The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Brooklyn-Queens Expressway

$11 Billion: Estimated Cost of Replacing the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway With a Tunnel

A plan to teardown the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway and build a tunnel in its place has new political support and an expensive engineering plan.

February 27 - The New York Times

Security Camera

New Orleans 'Smart City' Program Would Install Video Cameras in Public

The video cameras would be used to collect data on street light outages, but could also potentially used by police in the city's crime surveillance program.

February 27 - The Lens

LA Ciclavia

BLOG POST

What Determines the Public Health Outcomes of Cities?

There's no one no defining attribute that determines whether a city is healthy or not, as a growing and evolving body of research shows.

February 27 - Kayla Matthews

Cupertino, California

Controversial Development Site in Cupertino Compounds Legal Controversy

The city of Cupertino rezoned a controversial development site in case a judge tosses the developer's current plan for the site. Now the developer is suing, accusing the city of an illegal taking.

February 26 - The Mercury News

Bus in Snow

Report: Transit Ridership Reaches Lowest Levels Since the 1970s

The Transit Cooperative Research Program recently released a current snapshot of public transit ridership trends on bus and rail services in U.S. urban and suburban areas.

February 26 - The National Academies Press


The Peninsula

New Housing Law Quickly Enacted in Bay Area

A four-month-old California housing law that applies only to 100% affordable housing near transit has dramatically changed a housing proposal in an affluent Peninsula city, though it is too soon to say if the additional two-stories will be approved.

February 26 - San Mateo Daily Journal

San Francisco

Who Are The YIMBYs?

"Golden Gates: The Fight for for Housing in America," a new book by New York Times reporter Conor Dougherty, chronicles the early days of the YIMBY movement in the Bay Area.

February 26 - California Planning & Development Report


Seattle Neighborhood

The Housing Affordability and Livability Agenda Era Concludes in Seattle

Before YIMBY was a household word and before Minneapolis ended single-family zoning, Seattle's Housing Affordability and Livability Agenda (HALA) broke the planning status quo.

February 26 - Sightline Institute

Denver

Climate Agency Opens Shop in Denver

A high-profile appointment highlights the launch of Denver's new Office of Climate Action, Sustainability, and Resiliency.

February 26 - Colorado Community Media

Superstorm Sandy

Federal Storm Surge Study Called Off Suddenly, Leaving New York Exposed

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was on the verge of proposing a plan to protect New York City from storm surges and sea-level rise. Instead, the city of New York has lost federal support for a path toward climate resilience.

February 26 - Gothamist

London Ride Hailing

Ride-Hailing Companies Greatly Increase Pollution, Study Says

The reality of ride hailing has fallen well short of the wishful thinking about reduced congestion and reduced pollution that defined the early days of Uber and Lyft.

February 26 - The Verge

Nashville, Tennessee

Nashville Needs Sidewalks on 1,900 Miles of Streets

Nashville builds four miles of sidewalk a year.

February 25 - WSMV

Brutalism

Bribery Scandal Leads to Zoning Board Reforms in Boston

The planning approvals process took a black eye in Boston last year, when a bribery scandal sent a Boston Planning and Development Agency staffer to jail.

February 25 - The Boston Globe

Center City, Philadelphia

Philly Safe Streets Advocates Want What San Francisco and New York Are Having

The idea of blocking major streets to private automobiles is making advocates envious in cities that have yet to implement the idea. A petition is circulating to give the car-free treatment to Chestnut Street in Philadelphia.

February 25 - Billy Penn

Space X

Hyperloop Now a Legal Public-Private Partnership Opportunity in Missouri

Missouri lawmakers removed a barrier to the creation of a Hyperloop test facility in St. Louis.

February 25 - St. Louis Business Journal

U.S. Census Bureau

Survey Reveals Key Knowledge Gaps Regarding 2020 Census

Most Americans are aware that the 2020 Census is underway, but many still lack information about key details of the big, national headcount.

February 25 - Pew Research Center

CTA Bus

Chicago to Pilot All-Door Bus Boarding

Chicago is late to the game on all-door bus boarding, but that will change this summer.

February 25 - Chicago Tribune

European City

Watch: Public Transit Goes Fare-Free in Luxembourg, Starting March 1

On March 1, Luxembourg will be the first country in the world to make all its public transit free to ride.

February 25 - Tom Scott on YouTube

Car-Centric Legos

Lego Neglects Space for Bike Lanes

A Dutch advocate believes Lego's city sets should reflect streets that prioritize all users. Including bike lanes would be one way for the toy manufacturer to start accomplishing that goal.

February 25 - The Verge

Electric Train

TOD and Zero-Emission Trains: Can You Guess Where the Controversy Is?

The nation's first fuel cell electric train will make its debut in Southern California in about four years, but it's also associated with a controversial ballot measure on the station sites that voters of Redlands will decide on Super Tuesday.

February 24 - KVCR

Post News
Community Development Director

City of Wisconsin Rapids

Professor of Urban Planning

Harvard University Graduate School of Design

Transportation Planner I

KFH Group Inc.

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.