Do sport utility vehicles cause more wear and tear on roads than cars? The mayor of Chicago thinks so; engineers disagree.
"Mayor Daley's plan to sock it to the owners of sport utility vehicles with a $90 city sticker fee is based on a false premise: that vehicles weighing over 4,500 pounds cause more wear and tear on roads than cars. Engineering and transportation experts...insisted that roads are typically designed for heavy trucks that weigh 'at least double,' if not 10 times what an SUV does." A professor of civil and architectural engineering at IIT commented: " 'Don't get me wrong, I don't like SUVs. They're wasteful vehicles that contribute to greater air pollution, further deplete petroleum resources, take up parking spaces and intimidate other drivers. But if they're going to use an argument, they should use a rational argument. That one doesn't hold water. It doesn't contribute to the degradation of the roads any more than an ordinary passenger vehicle would.' "
Thanks to Connie Chung
FULL STORY: Engineers say extra fee for SUVs based on a myth

Rethinking Redlining
For decades we have blamed 100-year-old maps for the patterns of spatial racial inequity that persist in American cities today. An esteemed researcher says: we’ve got it all wrong.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Walmart Announces Nationwide EV Charging Network
The company plans to install electric car chargers at most of its stores by 2030.

New State Study Suggests Homelessness Far Undercounted in New Mexico
An analysis of hospital visit records provided a more accurate count than the annual point-in-time count used by most agencies.

Michigan Bills Would Stiffen Penalties for Deadly Crashes
Proposed state legislation would close a ‘legal gap’ that lets drivers who kill get away with few repercussions.

Report: Bus Ridership Back to 86 Percent of Pre-Covid Levels
Transit ridership around the country was up by 85 percent in all modes in 2024.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
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Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
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