The Daily Source of Urban Planning News
The Secrets to Hubway’s Bikeshare Success
Bikeshare programs have met varied degrees of success in North America. Boston’s Hubway, the result of a public-private partnership, is turning a profit entering its fourth year. What's its secret?
After Distracted Driving Crashes Increase, Texas Amplifies ‘Talk, Text, Crash’
The Texas Department of Transportation is responding to a recent increase in the number crashes caused by distracted driving in the state by increasing the presence of a multi-media campaign aimed at changing behavior.
Latest to Open the Roads to Driverless Cars: Washington D.C.
Following actions by the federal government and a few states, the nation’s capital recently published a set of rules regulating the operation of driverless cars.
More on the High Cost of Infrastructure
A recent editorial in Atlantic Cities laments the regulations and policies that have, according to the author, driven up the costs of infrastructure investments in the United States.
Housing Policy Repair for a New Era: Let’s Review
Communities across the U.S. are increasingly frustrated at the persistence of mid-20th-century thinking about housing among local leaders even in the face of a mountain of 21st-century evidence that times have changed.
Oil, Oil Everywhere, But How to Tap?
At 15 billion barrels, California's Monterey Shale is said to hold the nation's largest deposit of recoverable oil. The only problem is that its extraction has not proven to be economically profitable. Blame it on the shale's unique structure.
Can Access to Willamette Falls Spur Urban Renewal?
State and local officials in Oregon have launched a planning process to develop a public access esplanade to Willamette Falls in Oregon City. City planners could center urban renewal plans around what is expected to be a popular tourist destination.
Website Says 'Yes In My Back Yard'
A website called New York YIMBY is run by a 23-year-old New Yorker named Nikolai Fedak. The site, and Fedak’s pro-development ethos, was recently detailed in the New York Times.
Coming to a Billboard Near You: The 'Art Everywhere' Project
Voting for a new project called "Art Everywhere" is currently open to the public on works from five of the country’s largest and most respected museums. The vote will help decide which images get placed on some 50,000 billboards this summer.
BLOG POST
America's Apartment Shortage: 8 Million Units
The 2014 National Realtor's Survey asked consumers for preferences in housing and neighborhood types. Although preferences trended toward the suburban, the number of people who want to live in urban areas is under-supplied by multi-family housing.
Optimism Indicator: Record Number of Building Permits in Philadelphia
Observers of Philadelphia’s economic and social situation can celebrate, and worry, given recent data on issues like poverty, crime, and the job market. One bright spot, however, is 2013's record number of building permits.
The Numbers Behind the Country’s Decreasing Traffic Fatalities
Susannah Locke examines some of the data behind the United State’s steady decrease in auto fatalities since a peak in 1969, when 55,043 people died while driving.
After Mayoral Scandal, What Next for Charlotte's Permitting Reform, Streetcar Project?
Former Charlotte Mayor Patrick Cannon resigned after taking bribes in exchange for zoning and parking privileges. Will the fallout affect the city's streetcar plans or its efforts to streamline permitting and code enforcement?
Realtors Discover Demand for Walkable Places
After generations of sales focused on conventional suburbia, realtors are discovering the demand for walkable, urban places.
'Living Innovation Zones' Activate Public Space in San Francisco
San Francisco recently launched the Living Innovation Zones program to generate space-activating public art installations around the city. The city hopes the program will create “catalysts for exploration, innovation and play.”
Advocates and Opponents Struggle Over Toll Roads
While tolling will not fill the Highway Trust Fund gap, it can finance improvements for specific interstate highways that would otherwise be funded by a sustainable trust fund, not one approaching insolvency. Why not allow states the option to toll?
Rebuild By Design: Building Resilience along the Atlantic Coast
Rebuild By Design, a design competition under the purview of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, released ten final proposals for projects that could protect and strengthen the Atlantic Coast in the event of another Hurricane Sandy.
BLOG POST
Old Thinking In New Traffic Safety Reports
A new paradigm is expanding transport safety strategies to include demand management and smart growth, but the old paradigm is alive and deadly as illustrated by two new traffic safety guidance documents.
State Gas Taxes and P3s Fill Federal Transportation Revenue Void
Beginning last year, states increased gas taxes and entered public-private partnerships, as are some cities. But it's not an easy haul for cities nor states, and Congress has yet to agree how to furnish sufficient revenue to match current spending.
FEATURE
Housing is the Key to Family-Friendly Cities
Why housing should take priority in the effort to attract families back to the city (and welcome them to stay awhile).
City of Moorpark
City of Tustin
Tyler Technologies
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
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.
