Urban areas across the country have identified bikes as a fat-burning, congesting-decreasing, transit-supporting alternative to automobiles. And Birmingham – despite a need for all these benefits – has lagged tremendously behind.
"The endless calls for increased mass transit funding have blinded the city to other means of increasing connectivity. Even if Birmingham had the sufficient resources to fund a working transit system, the city still lacks the necessary commercial and residential density to make the investment worthwhile."
"Bike infrastructure and culture can roll in as a placemaking tool that also serves as a stepping stone to mass transit," writes Wesley Vaughn.
"Birmingham has excess automobile infrastructure that could be transferred to mass transit, but until we get there, let's convert it into bike infrastructure," he urges. "The city's needlessly wide one-way streets beg for bike-only lanes that could be turned into bus-rapid-transit lanes later on."
"Bikers are typically mass transit users, too, meaning that once the city has a serviceable transit system, they will be its major supporters. Those who cannot afford a car and those who do not want to own a car alternate between bike and transit use depending on their daily needs."
FULL STORY: Biking can help support mass transit
Oregon Passes Exemption to Urban Growth Boundary
Cities have a one-time chance to acquire new land for development in a bid to increase housing supply and affordability.
Where Urban Design Is Headed in 2024
A forecast of likely trends in urban design and architecture.
Savannah: A City of Planning Contrasts
From a human-scales, plaza-anchored grid to suburban sprawl, the oldest planned city in the United States has seen wildly different development patterns.
Washington Tribes Receive Resilience Funding
The 28 grants support projects including relocation efforts as coastal communities face the growing impacts of climate change.
Adaptive Reuse Bills Introduced in California Assembly
The legislation would expand eligibility for economic incentives and let cities loosen regulations to allow for more building conversions.
LA's Top Parks, Ranked
TimeOut just released its list of the top 26 parks in the L.A. area, which is home to some of the best green spaces around.
City of Rochester
Boston Harbor Now
City of Bellevue
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Birmingham, Alabama
City of Laramie, Wyoming
Colorado Department of Local Affairs
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.