The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

St. Louis Trolley Hoping to Increase Hours
The St. Louis Trolley should begin operating later this year, but planners are hoping for additional funding to allow the service to operate longer hours.
Good Side of the Downside: The End Is (Only) Near
Depressed by city planning in your neck of the woods? Ben Brown says to lower your expectations.

An Ambitious Plan for New Housing on Chicago's South Side
A South Chicago neighborhood will get 20,000 new residential units if a plan goes through.
User Fees and Sales Tax Dollars Finance $1.9 Billion Four-Lane Freeway Widening
A 16-mile express lane and general purpose lane will be added in each direction of the San Diego Freeway in Orange County. A $629 million TIFIA loan will be repaid by toll-paying motorists, while all taxpayers pay most of the remainder.

Novel Solutions for Affordable Housing
The housing crisis calls for creative solutions.
Token Gestures Don't Attract Bike Riders—Connected, Safe Bike Infrastructure Does
A project touted as the "largest pop-up bike grid in the world" achieved rare levels of success on getting people on their bikes in Macon, Georgia.
The World's First Autonomous Train
Autonomous Rail Transit (ART) was created to provide affordable mass transit for communities that find fixed rail investments outside of their price range.

Detroit's Future
By 2040, Detroit will be bigger, more urban, older, and whiter predicts a report from the New Urban Institute that looks at trends, challenges, and assets of the Michigan city.

Impacts of AVs and E-Commerce on Municipal Budgets
A new report from Urbanism Next/SCI takes you through a city’s budget—both revenues and expenditures—and describes the areas that will be affected as AVs become commonplace and e-commerce takes on an even larger role in retail

MIA or DOA? The Brooklyn-Queens Streetcar Fading Fast
The lack of news on the proposed Brooklyn Queens Connector (BQX) is hardly a death knell, but that doesn't mean no news is good news, either.

Financial Stress Plagues Honolulu Rail
The Honolulu Rail Transit Project was slated to cost $5.2 billion. That figure has doubled as construction progresses, leaving the city scrambling for funds amid public outcry.
The Incredible Story of Frances Gabe and Her Self-Cleaning Home
The New York Times pays tribute to an American inventor, builder, and feminist who, more than anything, hated housework.

Editorial: Ambitious Plans Don't Work Without Political Leadership
The Los Angeles Times critiques the political culture in Los Angeles. In this case, it's the failure of a road diet project that provoked the criticism, but these lessons apply to the city's bicycle plans and homeless housing plans, too.

Glut of New Rentals Expected to Reset the New York City Market
When vacancy rates rise, rents should fall. In New York, reports disagree about how much vacancy rates are about to increase, and whether rents will drop at all.

Friday Funny: Sarcastic Responses to Honolulu's 'Distracted Walking' Ban
The Onion's always-sardonic "American Voices" feature allows some totally fake people to respond to Honolulu's recent decision to make it illegal to text while crossing the street on foot.

New Mapping Tool Illuminates the Consequences of Redlining
According to Next City, a new mapping tool from the National Community Reinvestment Coalition reveals the roots of gentrification in addition to making stark a history of discrimination.

10 Years After Minneapolis Bridge Collapse, 'Fracture-Critical' Bridges Abound
The nation mourned the ten-year anniversary of the tragic collapse of the I-35W Bridge in Minneapolis this week.

Lyft Partnering With Amtrak for First-Last Mile Connections
Amtrak is partnering with Lyft to offer train passengers a discounted option for first and last mile needs. New Lyft riders qualify for a $5 savings on each of their first four rides.

San Francisco Creates 'Office of Cannabis'
A "one-stop shop" for marijuana businesses will open in time for the statewide legalization of the industry this January.

Finding Solace in the Uniqueness of Landscape
Decades ago, Walter Benjamin theorized that pretty much everything could be reproduced—and, therefore, nothing was unique. This dismal conclusion, however true it may be, ignores the uniqueness of landscape.
Pagination
City of Moorpark
City of Tustin
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.