Transportation

Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao

Evaluating Donald Trump's Transportation Efforts

MSNBC asks if the Trump administration has accomplished with its Department of Transportation, and whether Americans are better off because of those efforts.

November 27, 2019 - MSNBC

San Francisco, California

Caltrans to Ditch Level of Service for Vehicle Miles Traveled

Unlike for land use regulations, state law doesn't require Caltrans to switch from Level of Service to Vehicle Miles Traveled in measuring the environmental impact of projects. The state department of transportation is making the change anyway.

November 27, 2019 - Streetsblog California

QLine

Op-Ed: Detroit's QLINE Is 'At Times an Embarrassment'

Randy Essex details why it is that "rely" isn't a word that comes to mind for many Detroiters when they think about downtown's QLINE streetcar system.

November 27, 2019 - The Detroit Free Press

New York Subway

Why New York City's Flooding Its Own Subway Entrances

MTA reassured disoriented New Yorkers that it's flooding subway entrances on purpose, to test barriers that it hopes will guard the system against another Sandy.

November 27, 2019 - Quartz

Denver, Colorado

The Top Urban Planning Books of 2019

The decade wraps up with another engaging crop of highly readable and recommendable books on the subject of urban planning. There's a lot to learn, on many related subjects, among this year's top planning books.

November 26, 2019 - Josh Stephens

Personal Mobility

D.C. Speeds Up Protected Bike Lane Plans

The District Department of Transportation last week promised to double the pace of its planned construction of protected bike lanes, but advocates say the District still isn't doing enough to provide safe accommodations for people on bikes.

November 26, 2019 - The Washington Post

Baltimore Multi-Modal Path

Baltimore's 'Big Jump'

A temporary bike and pedestrian path is changing the street design game in Baltimore.

November 26, 2019 - Greater Greater Washington

Reserved Parking

A Post-Car-as-King Planning World

Cities not named from Boston in Massachusetts are explored for lessons in contemporary parking regulations.

November 26, 2019 - CommonWealth

San Francisco Traffic

Congestion Pricing Under Discussion in San Francisco

An expanding number of major U.S. cities are exploring the idea of charging drivers to drive into certain heavily trafficked parts of town. San Francisco is the most recent to explore the idea of congestion pricing (also known as cordon pricing).

November 25, 2019 - Smart Cities Dive

Central Suburban Passenger Company

A New Suburban Rail System for Moscow

Two of a planned five new suburban rail routes, modeled on examples in Paris and Berlin, opened last week in Russia.

November 25, 2019 - Railway Gazette

New York Bike Signage

Op-Ed: NYC Making Progress on Bike Network Access, Should Do More

2019 was the first year in which New York City's Department of Transportation kept affected bike lanes open during the UN's General Assembly. That should be a sign of things to come, advocates argue.

November 25, 2019 - StreetsBlog NYC

Colorado Interstate

$1.6 Billion Highway Improvement Program Announced in Colorado

The Colorado Department of Transportation will spend big on highway projects over the next three years.

November 24, 2019 - The Denver Post

Yonge Street Toronto

A Pedestrian-Forward Vision for Toronto Roadway

Toronto’s iconic Yonge Street is heavily used by pedestrians, and, according to this article, it's time for a revamp that acknowledges all of the street's users.

November 24, 2019 - The Star

Parking

Saturday Satire: The Bad Intentions of a Trader Joe's Parking Lot

Anywhere a Trader Joe's parking lot can be found, there's also an overfull parking lot capable of crushing souls.

November 23, 2019 - McSweeney's

New York Champagne

Study: Uber Might Have Curbed Drunk Driving, But Not Drunks

A news study raises questions about the public health effects of the widespread availability of a ride enabled by companies like Uber and Lyft—while it's easier to avoid drunk driving, it's also easier to drink.

November 22, 2019 - The Economist

The Transit Agency formerly known as the Nashville MTA

Nashville Loses Out on Federal Transit Grant, Adding to Agency's Budget Woes

WeGo Public Transit did not receive a grant to build a transit center, and transit advocates say it’s a sobering setback in light of the agency’s other budget challenges.

November 22, 2019 - News Channel 5 Nashville

Downtown Boston

A Bold Vision for a Car-Free Boston

As other cities take daring steps to reclaim their streets, a car ban in downtown Boston doesn’t seem so implausible.

November 22, 2019 - Curbed Boston

Denver Bikes

Big Bike and Scooter Rental Shakeup Coming to Denver

Publically-owned bikeshare company B-Cycle will be scrapped and eventually be replaced, and the city is also planning to overhaul it's pilot dockless bike and scooter rental program.

November 22, 2019 - The Denver Post

Mobility App

Mobility as a Service Technology Will Not Solve the Country's Transportation Problems

Mobility as a Service (MaaS) relies on technology to streamline transportation and improve access. But apps are not going to be enough for people to leave their cars behind.

November 21, 2019 - CityLab

Arlington to D.C.

Key Planning Details of the Proposed $1.9 Billion Rail Bridge Between D.C. and Virginia

Analysis of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for a project that would add an additional bridge to supplement the rail capacity of the Long Bridge over the Potomac River.

November 21, 2019 - Greater Greater Washington

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.