Accessibility

Wheelchair Ramp

A Look at Accessibility in Atlanta

A wheelchair user describes what it's like to travel on Atlanta streets and on the city's public transit system.

December 28, 2019 - Atlanta

New York Subway Stairs

Saturday Satire: The Accessibility Meeting Is Located Down Three Flights of Stairs

A satirical piece published by McSweeney's calls attention to the remaining work to done in building a truly accessible built environment.

November 9, 2019 - McSweeney's

Winter Storm

Editorial: Toronto’s Snow Clearing Plan Isn’t Fair

The city’s plan for dealing with snow and ice on sidewalks this winter doesn't address past problems and won't meet the needs of residents, say critics.

November 5, 2019 - The Star

MoGo Bikeshare Bikes

Next Steps After S.F. Bay Area Adaptive Bikeshare Pilot Program

A summer program incorporated adaptive bikes into the region’s bikeshare network as a first step in making the system accessible to more riders.

November 4, 2019 - Next City

Sidewalk Closed

The Universal Need for Better Sidewalks

The "8 Principles of Sidewalks" guide has been translated from Portuguese to English and is available to download.

October 24, 2019 - TheCityFix

New York Subway Stairs

$5.5 Billion Plan for More Elevators in the N.Y.C. Subway

The city’s subway system is lagging in station accessibility, but the MTA has a plan to add elevators to 70 stations.

October 10, 2019 - The New York Times

Wheelchair

For Wheelchair Users, L.A. Poses Many Hazards

A trip through the city of Los Angeles reveals the largely overlooked challenges that people with physical disabilities must overcome.

October 5, 2019 - Los Angeles Times

Sidewalk

In D.C., Sidewalks Don’t Equal Walkability

In theory, sidewalks are what make cities walkable. But in Washington, D.C., many sidewalks are not accessible to the people who use them.

September 26, 2019 - Greater Greater Washington

Accesible Mobility

An App to Map the City's Most Accessible Routes

Google Maps is built for able-bodied people, but the AccessMap Seattle app is for everyone.

September 12, 2019 - Yes!

Stroller int he Public Realm

New York City Settles in 'Historic' ADA Lawsuit

A lawsuit has forced New York City to invest significant funds and people power to making the public realm more accessible to people with disabilities.

July 25, 2019 - Politico

Disabled Ramp

More Fourplexes Could Mean More Wheelchair Accessible Housing in Portland

Beyond adding more housing to the market, fourplexes could bring a lot more federally mandated wheelchair accessibility to Portland.

May 23, 2019 - Sightline

Handcycle

Oakland's Adaptive Bike Share Program

The pilot program seeks to make bike share more inclusive by providing bikes designed to make biking easy and accessible for disabled riders.

May 20, 2019 - The Mercury News

Americans With Disabilities Act

Google Doodle Commemorates Those Bumps on the Edge of the Transit Platform

Today's Google Doodle celebrates an important component of accessibility and mobility for the visually impaired.

March 18, 2019 - Google

Chicago ADA Access

Comic Reveals the Difficulties of Navigating the World With Special Needs

A comic strip called "Spinning Our Wheels' explores the difficulties of navigating Chicago with a special needs child.

March 12, 2019 - Chicago Reader

Mobility

Bikeshare Programs Lack Accessible Options

City bikeshare programs are failing to provide equal access for disabled residents, the Times reports.

December 20, 2018 - New York Times

New York Street

Thumbs Down to Planning Rules of Thumb

In planning, a number of common principles of practice are widely accepted. However, an alternative set of guidelines can better serve as information and decision-making tools.

December 11, 2018 - City Commentary

MTA Riders Using Wheelchairs Face Problems Even on Wheelchair Accessible Buses

It's not enough for buses to be equipped with lifts or unfolding ramps, bus drivers need to know how to operate the ramps and they need to work. Often they don't.

July 6, 2018 - City Limits

Wheelchair Accessible

New York MTA Will Spend $600 Million on Disabled Access Improvements

New York's Transit system has long lacked facilities to allow wheelchair users access to many of their stations.

May 3, 2018 - Crain's New York Business

Valley Metro

Phoenix Light Rail Stop Designed with Access in Mind by the People Who Need It

The non-profit Ability360 worked with members of its community, not only to advocate for a new light rail station, but to design a station that would fit the disabled community's needs.

January 11, 2018 - Streetsblog USA

Commute

Four Steps for Making Accessibility a Tangible Part of the Planning Process

Although there is a strong push for accessibility as a key metric in transportation and land use planning efforts, there is still a long way to go in putting theory and intentions into practice.

December 29, 2017 - Next City

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.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.