The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Four billion pounds of old carpet get dumped every year in the United States, and five pounds of oil goes into producing a single pound of nylon. New recycling methods could save all that oil by producing new nylon from old with little energy cost.

January 4 - greentechmedia

Winter storms have combined with bad road engineering, geography, funding shortfalls and inequities in Sonoma County, California. drivers and cyclists can expect an unusually rough ride this year and more to come.

January 4 - The Press Democrat

Sarah Goodyear at Grist gives seven ideas for New Year's resolutions you might consider for improving your community, including planting something, going for a walk, and getting to know your neighbors.

January 4 - Grist

Yonah Freemark over at the Transport Politic presents an exhaustive catalog of openings and construction of new transit in the U.S., from the Wickford Junction Commuter Rail Extension in Rhode Island to Phase 1A of the Expo Line in Los Angeles.

January 4 - the transport politic

The city of El Paso is hoping a new plan will breathe life back into formerly booming streets sucked dry after a freeway replaced them as the main entrance to town.

January 3 - El Paso Times

National Geographic tackles the controversial issue of population growth, and the sustainability of a growing population. Should we worry about maxing out the planet? Not necessarily, according to Nat. Geo.

January 3 - National Geographic

This slideshow from <em>The Guardian</em> looks inside some of Detroit's historic and decaying buildings.

January 3 - Guardian

This piece from <em>The Globe and Mail</em> takes a look at the history of Vancouver's waterfront, and how it gradually became public land.

January 3 - The Globe and Mail

FEATURE

January 3 - Luis Rodriguez

After 9/11, lower Manhattan became a tangle of makeshift roadblocks and security measures. Architect Rob Rogers was tasked with redesigning the bollards to be more pleasing to the eye while still serving as secure barriers to entry.

January 3 - Metropolis Magazine

Out of the 15 tallest buildings in the world, ten are in China.

January 3 - PressTV

The common traffic light isn't normally thought of as a problem. But what if you were colorblind? That's just one aspect of these eight proposals for a rethinking of the traffic light, gathered by WebUrbanist.

January 3 - WebUrbanist

A new study by the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison found that bicycling contributes $1.5 billion to Wisconsin's economy every year.

January 3 - Bicycling Federation of Wisconsin

When CA High Speed Rail Authority officials chose the initial Central Valley, 65-mile stretch to begin construction (extended to 123 miles thanks to OH and WI), they were not expecting to encounter the opposition they've seen elsewhere - wrong!

January 3 - Los Angeles Times

The New York Taxi and Limousine Commission solicited proposals for a more fuel efficient vehicle that could serve as New York taxis. Three finalists have been chosen.

January 3 - AutoBlogGreen

BLOG POST

<!--StartFragment--><p class="MsoNormal"> Be a better person; be a better planner. Musings from a planner who wants to improve our profession for 2011. Here’s how:</p>

January 2 - Melissa Hege

A new study in 8 countries says yes, contrary to government predictions.

January 2 - Miller-McCune

American City & County Magazine picks 6 "crown communities" for 2010, which it says "exhibit the qualities that build strong communities: cooperation, creativity and leadership."

January 2 - American City And County

Cities seeking to become more tech-savvy and open up their data are turning to independent software developers to solve their problems.

January 2 - Governing

Donald Shoup's market-based parking concept comes to another city, this time, Seattle.

January 2 - The Seattle Times