The Ukrainian capital has seen the number of cars increase over 600 percent in less than 30 years, taxing the city's infrastructure and presenting local planners with a major transportation challenge.
"Driving or riding down any Kyiv city street today, you have no trouble realizing that the pre-independence auto census of about 150,000 has now grown to upwards of one million. In fact, there are times when you're sitting at some gridlocked corner or square with nothing but cars, trucks, buses and marshrutkas as far as the eye can see that you could easily believe that most of this huge number of vehicles is converging on your location."
"The burgeoning auto population has created headaches for Kyiv City Administration officials, with cars far outnumbering available places to park them. The city is mulling plans this year to build some 26 parking garages and has made parking lots a requirement for new residential construction projects."
"[But] auto driving is neither a privilege nor a right any more than riding in an elevator is. It is a lifestyle...Shifting public investment from a dilapidated yet still quite robust public transportation system to the construction of underground parking garages and cloverleaf interchanges is less a question of civil engineering than social engineering. Raising fares or curtailing service is an awkward and divisive proposition to present to the public."
FULL STORY: Cars, Cars - and More Cars

Rethinking Redlining
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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
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Michigan Bills Would Stiffen Penalties for Deadly Crashes
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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.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
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Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
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