The findings of a new study based in Boston offer evidence of negative health outcomes connected to the collision of residential land use and transportation infrastructure.
David Abel reports: "A new study of Boston residents who live or spend a significant amount of time near Interstate 93 and the Massachusetts Turnpike has found that their exposure to microscopic metals and chemicals spewed from vehicles increases their chances of suffering a heart attack or stroke."
According to Abel, the study is just the latest addition to a "growing body of evidence of the dangers of living near highways and other busy roads." Specifically, "those who live within 1,500 feet of a highway have a greater likelihood of developing cardiovascular disease than those living twice as far away."
The study was published last week in the Environment International journal, by researchers from the Tufts University School of Medicine and Boston University School of Public Health. The article also includes reactions to the study's findings from the city's Environment Department and local activists like the Chinese Progressive Association in Chinatown.
Read the full story: New evidence of the dangers of living near highways
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
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.
In Texas, data centers are swallowing promised parkland
Residents who moved to Taylor, Texas for a rural community now have to contend with three data centers in their backyard.
How a Chicago-sized wind farm beat the odds and powered on
The project spanned five presidential administrations and a standoff with a U.S. military base.
MTA gives itself 30 days to transform pit into basketball court
The site has been under construction since 2022; the city originally estimated it would finish the court in 2024.
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
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority