An app is helping to bring transit riders from their home to the nearest park-and-ride in King County, Washington.
A new app may offer an alternative to getting transit riders from their home to the local park-and-ride facility. Matt Spaw of Crosscut writes that King County Metro is partnering with the carpooling app iCarpool as part of its TripPool program, which will allow riders to locate shared van pools near them and hitch a ride to the park-and-ride.
For the program, Metro will provide vans to volunteer drivers. At any time, riders can log in to the iCarpool app and see rides near them. The rider makes their way to the pickup spot, where they will be picked up by the driver. The rider pays through the app and is charged 26 cents per mile.
In addition to providing the marked van, Metro also pays for gas, maintenance and insurance. Unlike with Uber, the driver makes no profit.
Spaw writes that the TripPool program will be tested in Mercer Island and southeast King County. Mercer Island’s park-and-ride facility, in particular, has been suffering from an overflow of users and not enough parking spaces to accommodate them. The TripPool program is scheduled to launch late this year, or in early 2016.
Read the full story: Metro’s answer for last-second carpool needs
Report: One-Fifth of Seattle Households Are Car-Free
According to one local writer, the city’s low rate of car ownership should encourage officials to support public transit and reduce parking minimums.
A ‘Playbook’ for Better Bus Service, From King County Metro
King County Metro operates one of the nation’s busiest transit systems—without running any trains. The agency recently released a playbook as a guide to transit service.
King County Postpones August Target for Transit Sales Tax Initiative
King County, home to Seattle, will wait to ask voters to approve a 0.2% sales tax for funding transit until a time both when transit use is higher, and people aren’t facing waves of sudden unemployment.
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.
Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity
Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.
Malls are becoming the midtowns of the future
Mall and office park redevelopments are a generational opportunity to create new nodes of urbanity.
NYC breaks ground on anti-flooding infrastructure project
New York City's new system will reduce stormwater flows to local sewers by 90%.
One Kentucky town’s secret to affordable housing
The Smoketown Community Land Trust has already built seven affordable homes for community members.
Houston gains petal-shaped cooling infrastructure to make streets more ‘delightful’
The city has installed the pavilions along 15 blocks in Houston.
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
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority