The 96th Street Station of the New York Subway is a bustling, noisy place. Artists and MTA staff are hoping a sound installation of nature sounds will calm the urban scene.
The sounds will accompany a new artwork by designers Sigi Moeslinger and Masamichi Udagawa of stainless steel flowers that will sway as if in a breeze.
"Nearly 200 stainless-steel flowers will hang 12 feet above the turnstiles, mounted in staggered patterns across seven ceiling beams. The flowers, weighing about three pounds apiece, will be allowed to sway slightly, creating the effect of a shimmering garden levitating above the stairways that lead down to the platforms.
The nature noises, which are pending final review by the authority's staff, would be focused by directional speakers on small areas of the station, allowing riders to "walk through" the sounds."
Read the full story: A Calming Presence Amid the Groans and Screeches
How Art Improved New Yorks Metro System
In New York, Arts for Transit is a program that was started to bring "original and integrated artworks into MTA stations and spaces and to promote design excellence." Director, Sandra Bloodworth sits with Urban Omnibus to discuss the program.
MTA looks to bring AI-assisted, multilingual announcement system to subways
Some of the transit agency’s audio systems haven’t been upgraded in 40 years.
NYC's sweltering subway tunnels might soon provide heat to nearby buildings
The MTA is studying how a Thermal Energy Network could capture extreme excess heat from subway platforms to warm nearby municipal buildings.
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.
Move over, LA: St. Louis gears up for Olympics, invests millions in downtown redevelopment
The Missouri city will host the 2028 Olympic soccer group stage and knockout matches.
Dallas releases zoning code overhaul to officials
The drafted overhaul is over 400 pages long.
NYC renovations for dangerous, ‘mercilessly crammed’ street delayed until 2027
Construction was supposed to begin this fall.
San Diego’s Midway Rising project gets greenlight from city council
The project looks to become the largest affordable housing development in California's history.
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