The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Federal money is making high-speed rail possible, but state governments are unsure if they can afford to maintain and operate the systems once they are in place.

March 1 - Stateline.org

The single largest source of air pollution in Southern California are the Ports of LA and Long Beach. Environmentalists, environmental justice advocates, and Teamsters are working together to replace offending diesel drayage trucks.

March 1 - The New York Times - Business

Desalinization is a costly process because of the massive electricity needed to make it work. A Canadian startup believes it can cut that cost by 80% with a thermo-ionic process.

March 1 - The Los Angeles Times

A number of hotels across the country have found that having a resident ghost is good for the bottom line, attracting tourists and thrillseekers.

March 1 - USA Today

A small manufacturer of wind turbines in Colorado Springs, Colorado is ramping up to become the city's first renewable-energy company, specializing in small wind systems for urban homes.

March 1 - The Gazette (Colorado Springs)

The Olympics have ended in Vancouver, but their costs live on.

February 28 - The New York Times

Nicola Twilley and Sarah Rich are launching a project called Foodprint NYC with the goal of creating a comprehensive vision for a food policy for New York. Urban Omnibus has this interview.

February 28 - Urban Omnibus

Much of the land use plan is focused on what will not be used -- areas set aside as urban preserves.

February 28 - The Oregonian

The City of Seattle is looking to revive some of its often forgotten and neglected urban spaces: alleys.

February 28 - The Seattle Times

The Brooklyn neighborhood of Bedford-Stuyvesant is coming up in the world but is managing to preserve its African-American culture throughout.

February 28 - The New York Times

A new survey conducted by HNTB Corporation says that nearly nine in ten Americans are currently open to high-speed rail travel for long-distance travel within the United States.

February 27 - HNTB Newsroom

<em>The New York Times</em> reviews a new book by Joel Kotkin about the role of immigration and minority populations in America.

February 27 - The New York Times

Port-au-Prince is not an outlier. Many other major cities in developing and poor countries lie along earthquake fault lines and are in danger of destruction.

February 27 - The New York Times

When people talk about cable cars, they picture San Francisco's quaint trolleys. But cable-propelled transit (CPT) is a viable transportation option in the 21st century, argues Steven Dale.

February 27 - New Geography

The new urban design review board once again deems that a publicly backed project doesn't do enough to encourage activity on the street and sends the Downtown Improvement District back to the drawing board.

February 27 - Omaha World Herald

The backlash against red-light cameras provide a cautionary tale for those who want to cut costs and raise revenue through technology.

February 26 - Wall Street Journal

Planning policies that produce cheap, abundant parking are fundamentally at odds with efforts to promote transit, biking, and walking. A new report from ITDP shows how some cities have started to align parking policies with sustainable transport.

February 26 - Streetsblog

Long commute + High Fuel Costs = Home Losses in Exurbs.

February 26 - Marketplace

Andres Duany has designed a prefab house specifically for the victims of the Haitian earthquake. 1,000 of them are on their way to the island now.

February 26 - CNU

Streetsfilms launches a new series they're calling "Fixing the Great Mistake.”

February 26 - Streetsblog