Car-Centric Planning

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Overhead view of multilane elevated highway with multiple levels.

The Harms of a Car-Centric World

While most of the world’s population doesn’t drive, cars have an outsized negative impact on public health, the environment, and land use.

March 7, 2024 - Streetsblog USA

Bird's eye view of moderately busy large freeway interchange in California.

Opinion: California Must Walk the Walk on Transportation Emissions

While state leaders tout their climate goals at COP28, residents back home continue to fight highway expansion projects that induce traffic and increase emissions.

December 11, 2023 - Streetsblog California

Google Maps street view of McGuinness Boulevard, four-lane road in Brooklyn with green sign for I-278W to BQE and Staten Island.

New York Bike Lane Generates Confusion

A compromise road diet with “flex lanes” falls short of its promise.

October 30, 2023 - Curbed

110-10 Interchange

L.A. Times: California Must Shift Transportation Spending Priorities

Despite its ambitious emissions reduction goals, California continues to spend a majority of transportation funds on car-centric infrastructure.

October 12, 2023 - Los Angeles Times

A line of cars wait at the drive-thru window of a starbucks.

More Cities Ponder the End of Drive-Thrus

Drive-thru fast food restaurants might be a staple of American life, but several U.S. cities are actively considering prohibiting the development of new drive-thrus for the benefit of traffic safety, air quality, and congestion.

August 31, 2023 - The Denver Post

A dirt road turns int he foreground while Half Dome looms majestically in the background.

$3.1 Billion for California Transportation Infrastructure

Federal and state funds were recently awarded to a large number of road projects around California.

August 27, 2023 - CalTrans

Highway Widening

Maryland Highway Widening Plans Moving Forward Under New Governor

Maryland Governor Wes Moore is differentiating his new administration from his predecessor’s, but some projects, like the widening of federal highways in the Capital Beltway, stay the same.

August 23, 2023 - The Washington Post

One of the "Guardians of Traffic" in Cleveland, a scuplture of a large figure adorning a bridge in Cleveland. Downtown Cleveland is in the background.

Parking Requirements Removed Near Cleveland Transit Stops

Transit oriented parking reform has arrived in Cleveland.

August 20, 2023 - Signal Cleveland

The Las Vegas Strip, pictured at night with lights and illuminated and Las Vegas Boulevard congested with cars.

Infrastructure Bill’s Emission Reductions Allotments Fund Highway Projects Instead

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 promised to achieve major progress on emissions reductions and climate resilience. A total of 38 states used the bill to fund emissions- and pollution-producing car-centric infrastructure instead.

August 6, 2023 - The Washington Post

An aerial view of a park and the streets and high-rises of Downtown Omaha.

Downtown Omaha Planning for its Post-One-Way-Streets Era

The Omaha City Council has decided to reverse the transportation model adopted in the city in the 1950s, for the benefit of traffic safety and local retail activity.

June 9, 2023 - KETV

An image taken from the point of view of a driver on a mostly empty freeway, with large overpasses overhead.

Missouri to Spend $2.8 Billion Widening I-70

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson had a $859 million vision to expand I-70 in key parts of the state. State legislators had an even more ambitious vision.

May 9, 2023 - The Kansas City Star

A map of the area of Virginia near Occoquan, Virginia shows. stretch of Interstate 95 that will be widened.

I-95 Widening Breaks Ground in Virginia

A mile-and-a-half-long section of Interstate 95, which handles 80,000 vehicle trips a day, will be expanded in Virginia. The project includes a new shoulder, lighting, and noise walls.

May 1, 2023 - WTOP

A highway sign reads with directions to reach San Francisco to the north and San Jose to the south--both on Highway 101.

101 Freeway in California Slower Than Ever After Widening, Locals Say

Induced demand strikes again.

April 19, 2023 - Streetsblog SF

Aerial view of Interstate 35 bridge over river into downtown Austin, Texas with skyline in background

Controversial Highway Widening Breaks Ground in Austin

Texas’ transportation priorities were on display in March—a few days after the gutting of a transit plan, a highway expansion broke ground depite years of local opposition.

April 3, 2023 - KUT

Miami Traffic Jam

The Cost of Driving Increasingly Out of Reach in the U.S.

New research stresses the importance of socioeconomic differences in U.S. transportation trends.

March 27, 2023 - Salon

North Carolina

North Carolina Drafts Clean Transportation Plan

Similar to other plans focused on reducing emissions from the transportation plan, North Carolina’s draft Clean Transportation Plan will rely on electric vehicles to reduce emissions from the state’s transportation sector.

March 7, 2023 - Government Technology

A speedometer showing Generation Z, Millennials, Generation X, and Baby Boomers

Generation Z Is Driving Less, But History Indicates It Won’t Last

Think Generation Z will usher in the long-awaited post-car future of transit advocates’ dreams? Think again (about the example set by the Millennials).

March 2, 2023 - Bloomberg CityLab

New York City sidewalk with outdoor dining patio with black and white striped umbrellas and black barriers protecting diners from traffic

The Slow Retreat of Pandemic-Era Outdoor Dining Programs Continues

It’s been almost three years since the political dynamics of outdoor dining in the United States shifted, suddenly and overwhelmingly. Increasingly, the status quo is being restored.

March 1, 2023 - James Brasuell

Chicago Commute

The Right to Mobility

As we consider how to decarbonize transportation, preserving mobility, especially for lower- and middle-income people, must be a priority.

January 26, 2023 - Angie Schmitt

A view of Houston's freeways, with downtown in the background.

Rising Costs Threaten TxDOT’s $85 Billion Highway-Building Plans

Texas Transportation Commissioners must have a hangover—backing off its highway building ambitions just a few months after approving the $85 billion Unified Transportation Plan in August 2022.

January 3, 2023 - Houston Chronicle

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