The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

The DOT awarded a billion and a half in grants to transit projects on the Fourth of July. Eric Jaffe has the lowdown on projects from Connecticut to Colorado.

July 5 - The Infrastructurist

The only true PRT in the United States, the system serves 15,000 students of West Virginia University each day when school is in session. Some even credit the school's growth to the effectiveness of the PRT.

July 5 - Governing Magazine

County of Riverside Supervisor Jeff Stone proposes breaking up California in order to form a new "State of South California."

July 5 - Los Angeles Times

The Economist argues that heavy reliance on solar power as an alternative energy source will not help Britain meet its greenhouse-gas reduction targets in 2050 due to operational and financial infeasibilities.

July 5 - The Economist

The Obama administration is proposing new mileage and emissions standards for U.S. vehicles. By 2025, American automakers will have to manufacture cars that achieve 56.2 miles per gallon (mpg).

July 4 - The New York Times

The center of protest in Yemen's capital city of Sana'a has turned into a massive tent city, with more than 4,000 tents and a variety of services, public spaces and pop-up industries.

July 4 - Der Spiegel

Portland leads the nation is sustainability and in fact, may be responsible for starting this movement, but its economy remains mediocre and it is one of America's least diverse cities. Urbanophile's Aaron M. Renn explains why.

July 4 - Urbanophile

Created by President Obama in response to the BP oil spill last summer, the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Task Force is now working on a project that restores the flow of sediments to wetlands in Texas. Funding from BP helps facilitate the costly process.

July 4 - USA Today

This top 10 list from Grist highlights the global cities best prepared to handle climate change.

July 4 - Grist

More American cities are following successful European cities' leads and launching their own bike sharing systems.

July 3 - McClatchy

This short series from <em>Next American City</em> looks at the emerging trend of entrepreneurs applying their own private-sector business savvy to the world of local government.

July 3 - Next American City

Based on the company's annual worldwide giving report, ExxonMobil has significantly reduced grants for climate change research from $3.4 million in 2005 to $800,000 in 2010. But why?

July 3 - The New York Times

Urban redevelopment plans to slow or stall in California, as Governor Jerry Brown slashes the budgets of redevelopment agencies in the state.

July 3 - The Sacramento Bee

Communities across the country are trying to reuse contaminated brownfields as sites for the production of clean energy.

July 3 - Yale Environment 360

A new study looks at how growing up and living in cities can affect how people process stress.

July 2 - Per Square Mile

A new tool comparing cities in the U.S. and Canada tracks improvements in the way cities are greening, and also highlights areas where improvement is needed.

July 2 - The Atlantic

The grass is always greener on the other side of the Washington Monument. But not for long. Landscape renovation of the elongated field at the eastern end of the site begins in September and will be completed a month before the 2012 elections.

July 2 - The Washington Post

An accident-prone section of bike path in Seattle has prompted dozens of lawsuits and resulted in hundreds of thousands of dollars in payments to injured cyclists. Now the cyclists themselves are trying to fix the infrastructural problem.

July 2 - The Seattle Times

African Americans in the North are reversing the trend set by their parents and grandparents by migrating back to the South. This post from Grist looks at the impact on communities and urbanism.

July 2 - Grist

Amanda Burden's High Line has elevated public space to new heights. "+Pool" design trio want to submerge it under water, specifically in the East River that runs through NYC.

July 1 - Metropolis Magazine