The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

University of Pennsyvlania

Philadelphia Leaders Dream Big With New Transit Plan

The plan, which looks more than two decades into the future, seeks to modernize the city's transit system, address inequities, and improve regional connectivity.

March 1 - WHYY

California Shelter-in-Place

BLOG POST

Two Stories From 2020: Which Is True?

Have all cities lost people due to COVID-19, or just a few high-cost ones?

March 1 - Michael Lewyn

China

10,000 Cities—and Counting

A novel approach to quantifying the world's urban population provides insight into a changing world.

February 28 - Next City

Salt Lake City, TRAX Red Line

U.S. DOT Grant Program to Allocate Funds for Climate and Environmental Justice Projects

The Infrastructure for Rebuilding America program will, for the first time, support projects aimed specifically at reducing emissions and fighting the effects of climate change and environmental racism.

February 28 - TechCrunch

Scottsdale, Arizona

Arizona Water Rights No Longer 'Use it or Lose it'

A bill approved with bipartisan support by the Arizona State Legislature offers new incentives for water conservation.

February 28 - Arizona Public Media


Plane and Train

Noise Pollution Harms the Heart, Too

New research shows that excessive noise levels have significant negative impacts on heart health.

February 28 - The Atlantic

Washington State Ferry

Washington State Considering New Gas Tax, Transit and Bike Fees

The state legislature is weighing three proposals that seek to fund improvements to aging infrastructure and upgrade the state's transportation network.

February 26 - Seattle Times


Parking Meters

Google Maps Now Lets You Feed Your Parking Meter

Google's newest partnership offers contactless parking meter payments and transit fare purchases.

February 26 - TechCrunch

Multi-Modalism in New Orleans

New Orleans Weighs Regional Transit Plan

A new proposal would improve wait times for area buses and bring more households within walking distance to transit stops.

February 26 - NOLA.com

Helicopter New York City

What About all the Helicopter Noise?

New York's busy airspace can be an inescapable nightmare for residents who experience noise pollution on a daily basis.

February 26 - StreetsBlog NYC

Concert crowd

How Independent Music Venues Became a Powerful Lobbying Force

A group of venue owners formed in response to the pandemic successfully got a $15 billion support bill passed to help small venues stay afloat during the pandemic.

February 25 - Bloomberg CityLab

Willowbrook, Los Angeles,

South Los Angeles Park Is Magically Transformed

An almost two-year, $83-million redevelopment of a large section of Earvin Magic Johnson Park in Willowbrook has been completed, offering much needed green space and new amenities to community members.

February 25 - Urbanize LA

View of New River Gorge Bridge

New River Gorge is America's Newest National Park

The 72,000-acre West Virginia gem joins an illustrious list as the 63rd U.S. national park.

February 25 - The New York Times

Yield Sign

Virginia Lawmakers Won't Let Cyclists Roll Through Stop Signs—Yet

The state legislature passed a bill calling for a study of the proposed law and its effects in other states.

February 25 - The Washington Post

Houston Sprawl

How to Fix Racist Housing Policies: Sue the Suburbs

Strengthening U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's civil rights enforcement could send a powerful signal to communities resistant to changing discriminatory housing rules.

February 25 - Vox

West Louisville

Tax Increment Financing District Considered for West Louisville

A prominently Black and low-income neighborhood in Louisville could gain a new tool for spurring local development—the law is intended also to control the effects of gentrification.

February 25 - Louisville Courier Journal

Train platform

Boston-to-New York High-Speed Rail Project Hopes for Federal Support

If completed, the North Atlantic Rail project could transform New England's transportation landscape.

February 25 - Bloomberg CityLab

Manhattan Penn Station

Massive Empire Station Complex Project to Revamp Penn Station Area Moves Forward

The proposed Empire Station Complex project would link an upgraded Penn Station, the newly opened Moynihan Train Hall, and a tentative new terminal one block south of Penn Station.

February 25 - 6sqft

Brooklyn Construction

PLANOPEDIA

What Is Market Rate Housing?

Market-rate housing is a term used to define housing generated by the real estate market without direct subsidy. The price the market sets for housing, even without subsidies, is a direct outcome of policies and practices of planning.

February 24 - James Brasuell

Houston Freeway

Watch: How Induced Demand Explains the Vicious Cycle of Congestion

A new Vox video tackles the controversial and counterintuitive concept of induced demand.

February 24 - Vox

Post News
Professor of Urban Planning

Harvard University Graduate School of Design

Transportation Planner I

KFH Group Inc.

Director, Strategy and Research

Greater Baltimore Committee

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.

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.