North America
The Most Popular Urban Planning Articles of 2020
The most-read news, features, and blogs on Planetizen in that year that was 2020.
New Analysis Tools Measures Transportation Health Impacts
The Integrated Transport and Health Impact Model estimates how planning decisions affect public health, including physical activity, collisions and vehicle exhaust. This can help create healthier communities.
Cities Have Doubled in Size Globally in the Last 20 Years, Study Says
New research from China finds an incredible rate of urban expansion in North America and China.
The Most Cited Planning Researchers
Using Google Scholar Citation Profiles, Virginia Tech Planning Professor Tom Sanchez has created a database of planning research citations.
Missing Middle Housing: Thinking Big and Building Small to Respond to Today’s Housing Crisis
Dan Parolek, inventor of the term Missing Middle Housing, has written a new book on the subject, available now from Island Press. The following excerpts offer insight into overcoming planning and regulatory barriers to deliver the desired housing.
Sunday Fun: What's a Collective Noun for a Group of City Planners?
Stephen Quinn, host of CBC Radio One's popular morning show The Early Edition, offered a prompt to the Twitterverse last week and inspired plenty of creativity.
The Renewed Challenge: Sustaining a City's Culture and Character
From the outset, defining the culture and character of a city is a daunting task, especially when the city around you disappears.
Does Density Aggravate the COVID-19 Pandemic? Early Findings and Lessons for Planners
A new study finds that county density is not significantly related to the infection rate, but higher density counties have significantly lower virus-related mortality rates than those with lower densities, possibly due to superior health care.
Anti-Racist Reforms for the Urban Planning Status Quo
An urban planner in Vancouver defines the roots of racism in city building, and calls on urban planners to be more effective anti-racist allies.
New Ideas in Urban Research
Findings from graduating doctoral students undertaking urban-related research.
The Four Horsemen of the 'Fiscal' Apocalypse
Rick Cole identifies the Four Horsemen of the 'Fiscal' Apocalypse: Cratering Revenue, Neglected Infrastructure, Pension Debt, and Community Need, as heralds ushering the reinvention of city services to meet the needs of today’s urban realities.
Staying Put to Fight COVID-19
The potential of the coronavirus to influence the way we travel and where we live is explored in this deep dive that also imagines how the world might benefit from less vehicle travel, during and after a pandemic.
Overcoming Social Distance
People are finding new ways to connect digitally across physical spaces during the coronavirus pandemic, and these temporary solutions could have a lasting impact on the way we live.
How We Learn Public Transportation and Infrastructure Lessons
"Who do you learn from?" is a question that transportation planners, particularly in the United States, should ask themselves.
Transit Ridership Dropping Due to Coronavirus; Long-Term Funding Consequences Feared
The effects of a global pandemic on American shores are beginning to emerge for public transit systems. The consequences of a drop in transit ridership could extend beyond the end of the pandemic.
Chain Restaurants and Cars Go Together. Driving Ruins Local Flavor
City Observatory research shows that urban regions where residents drive less and rely more on other travel modes have more independent restaurants and more varied dining options. Bon appetit for walking, bicycling and public transit.
'Today’s Dockless Bike-Sharing Systems Are Wild Systems'
Dockless bikes offer the unexpected and help users navigate and understand the urban environment in new and different ways.
Analysis: Parking Won't Save Struggling Commercial Corridors
Research suggests that more and more parking won't solve the woes of struggling commercial corridors, even if it's difficult for business owners located on those corridors to believe.
Transportation Trends for 2020 (And What Cities Can Do About Them)
William Riggs, assistant professor at the University of San Francisco School of Management, predicts the trends that will continue an ongoing revolution in transportation.
Walmart to Launch Autonomous Grocery Delivery Program in Houston
Walmart is planning on delivering groceries autonomously in Houston at some point in 2020.
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.
New York City School Construction Authority
Village of Glen Ellyn
Central Transportation Planning Staff/Boston Region MPO
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
