With new road-building measures approved and funded in Atlanta, the debate over what to do about the area's traffic and transportation woes is ignoring the severe health impacts of air pollution.
"It's no surprise then that state Transportation Board Chairman Mike Evans had nothing but high praise earlier this month for a $25-billion-plus roads-only plan put forth by the libertarian Reason Foundation and the conservative Georgia Public Policy Foundation. Or that state House Transportation Committee member Vance Smith provided a welcome ear when the road-builder-dominated Georgians for Better Transportation proposed an apparent tax increase -- under which a 1 percent sales tax hike would replace the gas tax -- to pay for car-and-truck-oriented projects."
"The pro-highway crowd is pitching such prescriptions as its antidote to traffic congestion. Those who support a more balanced approach point out that more roads inevitably bring more traffic."
"But limiting the whole transportation debate to the issue of traffic congestion ignores what may be the greater problem: air pollution. Public health experts say hundreds to thousands of metro Atlantans die prematurely from problems related to the bad air, and that thousands more suffer such maladies as asthma and lung disease."
FULL STORY: Road-building schemes ignore Atlanta's air pollution problems

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
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.
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Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
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