Civil rights activists sued CalTrans for failing to provide wheelchair ramps across the state. In federal court yesterday, CalTrans settled with the groups, agreeing to over a billion dollars in access improvements over 30 years.
From The Los Angeles Times: "The agreement applies to about 2,500 miles of sidewalk, crosswalks and park-and-ride facilities that are owned and maintained by Caltrans along state roads and highways.
Attorneys from Disability Rights Advocates, a nonprofit law firm based in Berkeley, contend that thousands of required wheelchair ramps along state routes are either missing, do not comply with federal law or lack warnings such as bumps that the blind can feel underfoot."
Read the full story: State to pay unprecedented $1.1 billion to make walkways accessible to disabled
Caltrans vs. Americans with Disabilities Act
Citing the estimated current cost of repairs as a partial reason for noncompliance with federal law, Caltrans heads to court against disability advocacy groups. The agency has failed to maintain or upgrade thousands of curbs and intersections.
Amtrak makes over 160 stations fully accessible
Upgrades include new elevators, signage and accessible restrooms.
Look North: 3 ways Canadian planners are crushing digital accessibility
Although accessibility regulations look similar in the United States and Canada, our northern neighbors have managed to make planning materials more usable for people with disabilities. Here's what we can learn from them.
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.
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.
Mass. votes against statewide minimum lot size for single-family homes
Over 2 million residents voted on Question 7; it was decided by just over 30,000 votes.
Maryland’s $15 billion bridge project gains key approval
The Maryland Transit Authority said the project will create over 60,000 jobs and add $23 billion to the local economy.
‘No clear next steps’ for Chicago's permanent festival grounds
Eleventh Ward Ald. Nicole Lee has suggested Soldier Field as a possible location for the permanent event space.
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