The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

According to Chris Peck, “Better cycling infrastructure, an enforced road traffic law and a reduction in the space available to motor traffic are all required to get cycling growing again in London.”

December 2 - The Guardian (UK)

This week, New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority made public its request for $5 billion in federal aid to rebuild what was damaged during Superstorm Sandy. But a look at the details reveals an ambitious agenda for improvements.

December 1 - The New York Times

Derek Thompson discusses the findings of a new study from the Brookings Institution that ranks the world's 300 biggest cities by GDP and job growth over the past year. Put simply, China is growing and Europe is slowing.

December 1 - The Atlantic

Sick of reading about all the work that must be done to slow and mitigate the impact of global warming? A growing number of scientists are investigating how to "make climate change work for us."

December 1 - The New York Times

Don't call these modern apartments SROs - they go by 'micro-apartments', and they just received a significant approval, 375 of them, that is. One more step awaits: Mayor Ed Lee must give his blessing, and he appears rather non-committal.

December 1 - San Francisco Chronicle

Matt Chaban reports on the making of “the Upper East Side’s very own High Line." Current proposals seek not only to "re-pedestrianize" Park Avenue, but also to restore some of its turn of the century glory.

December 1 - The New York Observer

Richard Florida uses the Kardashian clan's takeover of the North Miami community of San Souci for a lesson in urban economics and "negative externalities."

November 30 - The Atlantic Cities

The new American household is much like the old multigenerational household that existed before World War II, recent population trends show. And builders are responding by offering "bonus" and "flex" rooms, while circumventing outdated zoning.

November 30 - The New York Times

While the federal government has dithered on comprehensive programs to limit greenhouse gas emissions, states and cities have led such efforts. Climate change skeptics are now leading efforts to reverse state renewable energy mandates across the US.

November 30 - The Washington Post

As Britain confronts the silent epidemic of inactivity and obesity, Peter Walker examines how the invisible dangers of a sedentary lifestyle are compared to the more publicized risk of injury from activities designed to get people moving.

November 30 - The Guardian

Thanks to a $2 million federal grant, New Orleans is embarking on a study focused on improving the city's Claiborne Avenue corridor, which sits adjacent to an elevated stretch of Interstate 10. The project's public outreach effort begins next month.

November 30 - The Times-Picayune

It's still far from clear what the political outcome of Syria's civil war will be. But for the country's built environment, the effects are stunningly evident. Millions of buildings have been damaged or destroyed since March 2011.

November 30 - Los Angeles Times

Howard Blackson's "Next Urbanism Lab" series looks at recent trends and lessons learned for urban designers. While the Bilbao Effect, the Vancouver Model, the High Line, and Active Living may provide seductive role models, local insight is key.

November 30 - PlaceShakers

Driverless cars, 'super elite" fliers, and more rail for everyone; these are among the predictions from experts for how travel in the United States will change over the next decade.

November 30 - CNN Travel

Using new analysis of recent US Census data, Richard Florida demonstrates that “[c]ities and regions where density is more concentrated near their urban cores — appear to gain the biggest economic advantage.” That, and a tad more happiness.

November 30 - The Atlantic Cities

The raw and partially treated sewage that has for the past month, and continues to, flow into the New York region's waterways "will be one of the most enduring and expensive effects of Hurricane Sandy," reports Michael Schwirtz.

November 30 - The New York Times

In the aftermath of controversial Mayor Rob Ford's ouster this week, architecture critic Christopher Hume looks at how Toronto's next mayor can begin to "deal with issues that matter."

November 29 - The Toronto Star

The Pentagon is building a "CyberCity" that simulates real communications and operations, reports Robert O'Harrow Jr. Government hackers will train to attack and defend the nation's critical infrastructure in cyberspace.

November 29 - The New York Times

Edwin Heathcote examines the common ethos that connects Kyoto's Katsura Imperial Villa and Los Angeles's Schindler House, "two homes, far apart in time and space, that influenced the modern movement."

November 29 - Financial Times

Kaid Benfield shares the seven winners of this year's National Awards for Smart Growth Achievement, who were recognized by the EPA for protecting "the health and the environment of our communities while also strengthening local economies."

November 29 - NRDC Switchboard