New York City

Subway Library

Meet New York's New 'Subway Library'

Public transit has always been a good place to catch up on some pleasure reading, but now the New York MTA and the New York Public Library have taken their synergy to new levels.

June 9, 2017 - The Architect's Newspaper

Embarcadero

Report Ranks the World's Leading Cities: Now and in the Future

New York is the most important city in the world, but San Francisco is best positioned for the future, according to AT Kearney's "Global Cities" report.

June 8, 2017 - World Economic Forum

Rockaway Beach

The New Boardwalk at Rockaway Beach Showcases Coastal Resilience

The new boardwalk at Rockaway Beach shows how sea level rise is requiring new design and infrastructure decisions for the resilience of coastal communities.

June 6, 2017 - Climate Central

MTA Bus

MTA Proposes Bus System Overhaul for Staten Island

Staten Island is getting what appears to be the biggest trend in transit planning: a bus system makeover.

June 2, 2017 - Staten Island Advance

Brooklyn Bridge

Learning from New York

"Manhattanization," a pejorative term coined in San Francisco half a century ago by opponents of tall buildings, needs to be rethought, writes San Francisco Chronicle's Native Son columnist, Carl Nolte, upon return from a weekend trip to New York.

June 1, 2017 - San Francisco Chronicle

LIRR Train

How Long Island Transit Segregates By Class

Long Island's two major transit services, MTA's LIRR trains and the NICE bus system, are less coordinated than they could be. This has a big impact on ease of movement for low-income residents.

June 1, 2017 - StreetsBlog NYC

Bollards

Saving Lives: Including Sidewalk Bollards in Street Design

Countless lives were likely saved by a strategically placed bollard on W. 45th Ave. which stopped a motorist who had driven three blocks on city sidewalks, mowing-down as many pedestrians as possible, from entering the Times Square pedestrian plaza.

May 31, 2017 - The New York Times

New York Parking

The Hidden Costs of Free Parking for Teachers

Bill de Blasio's decision to hand out more than 10,000 parking placards to school employees incentivizes driving and costs the city money.

May 26, 2017 - StreetsBlog NYC

Small Town Art

Activating Artists as an Urban Resource

Planning and art don't traditionally mix, but that's changing. Embedded at NYC's Department of Design and Construction, artist Mary Miss envisions public art as an infrastructural aid.

May 24, 2017 - Next City

Single Room Occupancy

NYC's Rental Market Returns to the Single Room Occupancy Model of a Century Ago

A New York Times feature details the re-emergence of the single room occupancy (SRO) unit in the New York rental market. Despite a stigma and an old-fashioned quality, the SRO is becoming a badly needed housing solution.

May 23, 2017 - The New York Times

George Washington Bridge Bus Station Reopens After Delayed Renovation

The George Washington Bridge Bus Station should have reopened at the end of 2016, but now that it is, a lot of weary commuters have received a huge quality of life improvement.

May 21, 2017 - NorthJersey.com

A Deadly Crash Is an Accident Because it Isn't Terrorism

Cable news networks interrupted broadcasts on Thursday morning with breaking news: a vehicle had just driven three block on the sidewalks in Times Square, New York, resulting in massive casualties. Anchors asked, "Was it terrorism or an accident?"

May 21, 2017 - Daily News

Four Miles of Protected Bike Lane Proposed After Queens Bike Fatality

A two-way bike lane protected by a concrete barrier could be on the way for Northern Boulevard in Queens as a way to increase bike safety around the Joe Michaels Mile bike path.

May 20, 2017 - StreetsBlog NYC

nyc. subway.

New York MTA Proposes 6-Point Plan to Reduce Subway Headaches

The new plan to reduce delays on New York's subway system will rely on short-term fixes, rather than long-term modernization projects.

May 19, 2017 - The New York Times

Central Park from Rockefeller Center Historic Photo

Friday Eye Candy: A Mobile App That Provides a Historic Window Into New York

The Urban Archive app will be popular with anyone interested in the history of New York City. Hopefully the idea spreads to other cities soon.

May 19, 2017 - The Architect's Newspaper

Op-Ed: The High Cost of Free Electric Vehicle Parking

Two New York city councilmembers are hoping to entice more residents to buy electric cars by offering free parking for the electric vehicles on Saturdays. Not so fast, says an op-ed for Streetsblog USA.

May 14, 2017 - Streetsblog USA

New York Subway

Is this Any Way to Run a Subway?

In New York's subway, stations are not the only historic parts of the 113-year-old system. Essential communications infrastructure responsible for keeping the trains running belongs in a museum, explaining the cause of many recent delays.

May 4, 2017 - The New York Times

Penn Station Interior

Cuomo Has a Unique Opportunity with Penn Station

The disastrous state of the country's most busy transit station presents an opportunity to make big improvements.

May 4, 2017 - The New York Times

Affordable housing

A Path to Looser Land Use Regulations

Harvard economics professor Edward Glaeser discusses the research on local land use controls, and why it makes sense to reevaluate them. Successful approaches may start at the state level.

May 2, 2017 - Brookings

Toronto Subway

MTA Ready for Open Gangway Subway Cars

Open gangways are featured on subway trains in Toronto and Montreal. They could also be a welcome addition to the crowded New York Subway by 2023.

April 27, 2017 - New York Daily News

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.