The Daily Source of Urban Planning News
They Paved Paradise, Put Up a Parking Lot …
"Big Asphalt" has compromised our health, safety, and welfare—but we can defeat it if we try.
Study: Sprawl Costs the U.S. Economy $1 Trillion Annually
A major new study estimates that sprawl costs the U.S. economy more than a trillion dollars annually, and results, in part, from planning and market distortions. Smart policy reforms can result in more efficient and equitable development.
Ohio State University Planning Accessible Bike Sharing System
Ohio State University plans to launch a bicycle sharing system this fall that is flexible and accessible, meeting the needs of many types of users. The system will include a mix of bicycles including tandem, hand cycle, electric assist, and others.
Study: South Los Angeles Fast Food Ban Didn't Cut the Fat
A fast food ban enacted in 2008 in an effort to curb obesity, diabetes, and other chronic health issues failed to achieve its well-intentioned goals, according to a new study by the RAND Corporation.
St. Paul Approves Bike Plan—200 Miles of Bike Infrastructure Included
The St. Paul City Council approved a bike plan on March 18, 2014 that will more than double the amount of bike pathways and connections in the city. The plan will advance the goals established by the city's 2008 Comprehensive Plan.
On the Self-Driving Car's Taste in Maps
The navigational software of successful driverless cars will make Google Maps seem like child's play. But can such a system replace or improve upon human instinct and adaptability?
Where Los Angeles Equals San Francisco's Density
Though the Los Angeles region is very dense, significant barriers to transit-oriented planning remain. Based on this analysis, the lack of a central urban core shouldn't be one of them.
$6 Billion Master Planned Development Moving Forward in the East Bay
Concord, California is considering a trio of massive redevelopment proposals for the site of a former Navy weapons depot that could bring 12,000 homes and 6 million square feet of commercial development to the fringe of the East Bay Area.
Estimated Cost of Fixing the Port Authority Bus Terminal: $10 Billion
For those keeping track at home, the Port Authority report that estimated the cost of a new bus terminal in Midtown came in at ten times the original estimate a year ago.
Affluence Still at Home in the Suburbs
Commentators often say an influx of wealth is transforming American cities. But if prosperity is really still suburban, what are the consequences for the environment?
BLOG POST
Communicating Transit Benefits: We Can Do Better
Planners can do a better job communicating the benefits of high quality public transit and transit-oriented development. We can learn from marketing professionals—it's time to channel Don Draper.
FEATURE
Broken Planning: How Opponents Hijacked the Planning Process
An op-ed describes the broken state of the planning and development approval process—where opposition politics rule and the answer is usually "no."
Texas Town to Flip the Switch—100 Percent Renewable Energy
Georgetown, located north of Austin and home to 54,000 Texans, will soon be a part of the future, by running completely on renewable energy.
Surveying the Results of 150 Years of Persistent Growth in Atlanta
The American Institute of Architects will visit Atlanta this year, a month after the 150th anniversary of the end of the Civil War. What should we know about the city as it exists today?
Road Builders Seek Federal Gas Tax and Rebate Plan
The American Road & Transportation Builders Association seeks to pair a gas tax with a repatriation tax that would rebate the revenue to tax filers. ARTBA joined other infrastructure advocates to oppose current efforts to eliminate the gas tax.
BLOG POST
Death and Life in Seoul
A new article in the Journal of Planning Education and Research tests whether Jacob’s ideas ring true for predicting pedestrian vitality in Seoul.
Dallas Addresses Transit-Dependent Poverty
In Dallas poorer people often rely on transit, a familiar pattern throughout the United States. But when car ownership grants access to opportunity, this can be a problem.
Survey: Americans Buying In to the 'Golden Age of Local Innovation'
While Congress continues a spectacle of inertia and citizens grapple with a recovery fraught with inequity and conflict, local initiatives are taking control of the future direction of communities around the United States, according to a new survey.
Another Republican-Controlled State to Increase its Gas Tax
It will be no April fools joke when motorists pay an extra six-cents per gallon at gas pumps in the Mount Rushmore State on April 1 thanks to actions of the legislature on March 13 and the likely signing of the bill by Gov. Dennis Daugaard.
The Challenge of Redesigning an Accident-Prone Street
Philadelphia's Washington Avenue experienced 915 car crashes between 2010 and 2013. The city wants to minimize risk in its redesign, but lacks the space to install every suggested improvement.
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.
