Harris County is one of several Texas counties that failed EPA standards for clean air in recent years.
Multiple Houston-area transit agencies will offer free rides on Fridays in September in an effort to boost ridership on transit and improve air quality. As Kyle McClenagan reports for Houston Public Media, “The participating agencies include Harris County Transit, Fort Bend Transit, The Woodlands Township and Conroe Connection, according to Commute Solutions — a service of [the Houston-Galveston Area Council] H-GAC.”
The program is taking place during Ozone Action Month, when local ozone levels are typically highest. “For context, the EPA set an annual primary fine particle standard of 9 micrograms per cubic meter and the WHO considers anything above 5 micrograms per cubic meter to be dangerous. However, the EPA recorded that Harris County had 11.4 micrograms per cubic meter, the worst of any county in Texas.”
FULL STORY: Houston area transit agencies offering ‘Free Fare Fridays’ in September to promote cleaner air
Houston Will Not Be a Fare-Free Transit City
In case anyone was getting carried away with the idea of fare-free transit, the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County has some cold water to pour on the conversation.
Another City to Offer Free Transit on Bad Air Days
Brussels is the latest city to provide incentives for commuters willing to take transit in the name of air quality.
OKC streetcar will stay fare-free after ridership shot up 74%
The downtown streetcar saw a surge in ridership after it eliminated fares in January.
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