Among the arguments rail advocates use is that rail transit costs less to operate than buses. The savings, they suggest, will soon pay for the cost of rail construction.
"As pointed out on page 353 of The Vanishing Automobile, a major flaw in this reasoning is that light-rail operating costs are not comparable to bus operating costs. New light-rail lines "skim the cream" of transit riders because they tend to be built in the busiest transit corridors. Since costs per passenger mile depend heavily on ridership, the cost of any transit running in a busy corridor is likely to be less than the cost of a bus roaming through low-density suburbs.
...If transit agencies truly want to save money on operating costs, the data point to a much better way than spending hundreds of millions or billions on rail transit. Several transit agencies that have light rail also contract out some of their bus services to private operators."
FULL STORY: Does Light Rail Pay for Itself?
Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
In Urban Planning, AI Prompting Could be the New Design Thinking
Creativity has long been key to great urban design. What if we see AI as our new creative partner?
How Trump's HUD Budget Proposal Would Harm Homelessness Response
Experts say the change to the HUD budget would make it more difficult to identify people who are homeless and connect them with services, and to prevent homelessness.
The Vast Potential of the Right-of-Way
One writer argues that the space between two building faces is the most important element of the built environment.
Florida Seniors Face Rising Homelessness Risk
High housing costs are pushing more seniors, many of them on a fixed income, into homelessness.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Jefferson Parish Government
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont