The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Wealthy private donors take the lead in developing New York City projects, such as parks, writes Carol Berens, an architect, author, and real estate agent.

May 15 - UrbDeZine

Looking at the history of car recalls, Gladwell recognizes a tension between the way engineers see malfunctions and how the public sees them. It's easy to blame the machine, but that doesn't always solve the problem.

May 15 - The New Yorker

Better architecture has been a consistent theme of the tenure of Boston Mayor Marty Walsh. The city's first comprehensive plan since 1965 could be the key tool in producing the desired results.

May 15 - The Boston Globe

By many estimates, a city known for its pedestrian unfriendliness is developing pockets of local walkability. Minor disputes over pedestrian rights may add up to something bigger.

May 15 - CityLab

The timeliness of the debate on Amtrak's budget could not have been worse for House Republicans who appeared insensitive at best in approving almost a 20 percent cut in funding after the fatal Philadelphia derailment that sent 200 to hospitals.

May 15 - The Hill

A creative cartographer has created a series maps in the cartoon style of pop art.

May 15 - CityLab

The Onion provides a fake dispatch from a city that wants lobster roll stands and high-end noodle bars on every corner, like now.

May 15 - The Onion

Joining Chicago, Cincinnati, Denver, and Kansas City, Seattle now offers reduced bus fares to low-income residents. Some worry the program entrenches class differences and doesn't truly aid social mobility.

May 14 - Governing

A fight over eminent domain has erupted in the Denver suburb of Glendale. At stake are long-time local businesses and a potential $175 million redevelopment project along the Cherry Creek.

May 14 - The Denver Post

New York magazine recently convened a debate between two leading voices of an ongoing conversation in New York City: what to build and what to preserve.

May 14 - New York

As the world's cities grow ever larger, local governments constantly ask themselves which is better: amalgamating into one metro-wide government, or maintaining autonomy among fragmented jurisdictions? The answer remains unclear.

May 14 - The Guardian

To fund a wider I-70 on its route through Denver, the regional planning commission set aside $50 million in federal funds before considering other projects.

May 14 - Streetsblog Denver

The Northwestern Pacific RR served Marin and Sonoma counties and the North Coast in the 1890s. The route of the new SMART train, while not as long, will run in the same right-of-way, starting next year. One new train was on display in San Rafael.

May 14 - Marin Independent Journal

Real estate website Trulia has released its most recent Rent vs Buy report, breaking down the value proposition of buying a home relative to renting one for cities around the country.

May 14 - The Washington Post - Wonkblog

The death toll has risen to seven in the May 12 derailment in Philadelphia. NTSB confirmed the train was traveling over 106 mph on a curve where the speed limit is 50 mph. Positive Train Control, which would have stopped the train, was not present.

May 14 - The Washington Post - Wonkblog

FEATURE

It will take a broad coalition of interests to once again make it safe for "free-range kids" to walk and bike on the streets of American communities.

May 14 - Patrick L. Phillips

Halfway between public transit and private cars, new and varying forms of 'microtransit' threaten to out-compete traditional public services. Concerns about equity, inclusion, and employee compensation follow.

May 14 - Human Transit

Evidence is building up that the Brazil's extravagant spending on the World Cup soccer championships last year won’t have the last positive impacts promised by government officials. Next up for Brazil: the Olympics.

May 13 - NPR

Whether driveways are anti-urban or 'anti-pedestrian' depends on how we segregate street uses. As shared spaces where they cross sidewalks, driveways inform the wider question: what makes for a good street?

May 13 - Urban Kchoze

When water policy and land use planning operate in separate spheres, it's more difficult to design for efficient resource use. Better communication is needed in the drought-stricken southwest.

May 13 - Next City