The City of Santa Monica, California, provides real-time parking availability information on the Internet in hopes of relieving traffic problems from motorists circling for a parking space.
"Introduced Tuesday just as the holiday shopping season begins, the novel real-time site, parkingspacenow.smgov.net, will be updated every five seconds and display numbers of available parking spaces for public garages and surface beach lots. People thinking of venturing into Santa Monica's congested central area will be able to check their computers beforehand for information that could help steer them to the best location."
Other cities are looking at the example.
"The International Herald Tribune reported this week that Paris plans in December to launch a service allowing harried drivers to use their cellphones or global positioning system navigation devices to find out in real time whether parking spaces are available nearby. A French parking official said the service should improve traffic flow in a city where, at times, up to 25% of vehicles are in search of a parking space."
Read the full story: Santa Monica revs up parking space website
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity
Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.
Malls are becoming the midtowns of the future
Mall and office park redevelopments are a generational opportunity to create new nodes of urbanity.
NYC breaks ground on anti-flooding infrastructure project
New York City's new system will reduce stormwater flows to local sewers by 90%.
One Kentucky town’s secret to affordable housing
The Smoketown Community Land Trust has already built seven affordable homes for community members.
Houston gains petal-shaped cooling infrastructure to make streets more ‘delightful’
The city has installed the pavilions along 15 blocks in Houston.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority