Transportation

Red Carpet Lanes

Seattle on a Roll With New Bus Lanes

A new plan to upgrade an existing bus lane in Seattle isn't the first and it probably won't be the last.

October 13, 2019 - The Urbanist

Electric Bus

Lessons in Electric Bus Deployment From 6 U.S. Regions

U.S. cities and regions are both showing how electric buses can be done and taking too long to do it. A new report focuses on success stories.

October 13, 2019 - Smart Cities Dive

Boston, Massachusetts

Massachusetts Converts HOV Lane to General Purpose Lane

Road planners looking to increase capacity without adding lanes are focusing on managing existing lanes more effectively. Massachusetts has gone the opposite direction. The Conservation Law Foundation plans to hold them accountable.

October 12, 2019 - Boston.com

Pedestrians

The Vision Zero Commitment in Prince George's County

The Maryland county is launching a traffic safety program, but much work and many changes are needed to eliminate traffic fatalities.

October 12, 2019 - Greater Greater Washington

Vancouver Planners Hope to Leverage New Subway for Public Benefit

Vancouver is scheduled to begin construction on a new subway in 2020, and planners are laying out a vision for the neighborhoods surrounding the new line, including turning Broadway into a "Great Street."

October 11, 2019 - Georgia Straight

Poor Returns for L.A.'s Transit on Demand Pilot

Similar to microtransit on demand programs in other cities, Los Angeles' ongoing experiment is proving to be very expensive (for the public) for the benefit of very few riders.

October 11, 2019 - Streetsblog LA

Bus Lane

A Whole Lane Devoted to Buses on Oakland, CA's Busiest Street

A bus-only lane on busy Broadway in Oakland, a section of the larger East Bay Bus Rapid Transit project, will get the red painted lane treatment.

October 11, 2019 - The Mercury News

Sound Transit

Seattle Fare Enforcement Disproportionately Punishes Blacks, Data Show

Sound Transit says its fare enforcement system is design to be unbiased, but analysis about fare evader data indicates disparities.

October 11, 2019 - The Seattle Times

Los Angeles Traffic - The Newhall Pass

A Detailed Map of the Nation's Auto Emissions

The New York Times illustrates the scope and scale of the great project still facing the United States: to decrease greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector of its economy.

October 11, 2019 - The New York Times

Vancouver, British Columbia

Resistance to Federal Highway Administration's Anti-Painted Crosswalk Position

As the Federal Highway Administration continues its anti-painted crosswalk crusade, attracting new attention at the national level, cities are resisting the notion that rainbow crosswalks are a safety liability.

October 11, 2019 - The New York Times

Elaine Chao

Kentucky Gets 25% of the Transportation Secretary's Time

When it comes to grants, one state has the attention of Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao above all others.

October 10, 2019 - Politico

Downtown Seattle

Monorail Joins the Seattle Transit Network

The city's monorail has operated separately from other systems in the region, but now riders can pay fares using the ORCA cards that work for other transit systems in the region.

October 10, 2019 - The Urbanist

Enhanced Transit Corridors Plan

Federal Approval Clears Way for Bus-Only Lanes in Portland

Portland will soon be spreading out the red carpet for buses.

October 10, 2019 - BikePortland

D.C. Metro

Report: D.C. Area Commuters Driving Alone Less

With all the bad news about plummeting ridership as the D.C. Metro transit system has struggled to deal with maintenance issues, a new report indicates that regional commuters are still driving alone less.

October 10, 2019 - Greater Greater Washington

New York Subway Stairs

$5.5 Billion Plan for More Elevators in the N.Y.C. Subway

The city’s subway system is lagging in station accessibility, but the MTA has a plan to add elevators to 70 stations.

October 10, 2019 - The New York Times

Market Street San Francisco

$604 Million Market Street Redesign Nears the Finish Line in San Francisco

Private automobiles could be prohibited on San Francisco's primary downtown thoroughfare, and already-wide sidewalks could be extended and smoothed over. The Better Market Street project is ready for its close up.

October 9, 2019 - The San Francisco Chronicle

Seattle Tunnel Route

Seattle's Most Dramatic Traffic Reduction Will Occur Next Month

There will be no road closures, no traffic bans, no loss of parking, and no new transit lines opening. Call it the "tolling effect" on Nov. 9 when motorists have to pay to drive through the two-mile State Route 99 tunnel that opened last February.

October 9, 2019 - KOMO News

Metro Crenshaw/LAX Line

'Destination Crenshaw' Showcases South L.A.'s Strategic Advantage—Black Culture

Los Angeles City Councilmember Marqueece Harris-Dawson outlines Destination Crenshaw and highlights the economic development and community investment opportunities it brings to South L.A.

October 9, 2019 - The Planning Report

Car2Go

Car2Go Pulls Out of Five North American Cities

As the company plans to cease operations in a number of markets, carsharing’s future in the rapidly shifting world of mobility is unclear.

October 9, 2019 - Smart Cities Dive

Caltrans Freeway Planning

Freeway Project, Previously Named as a 'Boondoggle,' Defeated by Environmental Lawsuit

What could have been the first new freeway for Los Angeles County in decades might now only mark the end of an era.

October 8, 2019 - Streetsblog LA

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.