"Attractive young females" may be the bellwether of success on new public transit systems, according to a transit consultant who was in the Twin Cities to advise about a planned bus rapid transit line.
"It may not be politically correct to say so out loud, said Alan Hoffman, a San Diego-based consultant, 'but it's what I call the 'AYF Factor.' Attractive young females are the canary in the coal mine of public transit. They're sensitive to safety, and they want to be in a nice spot. If you draw them in, you are reaching a broad market. A whole lot of transit systems, when you look around, you notice certain populations are missing.'"
"He was addressing, in Eagan, dozens of officials involved in the creation of the Cedar Avenue bus rapid transit Corridor -- a project fast-forwarded by the Twin Cities' success in obtaining a major federal grant in competition with dozens of cities. More than two dozen new buses will be added to the corridor from Lakeville to Eagan and into town, and they should be running by 2010."
Read the full story: For new rapid bus lines, much is riding on image
Gold Line Busway Planning Moves Forward in Suburban Minnesota
The cities of Oakdale and Lake Elmo made their opposition to a proposed busway connecting to St. Paul known by withdrawing their support for the project. Now Gold Line transit planners are refocusing their efforts on station location decisions.
Twin Cities Suburbs on an Anti-Bus Crusade
Residents of suburbs located east of St. Paul in Minnesota have coalesced to oppose the Gateway Corridor Gold Line project, which would connect 12 stops along a bus rapid transit line.
The Twin Cities To Get a First Test of Bus Rapid Transit in June
Metro Transit officials announced the opening date for the A Line—the first of potentially many more rapid bus routes featuring platform level boarding and signal priority.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity
Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.
Study reveals best places in the U.S. for cycling, walking
New research from Streetlight Data examines bicycle and pedestrian miles per capita in the 100 largest U.S. cities by population.
DSA members accuse Mamdani of 'abandoning values' over housing redevelopment
New York City's mayor plans to replace about 2,000 units of public housing with private, mixed-income housing.
All sides of BRT debate unhappy with CDOT’s most recent move
The Colorado Department of Transportation is no longer considering center-running bus lanes for Colorado Boulevard.
Massachusetts bogs generate both power, and cranberries
Putting solar panels above farmland is one way Massachusetts is advancing toward its goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
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
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello