For Central Florida, it's a billion-dollar question: Will a 20-mile light-rail system running from Altamonte Springs to the Orange County Convention Center be a boon to commuters -- or an expensive boondoggle? [Link corrected]
"Before officials decide whether Orange County needs rail-transit, they might want to talk to Millie Lopez. The Longwood resident seems a good candidate to use rail transit. Each day, she crawls down Interstate 4 in her car to her job at the sprawling office campus of Maitland Center. Her hours are regular and she's not a gear-head who lives to drive. So who better to try a rail line along I-4? But Lopez is a mom, so Lopez has no intention of relying on public transit. "When you have children, it's always important to have your car -- in case of emergencies, " she said. There's an army of Millie Lopezes out there -- commuters who will decide whether a rail system soars or flops. Once the project is in the ground, ridership models and consultant opinions mean nothing. Everything will boil down to people."
Thanks to Sheryl Stolzenberg
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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.
Placer County
Mayors' Institute on City Design
City of Sunnyvale
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Cornell University's College of Architecture, Art, and Planning (AAP), the Department of City and Regional Planning (CRP)
Knoxville-Knox County Planning
Lehigh Valley Planning Commission
City of Portland, ME
Baton Rouge Area Foundation