The Daily Source of Urban Planning News
To Improve Street Safety, NYPD Cracks Down on Elderly Pedestrians
How far should cops go to ticket jaywalkers, particularly when dealing with non-English speaking senior citizens? An 84-year-old upper-West Side resident was targeted by New York's finest, and ended up arrested, bloodied and hospitalized.
(A Lot) More Homebuyers Paying Cash
Interest rates on mortgages increased over the summer, and lenders are still holding back on loans, but the cause of the surge in all-cash home sales is a cause for concern for the long-term health of the housing market.
Utah Oil Shale Plans—'First Commercial Production In Decades'
A proposal to build and operate the first commercial oil shale production facility “in decades” near the Book Cliffs in Utah is meeting legal opposition from environmental groups.
The Road to Prosperity: Real-Time Approaches to Economic Improvement
People have been driving about 1% less per year for the last 9 years. What can public-private partnerships for transportation alternatives do to stoke this fire?
Chicago's Data Projects: Overblown or On Target?
Chicago's big-data projects seem unwieldy, but there is a sound core plan informing them.
Europe is Latest to Loosen Climate Commitments
As warnings from scientists about our changing planet become more dire, countries are retreating from their prior climate commitments. Once a leader, the European Union is bowing to economic pressures and loosening renewable energy targets.
Gentrification and Displacement: Not the Relationship You Might Have Thought
The prevailing wisdom is that as a neighborhood gentrifies, long-time, low income residents are forced to move out because of rising rents, i.e. displacement. Two studies from Columbia University and the Federal Reserve draw different conclusions.
Report: Caltrans Systematically Quelled Bay Bridge Safety Concerns
Instagram images and group bike rides now celebrate the Bay Bridge’s eastern span, but the bridge’s long construction process was a constant source of concern. A new report details what went wrong to (hopefully) prevent future mistakes.
Whatever Happened to Declining Oil Consumption in the U.S.?
Last year, the U.S. increased oil consumption by two percent, surpassing the increase in China for the first time in more than a decade according to a new IEA report. How does this increase square with peak car, peak VMT, and peak oil consumption?
L.A. Breaks Ground on New Light Rail Line as Pols Debate Airport Connection
Tuesday was a day of celebration in South L.A. as officials broke ground on the 8.5-mile Crenshaw Line, the newest addition to the region's expanding transit network. But just two days later, politicians resumed bickering over how to connect to LAX.
Sneckdowns: Nature's Street Safety Pilot Project
It's hard to imagine how the wintry mess blanketing cities across midwest and northeast could improve street safety. But recent snows provide one benefit being touted by safety advocates: temporary curb extensions or "neckdowns" caused by snow banks.
Report: Millennials Only Have Conditional Love for Philly
Like many cities amidst an influx of Millennials, Philadelphia must solve problems with crime and eduction for the young generation to stay. A new report from Pew Charitable Trusts indicates many Millennials have no intentions of sticking around.
Friday Funny: Subway Signage Prankster Disrupts Commute Drudgery
There’s a note of melancholy over the human condition in the work of a prankster who has been plastering satirical images and messages around cars on the London Underground.
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Learning from Chicago's Schools
As the north side of Chicago has gentrified, many Chicago schools' test scores have improved- evidence that if a city neighborhood attracts enough affluent families, its schools will become more attractive as well.
South Lake Shore Drive Extended in Chicago; Huge Mixed-Use Development to Follow
The October opening of a new 1.9-mile stretch of road on Chicago’s Southside anticipates a 40-year master plan for the Lakeside development—600 acres of new development in the middle of one of the country’s largest cities.
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StreetSeen: A New Tool for Understanding the Built Environment
Want an easy to use public engagement tool that helps you to understand the visual preferences of the public? StreetSeen (http://streetseen.osu.edu), a free online tool allows planners and others to simply construct and deploy visual surveys.
Monorails Might Have a Future After All
For those of you who thought the recent shuttering of Sydney's monorail symbolized the general decline of the once-futuristic transit mode–think again! Sao Paulo is set to open a new 17-mile line, the first segment of a monorail-based transit system.
A Primer on Types of Zoning Codes
Los Angeles' City Planning Department offers a layman's introduction to the many forms of zoning codes, from Euclidean to Performance to Incentive.
Waterfront Ballpark in Oakland a Tough Sell
Following unsuccessful attempts to move the Oakland Athletics to San Jose (an area controlled by the San Francisco Giants), team owner Lew Wolff is resistant to a plan to move the team to a waterfront location.
Pullman Historic District in Chicago Considered for National Park Status
Completed in 1880 as a company town by railcar tycoon George Pullman, the 300-acre Pullman Historic District in Chicago could be a beautiful addition to the National Park System.
One Hundred Miles
County of Mendocino
planning NEXT
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
Montrose County
Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA)
The Pocatello Development Authority
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
