The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

<p>A community activist in Philadelphia is rallying support to pressure the city to consider a bike-sharing program similar to the Paris Velib system.</p>

January 20 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

<p><em>Streetfilms</em> presents this brief video montage of cars infringing on the rights of pedestrians.</p>

January 20 - Streetsblog

<p>After more than a year with its funding in limbo and its future questionable, the Chicago Transit Authority has been saved from fare hikes and service cuts by an increase in county sales taxes.</p>

January 20 - The Chicago Tribune

<p>In this article, author James Surowiecki discusses the idea that -- contrary to common assumption -- there is a lot of wisdom to be found in crowds.</p>

January 20 - Scenarios

<p>Two Turkish villages illustrate the impact of radically different approaches to development.</p>

January 20 - The Christian Science Monitor

<p>California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger wanted lawmakers to pull a nearly $10 billion bill from the November ballot that would fund a long-sought high-speed rail system, but he now wants the legislation to require private funding partnerships.</p>

January 19 - Associated Press via San Francisco Chronicle

<p>A high-speed rail connection through the busy Windsor, Ont., and Quebec City corridor has been debated for years. However, the Ontario government's $100 billion infrastructure deficit and the rising cost of land may make it economically unfeasible.</p>

January 19 - The Globe & Mail

<p>As part of a mixed use development proposal, the 1971 Marcel Breuer-designed office tower in Cleveland would become a boutique hotel and residences. The adjacent Cleveland Trust rotunda, designed by G. B. Post &amp; Sons, would become the hotel's lobby.</p>

January 19 - The Plain Dealer

<p>A new report from United for a Fair Economy (UFE) accuses subprime lenders of deliberately and aggressively targeting poor and minority households.</p>

January 19 - Agence France Presse

<p>A 24-second stop-motion animation illustrating a chicane, an inexpensive and effective way to get drivers to slow down on your neighborhood street.</p>

January 19 - Streetsblog

BLOG POST

<p>The other day, half a million plastic balls bounced down the Spanish Steps, one of Rome&#39;s most visited and historic public places. Many visitors, picture-takers and members of the media were caused to wonder &#39;what&#39;s up with all these balls?&#39;</p>

January 18 - Nate Berg

<p>Superheroes exist outside the pages of comic books, and they are committed to improving their communities. Though there are few "supervillains" to tackle, these superheroes serve their cities through civic volunteerism and general do-goodery.</p>

January 18 - City Pages (Minneapolis/St. Paul)

<p>A new report in the latest issue of the <em>Journal of the American Planning Association</em> examines how home-owning and aging baby boomers will drastically affect the housing market.</p>

January 18 - The Wall Street Journal

<p>Despite slow going at the eco-intentional community Arcosanti in Arizona, hundreds of similar "eco-villages" have popped up around the world.</p>

January 18 - E/The Environmental Magazine

<p>The Hollywood writer's strike is beginning to have ripple effects throughout the Los Angeles economy, and has already cost the city $1.4 billion in lost wages.</p>

January 18 - Observer (UK)

<p>A shift in the market has once again transformed the vision for developing Boston's One Kenmore, a Massachussetts Turnpike air rights development project in the heart of the city's Kenmore Square/Fenway Park neighborhood.</p>

January 18 - The Boston Globe

<p>Despite recent findings by consultants that a plan to extend the Washington D.C. metro rail system to Dulles International Airport would qualify for full funding, federal officials are hesitant to approve it, fearing another Big Dig.</p>

January 18 - The Washington Post

<p>The government of Norway has announced plans to offset all of its carbon emissions by 2030, a goal it had previously set for 2050.</p>

January 18 - Reuters via Environmental News Network

<p>Having been particularly targeted by subprime mortgage lenders, neighborhoods with a majority of African American households are bearing the brunt of the housing crisis.</p>

January 18 - The Nation

<p>Despite its relatively low car ownership rates, Britain has one of the worst public transit systems and the most congested roads among industrialized nations, according to a a new report.</p>

January 18 - BBC