Bloomberg CityLab.
The study revealed that “Green and recreational spaces triggered the most positive emotions for city dwellers, and locations like swimming pools, sailing ports, coastlines and boat ramps had tweets with high levels of joy.” Hotels and restaurants were also associated with positive emotions.
Public transit, sadly, didn’t fare so well, even though London’s transit system is recognized as one of the best in the world. “Tweets made near train stations, bus stops and bridges congested with car traffic conveyed feelings of disgust and anger.” No mention of what emotions tweets posted from office buildings conveyed.
The researchers acknowledge the limitations of the study, but hope that data like this can help cities understand how to improve their infrastructure and public spaces.
FULL STORY: Where People Are Happiest — and Saddest — in Big Cities

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

Chicago’s Ghost Rails
Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail
The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.

Ohio Forces Data Centers to Prepay for Power
Utilities are calling on states to hold data center operators responsible for new energy demands to prevent leaving consumers on the hook for their bills.

MARTA CEO Steps Down Amid Citizenship Concerns
MARTA’s board announced Thursday that its chief, who is from Canada, is resigning due to questions about his immigration status.

Silicon Valley ‘Bike Superhighway’ Awarded $14M State Grant
A Caltrans grant brings the 10-mile Central Bikeway project connecting Santa Clara and East San Jose closer to fruition.
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.
Caltrans
City of Fort Worth
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie