Jeff Bezos' proposal to deliver packages by aerial drone has the potential to upset traditional models of logistics and distribution, but it's most powerful effect may be on the urban airspace. Are blue skies ahead for Bezos' vision?
"Bezos is proposing to build a fleet of small robotic eight-motored helicopters – drones – to carry individual packages under five pounds in weight within a 10 mile radius of delivery centers," notes Drew Reed.
"Are we witnessing the dawn of a brave new dronecopter world? No one is certain, but Bezos’s vision is certainly a lot more plausible than the tacocopter and may yet see the light of day. And who knows? Perhaps upping the number of drone deliveries isn’t a bad thing (provided the drones aren’t equipped with weapons like their wartime counterparts). It means fewer trucks on the street, though how much fewer is unclear; it’s going to take a whole lot of five-pound drone shipments to equal the weight carried by just one two-ton truck."
Read the full story: Envisioning a Future Urban Dronescape
Proposed Walmart drone pad draws backlash in North Carolina
Residents opposing the Walmart delivery drone facility say they're worried about privacy and noise.
Key Warehouse Centers Challenge Distribution Center Expansion
Communities near major e-commerce distribution centers are increasingly resisting new construction, citing air pollution and other public health impacts.
'Indirect Source Rule' Would Clean Up Warehouses in Southern California
Dr. Joe Lyou, CEO of the Coalition for Clean Air, walks through the legal necessity of South Coast AQMD's proposed Indirect Source Rule, which aims to accelerate the transition to zero-emission technologies and fleet electrification.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Chicago breaks ground on $3 billion megadevelopment
The new neighborhood, titled Foundry Park, will one day host 3,700 residences.
California High-Speed Rail Authority CEO resigns after $600,000 scandal
Under Ian Choudri, the authority used taxpayer dollars to fund first class flights and trips to nightclubs.
Want to study the Missouri River? Soon, you may need unanimous approval from 10 states
Legislation would require 10 governors’ permission to study or build projects moving water outside the basin.
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.
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
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority