Transportation

San Francisco Transbay Transit Center

SF Transbay Transit Center Cracks Isolated to Beams, Say Experts

As the investigation continues, cracks found in girders supporting the building do not appear to be due to a design issue.

November 26, 2018 - San Francisco Chronicle

California Central Valley

Acquisitions Disputes for California High-Speed Rail Project Drag On

Delays in acquiring properties are costing the project significant amounts of time and money.

November 26, 2018 - Los Angeles Times

Macron Protest

Fuel Tax Hike Revolt Threatens French President Macron's Leadership

Anger at fuel tax increases planned for January, part of a pro-Green agenda espoused by President Emmanuel Macron, has sparked a populous movement involving hundreds of thousands of protestors that have taken to the streets, erupting into violence.

November 26, 2018 - CityLab

Transit Fail

New York MTA Threatens Service Cuts, Increased Fares

A New York transit advocate says the MTA is entering a "death spiral" of reduced service and higher fares that will lead to fewer riders and then additional reduced service and higher fares.

November 26, 2018 - The Guardian

Puget Sound

Big Wins for Urbanism in Cascadia

"Yes we actually did that."

November 25, 2018 - Sightline Institute

Cincinnati Bell Connector

Cincinnati Ponders Changes to Streetcar Operations

The idea of the city taking over streetcar operations is deemed "expensive and time consuming" by a report to the Cincinnati City Council.

November 25, 2018 - WCPO

Houston Metro

What Makes a Transit System Great in the U.S.

Transit should make people's lives better, with density a key component of successful systems.

November 23, 2018 - Urban Edge

Governor of Minnesota

Minnesota Gubernatorial Candidate Campaigned on Increasing the Gas Tax and Wins

Democratic candidate Tim Walz was not shy about his intention to hike the gas tax to pay for improvements for roads and public transit, and he was predictably slammed by his Republican opponent. Similar scenarios played out in Wisconsin and Michigan.

November 23, 2018 - Pioneer Press

St. Paul, Minnesota

St. Paul Getting a New, Improved High Bridge

A yearlong renovation of the High Bridge in St. Paul will wrap up next month.

November 23, 2018 - Pioneer Press

'Don't Be a Turkey: Ride Transit'

The Regional Transit Authority took to the streets of Chicago to drum up support for transit, and transit funding, this Thanksgiving.

November 22, 2018 - RTAChicago via YouTube

Toronto Lyrics

Report Raises Concerns About Transit Funding in Toronto

The Mixed Signals report makes the case for Toronto to adopt a dedicated revenue source to pay for transit.

November 22, 2018 - The Star

Montreal, Quebec

Montreal Street Reconfiguration Could Remove Parking, and Businesses Aren't Happy

The city of Montreal will spend $123 million on the first phase of a project to revamp Ste-Catherine Street, removing 140 on-street parking locations in the process. More parking spots could follow.

November 22, 2018 - Montreal Gazette

Electric-Assist Bike

Lime Jumping Into the Car Sharing Business

Liume, which formerly rented bikes and electric scooters, plans to have 1,500 cars to rent on the streets of Seattle early in 2019.

November 21, 2018 - Bloomberg

Seattle Transit

Sound Transit's Lynwood Link Gets the Federal Funding it Was Waiting For

A great sigh of relief from transit planners in the Pacific Northwest (and probably the rest of the country as well).

November 21, 2018 - The Seattle Times

East Troy Railroad

Wisconsin Study Unpacks Transit Inequities

A new study finds that Wisconsin spends big on highways and urban transportation while rural areas face gaps in service.

November 21, 2018 - Urban Milwaukee

Capitol Hill

People of Color in D.C. Prefer Dockless Bike Share

A new study confirms that dockless bike share has proven more successful in reaching a more diverse population in D.C. than the more traditional bike share system, Capital Bikshare.

November 20, 2018 - Streetsblog USA

Northern California Toll Lane

Toll Lane Expansion in Inland Empire Begins After Voters Reject Gas Tax Repeal

The day after California voters soundly rejected a repeal of a one-year old 12-cents gas tax increase and new annual vehicle registration fees. the Riverside County Transportation Commission launched a study to extend toll lanes on Interstate 15.

November 20, 2018 - The Press Enterprise

Metro Subway Los Angeles

Can Los Angeles Fix its Bad Transit?

Transit writer Alon Levy argues it will take more than system improvements to integrate public transit into L.A.'s urban fabric.

November 20, 2018 - Pedestrian Observations

Dockless Scooter

Scooter Media Brief: We Still Haven't Figured Scooters Out

A few notes on the policy landscape and media narratives that have emerged in response to the sudden appearance of electric scooter rental companies onto the planning scene.

November 20, 2018 - James Brasuell

Champs-Elysees and Arc de Triomphe

French Suburbs Join Paris in Diesel Ban

The ban on diesel cars now extends well beyond the city of Paris.

November 20, 2018 - CityLab

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.