The Daily Source of Urban Planning News
Seattle Road Safety Advocates Say Transportation Levy Perpetuates Car-Centric Status Quo
Critics of a proposed $1.3 billion transportation levy say the package isn’t enough to keep up with inflation and rising costs and fails to support a shift away from car-oriented infrastructure.
Appeals Court: California Emissions Standards Upheld
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the California Air Resources Board, the nation's two most powerful environmental regulatory agencies, won an important round in federal court last week. But the emissions standards battle may not be over.
World's Largest Wildlife Overpass In the Works in Los Angeles County
Caltrans will soon close half of the 101 Freeway in order to continue construction of the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing near Agoura Hills in Los Angeles County.
Legislation Introduced to Support Adaptive Reuse of Federal Buildings
The proposed bill would promote the conversion of vacant and underused buildings into affordable housing.
US, Japan Governments Express Support for Texas HSR
A proposed high-speed rail project would link Houston and Dallas using Japanese Shinkansen technology.
Anchorage High-Speed Highway Project Met With Skepticism
The Alaska Department of Transportation and its consultants are working on a Planning and Environmental Linkages study of the Glenn-Seward Highway that bisects the middle of Anchorage, Alaska.
USDOT Issues Grants for Resilient Transportation Infrastructure
The department issued $830 million in grants for improving roads, bridges, and other infrastructure vulnerable to extreme weather and other climate impacts.
BLOG POST
Housing and Equity Take Center Stage at NPC24
With discussions centering on how to solve the housing crisis and create more equitable communities, Minneapolis is a fitting host city for APA’s annual National Planning Conference.
Best Practices for Outsourcing Transit Operations
Contracting with private sector vendors can help transit agencies improve efficiency and provide better service.
Opinion: Unhoused People Need Housing, Not Law Enforcement
The sharp increase in the unhoused population calls for urgent action, not criminalization.
BLOG POST
Planning for Accessibility: Proximity is More Important than Mobility
Accessibility-based planning minimizes the distance that people must travel to reach desired services and activities. Measured this way, increased density can provide more total benefits than increased speeds.
Houston Supportive Housing Development Sparks Debate
Critics say a proposed apartment building would negatively impact the neighborhood’s walkability.
Friday Funny: Gated Community Doubles Down
The Onion skewers suburbia.
‘Cut the Tape’ Report Takes Aim at Inefficiencies
A set of recommendations from the Chicago mayor’s office calls for streamlining city processes to stimulate more residential and commercial development.
Alexandria’s Hopes for Stadium Deal Dashed
The city hoped a stadium for DC-area teams would anchor a new, high-density development in a vacant lot.
Western Solar Plan Charts Course for Development on Public Lands
The BLM’s proposed maps could open up as much as 55 million acres to solar installations.
California Water Plan Readies State for Climate-Impacted Future
A wet winter will replenish the state’s snowpack and reservoirs, but could also increase flooding and wildfire risk in some areas.
Chicago Trains Make More Room for Bikes
Since Metro launched a new bike-friendly policy in February, the number of bikes on its trains rose by 70 percent.
FEATURE
Fair Housing Cannot Take a Back Seat to ‘Build, Baby, Build’
If we overlook fair housing principles in the plan to build US housing back better, we risk ending up right back where we started.
Transit Ridership Continues its Slow Recovery
Ridership grew by 16 percent between 2022 and 2023.
City of Thousand Oaks
City of Wisconsin Rapids
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
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.
