Transportation

CTA Purple Line train

Editorial: Use TIF to Fund Transit Improvements in Chicago

The Chicago Tribune supports the use of tax increment financing to fund a $2.1 billion project to revamp the Red and Purple lines on the CTA system in Chicago.

October 8, 2019 - Chicago Tribune

Condos Smart Growth

Smart Growth and Vehicle Travel Reductions

Many jurisdictions have vehicle travel reduction targets. Integrated Smart Growth policies can help achieve these and other planning goals.

October 8, 2019 - Todd Litman

Los Angeles Subway

L.A. Metro Report Examines How Women Travel

Findings from a new study about the mobility needs and concerns of women in Los Angeles will inform future initiatives and planning.

October 7, 2019 - Streetsblog LA

Arrivals and Departures

Congestion Tipping Point: Uber and Lyft Banned from LAX

Automobile traffic to LAX has increased by half in the last decade, and congestion has passed a tipping point.

October 7, 2019 - Los Angeles Times

Manhattan Bus Transit

Early Reviews for New York's Big Car-Free Experiment

Last week, 14th Street in Manhattan was closed to almost all varieties of automobile traffic, freeing up one of the slowest bus routes in the city. How will residents, workers, and commuters react?

October 7, 2019 - Gothamist

Ford's City Insights Platform Expands to Six New Cities

After a pilot in Ann Arbor, Ford Motor Company is expanding its City Insights Platform to six new cities:

October 7, 2019 - Smart Cities Dive

Helicopters

Uber Expands Availability of Helicopter Rides to JFK

Anyone with the Uber app, proximity to Lower Manhattan, and cash to spare can take a helicopter ride to JFK.

October 6, 2019 - Reuters

U District Station

Hopes Dashed for Pedestrian Only Street in Seattle

The city of Seattle is planning for street improvements around the University District station under construction on NE 43rd Street. But the latest designs don't allow for a street designed exclusively for pedestrians.

October 6, 2019 - The Urbanist

Pedestrian Safety

'Cars Are Death Machines'

Not one, not two, but three articles in the past week paint dire portraits of the world that cars have created.

October 6, 2019 - The New York Times

Memphis Bus

Memphis Vehicle Fee Would Help Fund Transit

The proposed fee on households with multiple vehicles would generate $9 million to improve the region’s transit system.

October 5, 2019 - WKNO

Wheelchair

For Wheelchair Users, L.A. Poses Many Hazards

A trip through the city of Los Angeles reveals the largely overlooked challenges that people with physical disabilities must overcome.

October 5, 2019 - Los Angeles Times

Refueling

Reducing Transportation Emissions by Targeting Fuel Suppliers

Modeled on the nation's first mandatory cap-and-trade program that only targets power plant emissions, the Transportation & Climate Initiative subjects transportation fuel to a similar market-based program. It took a major step forward on Oct. 1.

October 5, 2019 - The Hill

Saint Paul Minnesota

Minnesota DOT Report Calls for Low-Emissions Vehicle Standard

The report “Pathways to Decarbonizing Transportation in Minnesota” also calls for a greater adoption of biofuels and actions to decrease vehicle miles traveled.

October 4, 2019 - Transport Topics

Goods Movement

5G Networks Will Change the Freight Trucking Industry

Industry experts believe that 5G networks will allow trucking fleets to send more data and video from individual trucks to fleet managers.

October 4, 2019 - Fleet Owner

A Line

Reimagining Transit in the Denver Region

The Reimagine RTD initiative will imagine the future of transit service in the Denver region. Already a debate has begun about which direction the RTD should take.

October 4, 2019 - The Denver Post

BART Station construction

BART Extension Into San Jose Delayed

Both phases of the extension of BART beyond the Warm Spring Station Fremont, into Santa Clara County and San Jose, have been delayed. The first extension, to the Milpitas and Berryessa stations, was expected to be complete by the end of 2019.

October 4, 2019 - The Mercury News

China High Speed Rail

Rail Opening Spree in China

New rail lines are operational in seven cities in China.

October 4, 2019 - International Railway Journal

Highway Living

New Priorities, Not More Money, Need to Reform Federal Transportation Policy

Transportation for America, one of the leading advocacy organizations for multi-modal funding at the federal level, has announced a drastic change to its agenda.

October 4, 2019 - Transportation for America

Pasadena Light Rail

These Transit Agencies Want You to Build on Their Land

Transit providers are often major landowners in their communities, controlling underutilized properties like park-and-ride lots or storage and maintenance facilities. These sites are also opportunities to provide desperately needed affordable housing

October 3, 2019 - Shelterforce Magazine

Philadelphia Bike Lane

Conflict in Philadelphia Over Church Parking in Bike Lanes

A long-standing policy allows parking in front of churches and synagogues but leaves cars blocking bike lanes, and cyclists want the practice to end.

October 3, 2019 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

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.