Safety

Contrary to popular assumptions, large, transit-oriented cities have lower crime rates than smaller, automobile-oriented cities. Jane Jacobs was right! This column discusses this phenomenon and its implications for transport and land use planning.

October 31, 2013 - Todd Litman

The increase in vehicular speeds, removal of street hawkers, and addition of gated neighborhoods are all seen as contributing to a rise in crimes against women in New Delhi and other Indian cities. How can planning and design reverse this trend?

September 28, 2013 - The New York Times

Strapped for cash, cities across the US have decided to save money by turning off street lights. An investigative series documents the effect of all those darkened lights on crime and economic development in San Diego - home to a $30 million backlog.

August 1, 2013 - Fast Company Co.Exist

Utilizing an online tool that compares images from Google Street View, researchers have built a better understanding of the 'small, often imperceptible reasons' that make some streets and places feel safer than others.

July 31, 2013 - The Atlantic Cities

For anyone who has ridden in a high-speed train, the idea of a derailment is terrifying. Last week's crash of an Alvia train in Spain made such fears seem less irrational. Yonah Freemark examines whether high-speed rail is a safe mode of travel.

July 28, 2013 - CNN

A new study by researchers at Children's and the University of Pennsylvania concludes that, contrary to popular perception, cities are safer than rural or suburban areas. Higher rates of fatal car accidents outside cities are largely to blame.

July 23, 2013 - philly.com

In the fifty years since Jane Jacobs introduced the "eyes on the street" theory, it's become a commonly accepted conceit that a mix of use reduces crime. A new study calls that theory into question.

February 28, 2013 - Next City

In the wake of yesterday's surprisingly unsurprising announcement that U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood is stepping down, several reporters who focus on transportation issues have taken stock of his tenure.

January 30, 2013 - Transportation Nation

I don’t know what it is about New Orleans that makes me wax rhapsodic. But something about the city makes everyday life look poetic. I returned to the Crescent City last week after having last visited just seven months ago, when a tree planting

June 25, 2012 - Jeffrey Barg

Edward Blakely, co-author of “Fortress America: Gated Communities in the United States,” pens an opinion piece for The Washington Post looking at the detrimental psychology that exists in gated communities such as where Trayvon Martin died.

April 9, 2012 - The Washington Post

Chuck Wolfe asks if a city's vitality is best indicated at night, and how it should be measured.

September 28, 2011 - myurbanist

“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself—nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance” – President Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1932 This being the decade anniversary of the World Trade Center and Pentagon terrorist attacks, it seems a good time to consider how our society responds to such threats, and what planners can do to maximize safety.

September 11, 2011 - Todd Litman

Four Florida metropolitan areas recently ranked as the most dangerous places for pedestrians, according to a survey by Transportation America.

August 16, 2011 - New York Times

Plans to redesign the expanded publicly accessible section of the White House's front lawn combine both walkability concerns and safety concerns.

July 13, 2011 - The Architect's Newspaper

Seattle has been named one of the nation's safest p[laces to walk or bike. But some question whether that success will translate into any further improvements in bike and pedestrian infrastructure spending.

May 26, 2011 - Publicola

As aging populations grow, more cities and design organizations are looking at how to make streets safer for older residents.

May 25, 2011 - NPR

Neighbors across the country are clashing over whether or not to build sidewalks in their neighborhoods.

March 10, 2011 - The Wall Street Journal

Accompanying a bike commuter on his 50-mile ride to work, this article from Outside looks at the state of bicycle transportation today.

February 18, 2011 - Outside

Cities are commonly thought of as dangerous places for kids to grow up. But a new study challenges that perception.

December 28, 2010 - Grist

A study of cyclists in Ashland, Oregon has found three distinct types of bike riders, the majority of which are interesting in riding, but concerned about safety issues.

November 15, 2010 - Ashland Daily Tidings