Transportation

Portland Bikeshare

Bikeshare Goes Live in Portland

The long awaited arrival of bikeshare has become a reality in Portland, Oregon.

July 22, 2016 - Bike Portland

Rural Bus

California's Rural Communities Want Transit, Too

Parts of California’s rural, working-class Central Valley see virtually no transportation investment, leaving many residents stranded in the heat.

July 22, 2016 - KCET Departures

Amazon Delivery

Transportation Catching Industry as the Leading Cause of Greenhouse Gas Emissions

A new study from University of Michigan researchers tallies, and then compares, the greenhouse gas emissions from different sectors of the U.S. economy.

July 22, 2016 - Fast Co.Exist

Gas Station SUVs

Republicans Reveal an Anti-Urban, Anti-Public Transit Platform

The Grand Old Party platform calls for an end to using gas taxes for public transit as well as other non-road purposes like "bike-sharing," opposes increases to the 23-year-old gas tax, and would eliminate the U.S. DOT Livability Initiative.

July 21, 2016 - Progressive Railroading

Houston Metro Bus

Five Ideas for the Future of Houston Transit

The new board chair of Houston's Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County recently shared her ideas for the future of the transit agency.

July 21, 2016 - The Urban Edge

New Player Emerges in Car Sharing Services

Arriving just in time in the District of Columbia, as Safe Track disrupts Metro service, General Motors launched 'Maven' to compete with ZipCar, Car2Go, and Enterprise car sharing services.

July 21, 2016 - The Washington Post

#TransitTrends Asks: 'Where Did City Planning Go Wrong?'

The transportation planning app moovel (formerly known as Ridescout) has created a YouTube series called Transit Trends that brings "explainer posts" to a new format.

July 20, 2016 - moovel

Cleanest Diesel Locomotives to Join Southern California Commuter Rail Fleet

Forty so-called Tier 4 locomotives, a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency designation requiring a dramatic reduction in particulate and nitrogen oxide emissions, will be joining Metrolink's fleet covering 512 track miles in six counties.

July 20, 2016 - Los Angeles Times

New Subway Cars

Ambitious Design Overhaul Proposed for New York Subway Stations and Cars

Some of the New York Subway's stations and cars could be getting a drastically updated look—as soon as 2020.

July 20, 2016 - CityLab

Vancouver Protected Bike Lane

Study: More Bike Infrastructure Leads to More Bike Riders

File under "build it and they will come."

July 19, 2016 - Fast Co.Exist

Railroad Crossing

Faster Chicago to St. Louis Trains Likely to Increase Car Traffic

Next year, trains traveling at up to 110 mph will speed through grade crossings faster than the current trains traveling at up to 79 m.p.h, and motorists need to prepare for crossing gates that will stay down up to three times longer.

July 19, 2016 - The State Journal-Register

Community Engagement Book

The Toxic State of Public Discourse and How to Clean It Up

Dave Biggs interviews author James Hoggan about his new book, "I'm Right and You're An Idiot: The Toxic State of Public Discourse and How to Clean It Up."

July 19, 2016 - Dave Biggs

Intersection

Macabre Ethical Dilemmas: Just the Tip of the Iceberg for Robot Cars

The ethical quandaries that will confront self-driving cars as they navigate the world pose a lot of difficult questions. Antonio Loro charts a course for answering these tough questions.

July 18, 2016 - Antonio Loro

Ground Transportation

Taxis Taking a Back Seat to Uber and Lyft at Airports

The Bay Area provides a case study of the effect of transportation network companies on ground transportation to and from airports.

July 18, 2016 - The San Jose Mercury News

Opening of Denver's B Line Bittersweet for Commuters From Northwest Suburbs

The 6.2 mile, two-station electrified commuter rail line is opening as expected next Monday, July 25, but future service to the northwestern counties of Broomfield and Boulder will be delayed due to an unexpected funding shortfall.

July 18, 2016 - The Denver Post

Caltrain

$1.25 Billion Approved for Caltrain Electrification; More Funding Needed

At their July 7 meeting, the Caltrain Joint Powers Board, a 3-county body that administers the crowded San Jose-to-San Francisco commuter rail line, unanimously approved $1.25 billion in contracts to rail and infrastructure firms for electrification.

July 18, 2016 - Streetsblog SF

Albuquerque, Route 66

Opponents Delay Albuquerque's Bus Rapid Transit with Lawsuits

A well organized opposition to a planned Bus Rapid Transit line in Albuquerque, New Mexico has stalled the beginning of construction on the new transit line with lawsuits.

July 18, 2016 - Albuquerque Journal

Pokémon Go

Planetizen Week in Review: July 18, 2016

The Planetizen Week in Review is back.

July 18, 2016 - Planetizen

Coyote

A Connected, Walkable City: Building for Urban Wildlife

More than any other place, wildlife have impact on human health, quality of life and aesthetics in urban areas. Thinking about city planning at the terrestrial wildlife scale could support mutual objectives of city planning.

July 17, 2016 - Steven Snell

Bike Parking: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

have you ever found bike parking hidden behind a dumpster?

July 16, 2016 - MinnPost

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.