The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

<p>Summarizing the results from the 2006 Commuting in America report, Forbes profiles the top ten cities with the worst commute.</p>

December 27 - Forbes

<p>Residents of the largely rural communities along the Cajon Pass, which connects the desert plateau to the Inland Empire and the rest of Los Angeles, lament the region's accelerating growth and loss of open space.</p>

December 27 - The Los Angeles Times

<p>As the population of western industrialized nations stabilizes, the world's largest and fastest growing cities will increasingly be located in poor, developing countries.</p>

December 26 - The Age

<p>In an effort to reduce crowding on D.C.-area subways, Metro is considering increasing rates at peak times and a 35-cent rush-hour surcharge for those who travel through 19 heavily-used downtown stations.</p>

December 26 - The Washington Post

<p>Some baby boomers looking for a place to retire are scouting out homes in New York City, wooed by the city's cultural attractions and public transportation.</p>

December 26 - The New York Times

<p>The state government's plan to build new housing to accommodate anticipated population growth is being pushed over the heads of local officials who contend they had little say in the growth targets.</p>

December 26 - The Sydney Morning Herald

<p>An official government rule published this week citing a shortage in farmland and food crops may force China's oil companies to cancel plans to explore large-scale production of biofuel. Losses in farmable land continue to cause problems for China.</p>

December 26 - International Herald Tribune

<p>While the Dec. 22 U. S Census Bureau report highlights the rapid growth of Arizona, another noteworthy finding is that the South, notwithstanding the huge population loss in Louisiana, added more people, many of them immigrants, than any other region</p>

December 26 - USA Today

<p>Coming to a highway near you: "saddlemount vehicle transporter combinations" -- 97-foot-long big-rig trucks with four trailers -- are on the verge of being approved to travel on the nation's highway system.</p>

December 26 - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services

<p>Amtrak is riding high after reporting the highest revenue of any month for November, with 2006 revenue up 11 percent. The costly, long-distance routes appear to be safe from possible dismantling, according to Amtrak's new president.</p>

December 26 - The New York Times

<p>With federal aid money wasted or tied up in the bureaucracy, and post-Katrina recovery promises left unkept, New Orleans remains an "open wound" and many of its residents are suffering from homelessness and a lack of basic services.</p>

December 26 - Truthout (from New York Times)

<p>Developer and national homebuilder Robert Toll of Toll Brothers discusses his company's decision to expand its homebuilding from the suburbs into high density urban development.</p>

December 26 - Austin American Statesman

<p>A report by the Brookings Institution looks at city and suburban poverty trends over the last 6 years using American Community Survey and Census data. One finding is that since 2005 more impoverished people live in suburbs than in cities.</p>

December 25 - The Brookings Institution

<p>Thousands of protesters in the Indian state of Goa have turned out to voice their concerns against the Goa Regional Plan, a government move to open up much of the state's lands for construction.</p>

December 25 - NDTV.com

<p>The successes of mass transit and light rail in similarly car-oriented cities should be enough of an excuse for Atlanta to give it a try, according to this opinion piece from the <em>Atlanta Journal-Constitution</em>.</p>

December 25 - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

<p>The Southern California city of Simi Valley is opposing recommendations from a regional association of governments that suggest the city should increase its housing stock. The city council sees the increase as unrealistic, citing a lack of land.</p>

December 25 - Simi Valley Acorn

<p>Ecuadorean President-Elect Rafael Correa has announced dedication to building a port on his country's Pacific Coast in a plan to create a cross-continental river corridor to Brazil, an effort to ease transport of Asian goods throughout South America.</p>

December 25 - Business News Americas

<p>A new light rail project connecting several towns to downtown Portland, Oregon, is highly expected to boost the area's economy. Transit-oriented housing and retail development is expected to contribute significantly.</p>

December 24 - The Oregonian

<p>A number of suburban developments in Alabama are taking cues from regional planners and making efforts to improve their livability by building sidewalks.</p>

December 24 - The Birmingham News via Columbus (AL) Ledger-Enquirer

<p>A reporter goes a week without a car in the San Francisco Bay Area in this article about the pros and cons of non-car transport. Though the monetary costs were lower, the cost of time was much higher, especially for an inexperienced transit user.</p>

December 24 - The Contra Costa Times