The age-old conflict between cars and bikes finally has the attention of one of the giants. Ford's Info Cycle project mounts sensors on street bikes to map out how multi-modal city travelers move around.

You know multi-modal alternatives are catching on when Ford steps into the ring. "More than a century after Ford itself fatally disrupted the horse carriage industry, the people at the prototypical 20th-century manufacturing company are confronting a proliferation of 21st-century alternatives to the old paradigm of one person, one car, in which simply pushing new models off assembly lines each year won't cut it."
Developed in Palo Alto, Ford's Info Cycle project uses a sensor system to gather bicycle movement data, "along with OpenXC data gathered from its cars, to track the changing way people are moving around cities." Mounted on a whole fleet of bikes, "the sensor is capable of recording a variety of data, including location, pedal speed, ambient light, temperature, altitude, and speed. The data is then available for analysis."
In addition to providing insight for Ford, the data collected could aid street design to improve safety and usability. As of right now, Ford appears to view the project as a study in the kind of disruptive innovation many 20th-century behemoths have fallen prey to.
Says Sudipto Aich, a principal research engineer for Info Cycle, "Ask anyone who rides in the city the top thing they are mindful of, it's a car [...] that in itself is potentially a huge opportunity. Now, bike companies aren't thinking about cars, and car companies aren't thinking about bikes."
FULL STORY: Ford Tries to Figure Out Bicycles

Planning for Congestion Relief
The third and final installment of Planetizen's examination of the role of the planning profession in both perpetuating and solving traffic congestion.

Minneapolis Housing Plan a Success—Not for the Reason You Think
Housing advocates praise the city’s move to eliminate single-family zoning by legalizing triplexes on single-family lots, but that isn’t why housing construction is growing.

Car Noise Is Killing Us
It’s not just traffic collisions that kill—a new study from researcher at Rutgers finds that the loud noises emanating from cars has direct impact on heart health in Americans.

Parks as a Weapon Against Climate Change
The 2022 ParkScore finds that cities are increasingly employing green space as a tool for mitigating heat and extreme weather effects, but the distribution of parks remains inequitable.

Louisiana Capital Shifting to Electric Transit
The Baton Rouge area is now served by a fleet of nine all-electric buses.

New Community Engagement Practices for Seattle’s Comprehensive Plan Update
A major update of Seattle’s comprehensive plan is just getting under way, with new opportunities for local groups to get involved with outreach and engagement.
City of Malibu
EMC Planning Group Inc.
Jefferson Parish
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Harvard GSD Executive Education
City of Rohnert Park
City of Hot Springs
City of Lakeway, Texas
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.
Hand Drawing Master Plans
This course aims to provide an introduction into Urban Design Sketching focused on how to hand draw master plans using a mix of colored markers.