The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

A very large yacht at berth in Washington, with wooded hills in the background.

Superyachts Calling the Shots for How Light Rail Gets Built in Seattle

Determinations made by the Coast Guard to accommodate superyachts will affect the price of light rail and other bridge projects in Seattle and environs.

May 4 - The Urbanist

Lime Scooter

San Diego To Consider Tightening Regulations on E-Scooters

Proposed regulations would limit the popular micromobility devices to two operators, impose new fees, and require more accountability for safe scooter use and parking.

May 4 - NBC San Diego

The Las Vegas Strip, pictured at night with lights and illuminated and Las Vegas Boulevard congested with cars.

NFL Draft Inspires Proposal to Block Cars From the Las Vegas Strip

The NFL draft shut down the Las Vegas Strip to car traffic. Some people liked the change so much that a new law proposes to permanently block cars from the street. Yes, you read that correctly.

May 4 - Fox 11 Los Angeles

Sprawl

How Urban Sprawl Came To Dominate U.S. Cities—And How To Change That

The auto-centric development patterns of American cities are a result of decades of misguided, but reversible, policy decisions.

May 4 - Popular Science

Houston Metro Bus

Houston Transit Ridership Highest Since the Pandemic Began

Ridership on Houston trains and buses rose sharply in March, thanks in part to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo and a limited return to offices.

May 4 - The Houston Chronicle


White clapboard house with For Sale sign in front yard

Diverging Fortunes: Winners and Losers in the Pandemic Housing Market

The sharp rise in housing costs created massive wealth for property owners, while shutting many potential homebuyers out of the market.

May 4 - The Denver Post

Portland Street

PLANOPEDIA

What Is Automobile Dependency?

Automobile dependency is a term used to describe households who must rely on private vehicles for everyday transportation, often due to a lack of safe pedestrian infrastructure, ineffective or absent public transit options, and sprawl.

May 3 - Diana Ionescu


Houston City Park

How Houston Is Growing its Bike Infrastructure

The famously car-centric city is investing more than ever in bike infrastructure, with ambitious plans to build 1,800 miles of protected bike lanes and trails.

May 3 - The Houston Chronicle

San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency

Study: Transit Boards Don’t Reflect Their Ridership

Across U.S. cities, transit agency boards are overwhelmingly more suburban than their riders, causing a disconnect between decisionmakers and the people who regularly use transit.

May 3 - Governing

View of downtown Fresno, California

Mayor Releases ‘One Fresno Housing Strategy’

The document outlines 47 policies aimed at maintaining affordability and encouraging more housing production in the increasingly expensive Central Valley city.

May 3 - The Fresno Bee

Airplane landing at San Diego International Airport

People Mover Proposed for San Diego Airport

The $4 billion project promises to connect San Diego to its international airport in under ten minutes.

May 3 - San Diego Union-Tribune

Los Angeles Traffic - The Newhall Pass

Report: United States Could Cut Transport Emissions by 34 Percent by 2030

The U.S. transportation sector is on track to reduce emissions by 19 percent by the end of the decade, but a new report indicates the public and private sectors could implement policies that would cut emissions by as much as 34 percent.

May 3 - Smart Cities Dive

Kennebec River

Maine Passes Zoning Reform Laws

The state legislature passed two bills, one supporting accessory dwelling units and another incentivizing adaptive reuse, aimed at boosting housing affordability.

May 3 - Maine Beacon

Gazprom building in St. Petersburg, Russia

Energy War Comes to the European Union

When President Putin ordered Gazprom to turn off the valve on pipelines carrying Russian gas to Poland and Bulgaria, he effectively expanded the Russia-Ukraine war to the European Union, threatening their economic well-being and way of life.

May 3 - The New York Times

Master-Planned Community

PLANOPEDIA

What Is a Planned Unit Development?

A Planned Unit Development (PUD) is a specific type of plan or development commonly associated with master planned communities and sprawl. The specific definitions of a PUD vary by jurisdiction, but the term generally refers to a flexible approach to the planning of a variety of housing types and land uses on a relatively large portion of land.

May 2 - James Brasuell

Gaslamp Quarter

BLOG POST

Day Two of the National Planning Conference: Staying on the Cutting Edge

The American Planning Association gathers for its first in-person National Planning Conference since 2019. Planetizen is in attendance. Here is some of what we saw on the second day of the conference.

May 2 - James Brasuell

Shishmaref

Coastal Tribes Facing Numerous Existential Threats From Climate Change

From Alaska to Washington, climate change is real, and it’s here now, for indigenous tribes.

May 2 - Crosscut

A map of the North Hollywood-Pasadena Bus Rapid Transit Line.

Controversial North Hollywood-Pasadena Bus Rapid Transit Line Approved

A controversial project to connect the San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys by bus rapid transit has final approval. Los Angeles, Glendale, Burbank, and Pasadena will have a new connecting transit line as soon as 2024.

May 2 - LAist

I-45 and I-69

A Freeway Rebellion Rises in the Unlikeliest of States: Texas

“There’s no train, there’s no bus, there’s no anything that supports mass transportation. It doesn’t exist.” -Houston resident Fabian Ramirez.

May 2 - The Guardian

View of Wrigleyville neighborhood before a Chicago Cubs game

Chicago Plans ‘Better Streets for Buses’

The city of Chicago is taking first steps toward a commitment to better bus service in the design and configuration of the city's streets.

May 2 - Streetsblog Chicago

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