The advent of sprawl coincided with a move toward earlier school start times, prompted by a need to coordinate complicated bussing. If students could walk to school, the problem might disappear.

It's hard to believe as a younger person, but before mass suburbanization school used to start at 9 a.m. or later. That isn't the case today. Mimi Kirk writes, "according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, at least 75 percent of schools surveyed in more than 40 states for a 2015 report started before 8:30 a.m., with a significant number starting in the 7 a.m. hour."
Why the change? Kirk traces it to the 1960s and 1970s, when sprawl began to make walking to school difficult. Cultural changes around childrearing also discouraged walking. The result, a tiered bus schedule, imposed early start times for high schoolers. As driving became the norm, so did an early start.
Kirk discusses how the 7:30 a.m. start may cut into young people's sleep needs. "That research, which recently led both the CDC and the American Academy of Pediatrics to urge later start times at American schools, shows that teenagers need at least nine hours of sleep a night."
A movement to push back school start times is picking up speed, but faces its share of debate. Long-term, a common sense solution to the problem would be to re-enable walks to school. But that would require walkable communities, and encouraging those can be an uphill climb both ways.
FULL STORY: Suburban Sprawl Stole Your Kids' Sleep

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Restaurant Patios Were a Pandemic Win — Why Were They so Hard to Keep?
Social distancing requirements and changes in travel patterns prompted cities to pilot new uses for street and sidewalk space. Then it got complicated.

Map: Where Senate Republicans Want to Sell Your Public Lands
For public land advocates, the Senate Republicans’ proposal to sell millions of acres of public land in the West is “the biggest fight of their careers.”

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths
Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.

California Homeless Arrests, Citations Spike After Ruling
An investigation reveals that anti-homeless actions increased up to 500% after Grants Pass v. Johnson — even in cities claiming no policy change.
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.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
Custer County Colorado
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)