Fewer seats and more room for standing commuters are among the updates to the rail cars coming to BART.
After getting the approval of the California Public Utilities Commission, ten new rail cars are ready to be integrated into BART service in the Bay Area. "The new cars have three doors on each side for quicker passenger loading and unloading, modern signage and automated announcements," Michael Cabanatuan writes for the San Francisco Chronicle. The seats also feature new coverings.
"BART’s original timeline called for the first of hundreds of new cars to go into service in 2016, but delays caused by electrical problems pushed the start date into November 2017," Cabanatuan reports. There are over 600 cars in the BART system, and current plans call for that number to go up to 775 cars by 2020.
FULL STORY: New BART rail cars could start service in time for Friday’s evening commute
San Francisco’s BART Awarded $545 Loan for Upgraded Rail Cars
The agency plans to modernize its fleet with more efficient rail cars equipped with new safety features.
BART Closes $35 Million Deficit
Cost control and revenue generation measures prevented service cuts.
BART to Raise Fares in January
The transit agency says it needs more state and federal support to meet its operating costs and avoid a growing budget gap.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Vehicle-related Deaths Drop 29% in Richmond, VA
The seventh year of the city's Vision Zero strategy also cut the number of people killed in alcohol-related crashes by half.
As Trump Phases Out FEMA, Is It Time to Flee the Floodplains?
With less federal funding available for disaster relief efforts, the need to relocate at-risk communities is more urgent than ever.
Plastic Bag Bans Actually Worked
U.S. coastal areas with plastic bag bans or fees saw significant reductions in plastic bag pollution — but plastic waste as a whole is growing.
Improving Indoor Air Quality, One Block at a Time
A movement to switch to electric appliances at the neighborhood scale is taking off in California.
Opinion: How to Rebuild the ‘Starter Home’ Market
Large minimum lot sizes and restrictions on multi-unit housing put an artificial floor under home costs. Is it time to eliminate them?
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.
Borough of Carlisle
Smith Gee Studio
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)