Technology

Close-up of hands holding soil above tall grass.

New Documentary Highlights Regenerative Agriculture and Climate Change

Common Ground is a recently released documentary which urges viewers to rethink our relationship with soil and approach to agriculture and food production.

May 7, 2024 - In These Times

Freeay with Detroit skyline in background.

Detroit Metro Testing ‘Smart Road’ Tech

Sensors installed along a segment of Interstate 94 could help improve safety, limit speeding, and alert officials to potholes and debris.

May 7, 2024 - GovTech

Close-up of apartment rental listing on iPad or tablet device.

HUD Issues Fair Housing Guidance for AI

AI software used to select tenants or target housing advertisements has the potential to introduce discrimination and bias.

May 7, 2024 - Route Fifty

Seattle

A Cutting-Edge Planning Hackathon in Seattle

In GeekWire, Chuck Wolfe covers an atypical urban planning and policy gathering called an “Urban Resilience Hackathon,” which was held at the University of Washington in Seattle late last month. For a day, the event showcased collaborative problem solving and innovative thinking in addressing urban challenges.

May 6, 2024 - GeekWire

Jaguar Self-Driving Car

Waymo Expanding Robotaxi Service to More Bay Area Cities

The company was permitted to operate in 22 Bay Area cities without restrictions in March.

May 6, 2024 - San Francisco Chronicle

Construction work on highway segment in Indiana that will charge electric vehicles.

This Highway in Indiana Will Charge EVs

The project will test a technology that wirelessly charges vehicles driving or parked on the roadway.

May 6, 2024 - The Cool Down

Close-up of car steering wheel and dashboard with driver's hand on steering wheel and illustration of automatic braking system on windshield with 'STOP' graphic.

NHTSA Finalizes Automatic Braking Rule to Advance Road Safety

New cars will be required to include automatic detection and braking technology for vehicles and pedestrians by 2029.

May 1, 2024 - National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

White Waymo self-driving taxi on street in San Francisco, California with brick buildings in background.

California Bills Take Aim at Robotaxi Regulation

Local officials want more control over how and where autonomous cars are deployed.

April 29, 2024 - Tech Crunch

A Metro Los Angeles bus driver is behind the wheel while wearing a mask.

LA to Pilot Bus-Mounted Cameras for Parking Violations

The program is designed to cut down on cars illegally parked in bus lanes.

April 25, 2024 - Los Angeles Times

View of Dallas city skyline with moderately busy freeway in foreground at twilight.

AI Traffic Management Comes to Dallas-Fort Worth

Several Texas cities are using an AI-powered platform called NoTraffic to help manage traffic signals to increase safety and improve traffic flow.

April 24, 2024 - Dallas Morning News

Black car parked in bike lane

New App Pays Users to Report Illegally Parked Cars

A Swedish company is leveraging the power of crowdsourcing and the gig economy to enforce parking laws.

April 22, 2024 - Euronews

Young woman and man seated on subway car looking at phones.

Google Maps Introduces New Transit, EV Features

It will now be easier to find electric car charging stations and transit options.

April 19, 2024 - BGR

EVgo electric car charging station along Interstate 15 in California desert on the route to Las Vegas.

Appeals Court: California Emissions Standards Upheld

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the California Air Resources Board, the nation's two most powerful environmental regulatory agencies, won an important round in federal court last week. But the emissions standards battle may not be over.

April 15, 2024 - San Francisco Chronicle

Close-up of electric car battery.

Industry Leaders: Automakers Must Cut EV Battery Weight in Half

Experts call for lighter batteries, diversification of fuels, and a shift away from private cars and towrad public transit.

April 10, 2024 - Transport Topics

Kentucky state capitol dome in Frankfort, Kentucky.

Kentucky Governor Vetoes Autonomous Car Bill

The bill, passed by the state legislature, faced opposition from safety advocates and labor groups concerned about the loss of freight jobs.

April 9, 2024 - Governing

View of upper story of row of townhomes.

Can Technology Help Build Better Housing?

Cities need more “missing middle” housing. A new startup aims to help real estate developers build it.

April 8, 2024 - Hugh McFall

White neoclassical building with cupola and City Hall lettering on front.

Using AI to Analyze Public Comments

A new tool is designed to help local governments organize and understand large volume of community input on projects.

April 4, 2024 - StateScoop

Homeless Camp

San Jose Is Training AI to Identify Homeless Camps

Images captured on cameras mounted on a municipal vehicle are being used to train a private technology companies’ AI algorithm to detect tents and signs of habitation in vehicles.

April 2, 2024 - The Guardian

View down Pennsylvania Avenue from above with Capitol dome in background.

Washington DC Launches Open Data Chatbot

City data is now available literally at the public’s fingertips, no data analytics skills required.

March 31, 2024 - Cities Today

Close-up of hand holding charging cable moving toward charging port on electric car.

Undoing Biden's EV Rule

The partisan divide over how government should reduce greenhouse gas emissions was on full display after the Biden administration finalized its emissions standards rule for light and medium duty vehicles on March 20.

March 29, 2024 - Office of U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan

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.