Data journalism site FiveThirtyEight wades into the complex world of transit ridership data, looking for insights into which cities make use of robust transit systems, and which still have work to do.
Reuben Fischer-Baum analyzes monthly ridership data from the National Transit Database and population estimates from the American Community Survey to calculate 'trips per resident" for 290 urbanized areas. The metric allows a comparison of transit trips between cities of varying sizes.
One of the larger questions examined by the article in reaction to the data follows: "Do certain regions tend to support better public transit, or is this just a product of city size and density?" Here's how Fischer-Baum responds:
"Among all 290 cities, there’s a clear relationship between trips per resident and both total population (the r-squared is 0.41) and population density (r-squared = 0.21). This means that it’s not particularly revealing to map all the cities together, because larger, denser cities are clustered in the Northeast and on the West Coast. But if we look only at the 248 urban areas with fewer than 1 million residents, the total population relationship (r-squared = 0.0002) and population density relationship (r-squared = 0.07) disappear."
FULL STORY: How Your City’s Public Transit Stacks up
Bike Share Lessons From the Pandemic
Bike share data from six U.S. cities offer insight into how Americans have changed travel patterns during the pandemic.
Transit Ridership Dropping Due to Coronavirus; Long-Term Funding Consequences Feared
The effects of a global pandemic on American shores are beginning to emerge for public transit systems. The consequences of a drop in transit ridership could extend beyond the end of the pandemic.
U.S. Transit Ridership Growing Again
The growth in transit rips in the United States over the course of the second and third quarters of 2019 can be traced to growth in two key cities.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
San Diego Adopts First Mobility Master Plan
The plan provides a comprehensive framework for making San Diego’s transportation network more multimodal, accessible, and sustainable.
Walmart Announces Nationwide EV Charging Network
The company plans to install electric car chargers at most of its stores by 2030.
Seattle Builds Subway-Sized Tunnel — for Stormwater
The $700 million ‘stormwater subway’ is designed to handle overflows during storms, which contain toxic runoff from roadways and vehicles.
Feds Clear Homeless Encampment in Oregon Forest
The action displaced over 100 people living on national forest land near Bend, Oregon.
Is This Urbanism?
Chuck Wolfe ponders a recommended subscription list of Substack urbanists and wonders — as have others — about the utility of the "urbanist" moniker.
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.
City of Moorpark
City of Tustin
Tyler Technologies
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions