On a dark and cold December night, D.C. residents celebrated the delivery of a holiday gift a half-century in the making when a gleaming red streetcar was lowered into place along the city's new line for testing.
“'This is a good holiday gift. It’s dressed up in red and white, just like Santa,' said [Anwar] Saleem, who worked with three mayors to help bring the streetcar to a 2.4-mile stretch of Washington running east on H Street from behind Union Station, then along Benning Road to Oklahoma Avenue."
The H Street/Benning Road line may eventually become part of a 37-mile network of streetcar lines crisscrossing D.C., if city officials have their way.
"Terry Bellamy, who heads the District’s Department of Transportation, said the growing city has no place to put new roads. He said it needs new ways to get people around, and city residents have proven to be enthusiastic adapters, as with Capital Bikeshare," adds Laris.
“'Three years ago, when we brought out the bicycles, people said, ‘Will they ride the bicycles?’ ' Bellamy said. And they have, millions of times, he said. 'The community wants to have options.'”
FULL STORY: District’s streetcar line finally has its first car
Officials Kill St. Paul Streetcar, BRT Proposals
The proposed transit lines would have linked the St. Paul airport, downtown, and the Mall of America.
St. Paul ‘Arterial BRT’ Could Be Faster, Cost Less Than Streetcar
Officials are eyeing a plan that could replace a proposed streetcar line with a bus rapid transit line.
Feasibility Study for Proposed Seattle Streetcar Loses Funding
The $1 million cut doesn’t bode well for the beleaguered project, which some city councilmembers see as redundant and overpriced.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
San Francisco's School District Spent $105M To Build Affordable Housing for Teachers — And That's Just the Beginning
SFUSD joins a growing list of school districts using their land holdings to address housing affordability challenges faced by their own employees.
The Tiny, Adorable $7,000 Car Turning Japan Onto EVs
The single seat Mibot charges from a regular plug as quickly as an iPad, and is about half the price of an average EV.
Engineers Gave America's Roads an Almost Failing Grade — Why Aren't We Fixing Them?
With over a trillion dollars spent on roads that are still falling apart, advocates propose a new “fix it first” philosophy.
The European Cities That Love E-Scooters — And Those That Don’t
Where they're working, where they're banned, and where they're just as annoying the tourists that use them.
Map: Where Senate Republicans Want to Sell Your Public Lands
For public land advocates, the Senate Republicans’ proposal to sell millions of acres of public land in the West is “the biggest fight of their careers.”
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.
Borough of Carlisle
Smith Gee Studio
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)