A public-private partnership has come together to fund a 3.4-mile light rail line through Detroit's commercial district, and convinced the Feds to bend the rules a little to bring it to reality.
Yonah Goldmark writes, "Incapable of paying a 40% share in the project's cost, the minimum local (or state) commitment to a New Starts rail project, Detroit officials asked their representatives in Congress to count the M1 spending as part of the local share. That way, the city would be able to qualify for a full 60% aid from Washington as long as it were able to cobble together the missing ten percent.
In the recent spending bill, Detroit got its way."
FULL STORY: Congress Approves M1 Involvement in Detroit Light Rail
Ridership Drops As Detroit's QLine Streetcar Starts Charging
Since Detroit's new streetcar system started charging, ridership has dropped. Those who are riding aren't necessarily paying anyways.
Detroit's M-1 Rail Line Credited for Delivering Investment—A Year Before Opening
The 3.3-mile M-1 Rail line in Detroit has been described as a boondoggle of unparalleled proportions. Boosters of the project, however, have gathering evidence of investment in neighborhoods along the route.
Comparing Boondoggles: Light Rail Line in Detroit, Streetcar in Washington D.C.
Jim Epstein suggests that Detroit's new light rail line is America's largest boondoggle; Matthew Yglesias argues that that ignominy belongs to Washington D.C.'s planned streetcar.
Alabama: Trump Terminates Settlements for Black Communities Harmed By Raw Sewage
Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
The 120 Year Old Tiny Home Villages That Sheltered San Francisco’s Earthquake Refugees
More than a century ago, San Francisco mobilized to house thousands of residents displaced by the 1906 earthquake. Could their strategy offer a model for the present?
In Both Crashes and Crime, Public Transportation is Far Safer than Driving
Contrary to popular assumptions, public transportation has far lower crash and crime rates than automobile travel. For safer communities, improve and encourage transit travel.
Report: Zoning Reforms Should Complement Nashville’s Ambitious Transit Plan
Without reform, restrictive zoning codes will limit the impact of the city’s planned transit expansion and could exclude some of the residents who depend on transit the most.
Judge Orders Release of Frozen IRA, IIJA Funding
The decision is a victory for environmental groups who charged that freezing funds for critical infrastructure and disaster response programs caused “real and irreparable harm” to communities.
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.
Clanton & Associates, Inc.
Jessamine County Fiscal Court
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
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NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service