El Paso

Blue and white bus in El Paso, Texas.

El Paso launches improved bus network, new microtransit service

Sun Metro is eliminating some bus lines in favor of more frequent service, estimating that only 1% of riders will have to walk farther to reach a station.

June 12, 2026 - KFOX 14

Blue Sun Metro bus on street in El Paso, Texas.

El Paso to build $16M bus maintenance facility

The funding includes nearly $13 million from a federal grant.

April 13, 2026 - El Paso Times

Group of cyclists wearing helmets pause in front of a mural in El Paso, Texas.

El Paso has Built 1,000 Miles of Bike Lanes in 10 Years

The city is now asking the public for input on updates to its bike plan.

April 2, 2026 - KVIA

Water purification plant in El Paso, Texas on riverfront.

El Paso Wastewater Purification Facility Breaks Ground

As water supplies become strained and technology advances, cities look to wastewater as a viable source of drinking water.

March 6, 2025 - Governing

Aerial view of El Paso, Texas at dusk with mountains in background.

El Paso Zoning Changes Could Bring Opportunity—or Displacement

Some residents feared proposed zoning reforms aimed at redressing historic injustices could harm residents in the short term.

November 20, 2023 - Next City

Orange and white streetcar in El Paso, Texas.

El Paso Streetcar Marries History, Mobility, and Economic Development

The city’s streetcar line, defunct since 1974, is moving thousands of riders through a newly revitalized downtown.

October 18, 2023 - Next City

A mountain range at sunset appears in the background of this photo, with cacti in the foreground.

Biden Designates a New National Monument in West Texas

The Castner Range National Monument in West Texas is the second of two new national monuments announced by President Joe Biden this week.

March 26, 2023 - The White House

Rendering of freeway deck over Interstate 10 in El Paso

El Paso Freeway Cap Linked to Road Expansion

A deck reconnecting neighborhoods divided by the interstate is part of a controversial freeway expansion proposal.

January 27, 2023 - Smart Cities Dive

Aerial view of downtown El Paso, Texas with mountains in background

El Paso Launches Vision Zero Planning

The El Paso City Council approved a resolution to move forward with Vision Zero planning and initiatives in an effort to eliminate traffic deaths on some of the nation’s most dangerous streets.

September 18, 2022 - El Paso Times

El Paso

Report Criticizes El Paso Interstate Expansion Plan

An independent review of TxDOT's proposed expansion of I-10 through downtown El Paso highlights several flaws and a price tag close to $800 million.

February 18, 2022 - CBS 4 El Paso

A field of golden poppies fill the desert below mountains in the U.S. Southwest.

Proposed National Monument Would Offer Unprecedented Equity on Public Lands

An opinion piece written by a Texas Congressional representative explains how the proposed Castner Range National Monument would expand on "America's Best Idea."

August 10, 2021 - The Hill

El Paso Trolleys

El Paso Streetcar Returns With Free Fares

The historic streetcars will connect uptown and downtown amenities in a 4.8-mile loop.

August 4, 2021 - KLAQ

El Paso

El Paso Update: 'On the Brink of Disaster'

Among the nation's more populous counties, El Paso continues to suffer the most severe coronavirus outbreak. One out of nearly every 30 residents currently has COVID-19. Four additional mobile morgues, on top of the existing six, have been ordered.

November 13, 2020 - CNN

Mass Shootings

Corona Crisis in America: The Metropolitan Area to Watch

The battle to control the coronavirus in the U.S is being led by 50 governors and the D.C. mayor, but ultimately it is at the local level where decisions are often the most consequential. Among large counties, the crisis is most severe in El Paso.

November 3, 2020 - The Texas Tribune

Drive-Through Coronavirus Testing

'We are Entering the Steep Slope of the Epidemic Curve'

Dr. Scott Gottlieb, President Trump's former Food and Drug Administration commissioner, warned CBS viewers recently that the U.S. was at a "dangerous tipping point" in the pandemic. "We are on the cusp of exponential growth," he added later.

November 1, 2020 - CBS News

Coronavirus

City vs. State: Mayors Want Power to Require Mask Wearing to Slow Coronavirus Spread

Coronavirus cases are surging in the Lone Star State's urban areas, so mayors of nine of its largest cities asked Greg Abbott for the power to mandate the wearing of masks or facial coverings, prohibited by executive order, to slow viral spread.

June 21, 2020 - The Texas Tribune

drinking fountain

Drinking Water Lessons from West Texas

Several cities in West Texas have a long history in wastewater reclamation, even using the water for drinking, due to the Texas drought. El Paso aims to build the nation's largest advanced purification project for direct water reuse.

September 12, 2018 - Quartz

El Paso

City as Border Zone

Architects Ersela Kripa and Stephen Mueller, founders of El Paso firm AGENCY, discuss the reality and rhetoric of the US–Mexico border.

March 7, 2018 - The Architectural League

Trees and People

Report Details the Long-Term Financial Benefits of Green Design

This report estimates that U.S. cities could save half a trillion dollars by investing in "smart surface technologies." The study takes into account obvious factors like energy use and less intuitive ones like tourism revenues.

February 20, 2018 - Next City

U.S.-Mexico Border

Binational Bikeshare for the U.S.-Mexico Border

Planners in El Paso, Texas want to expand the SunCycle bikeshare system south of the border in Ciudad Juárez.

January 24, 2018 - CityLab

FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?

After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.

Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold

The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.

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.