Transportation
End of the Line for the Sydney Monorail
With the number of serviceable trains dwindling the Sydney Monorail is being scrapped.
Bay Area Braces for BART Strike
Unless an agreement between two BART unions and management can be reached, the Bay Area may experience traffic gridlock on Monday if the heavy rail network shuts down, leaving riders in S.F, the East Bay, and Peninsula with considerably fewer options
MTA Commuter Tax Pits New York City Against Suburbs
The 12-county downstate commuter tax is vilified by many living outside New York City - forced to pay a payroll tax to support transit that they may not use. They sued the MTA and won last August, but MTA had the ruling reversed on appeal on June 26.
Researchers Propose an Alternative to High-Density, Carless Sustainable Development
Can we combine our love affair with cars and single-family homes with sustainable growth? Mark Delucchi and Kenneth S. Kurani think so.
Outgoing L.A. Mayor Leaves a City Transported
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has certainly fallen short with some of his ambitious agenda items (including his attempt to take over the city's school district). But when it comes to transportation, the mayor has had a dramatic, and lasting, effect.
Citizens Organize Around Restoring Street Grid in Downtown Oklahoma City
In a challenge to the wishes of the state DOT, a group of citizens has successfully campaigned for the addition of an alternative to restore the downtown street grid in place of a high-speed boulevard in Oklahoma City.
New York Looks to Transform Its Other Unloved Transit Hub
Attention has recently focused on efforts to pave the way for a renovation of NYC's Penn Station. But a study announced Thursday will investigate how to upgrade, or replace, the hulking Port Authority Bus Terminal, the world's busiest bus facility.
Planes, Trains, and Tourists; Why Can't California Connect the Dots?
Why can't California make it easier for its millions of visitors, and residents, to travel from airports to urban centers via direct rail routes? The state is investing billions in its rail and air infrastructure, but can't seem to connect the two.
South Carolina's $1 Billion Transportation Bill Signed By Gov. Nikki Haley
Over the next decade, $1 billion will be spent to repair the state's deteriorating roads. Like many states unwilling to raise gas taxes, most will come from transfers from the general fund, though $41.4 million per year will be from car sales taxes.
Delayed L.A. Bike Share to Launch Next Year - at the Earliest
It was supposed to launch last year. Then it was going to start this spring. Now, Bike Nation, the supposed operator of L.A.'s citywide bike-share system, is saying the first of its 4,000 bikes won't appear on city streets until "sometime" next year.
Online Car Service Battle Lands in Los Angeles
Online car services like Uber and Lyft have waged highly publicized regulatory and political battles in NYC, D.C., and elsewhere. After the city sent out cease-and-desist letters to companies this week, L.A. has emerged as the newest battleground.
Low Impact Streetscape Provides a Model for Main Street Revivals
Despite a prickly political atmosphere, the Seattle suburb of Bainbridge Island recently transformed the main artery of its town center, Winslow Way, in what author Mark Hinshaw, FAIA, calls “a really cool way.”
Seeing Dollar Signs, Developers Cater to Cyclists
Seeing an opportunity to cut costs, attract residents, and respond to changing demands of tenants, commercial and residential developers in the Seattle area are investing in amenities for bicyclists.
Civic Groups Win Decisive Battle in Effort to Rebuild NYC's Penn Station
With two City Council committee votes this week, civic groups and New York's most prominent architecture critic appear to have won their very public battle to ultimately boot Madison Square Garden from atop Penn Station, reports Matt Chaban.
Key Decision Due Over Fate of Vancouver's Viaducts
The movement to dismantle the twin viaducts that hover over Vancouver's downtown reaches a crucial milestone today, as the City Council votes to fund the study of how to transform "the last, large, under-utilized area close to the city’s core."
The World's Best in Progressive Bike Infrastructure
From car-shaped shelters for cargo bikes in Copenhagen to a bike path that runs through the middle of one of Amsterdam's most visited museums, Sarah Goodyear surveys some of the most innovative bicycle infrastructure projects in the world.
St. Louis Reneges on Plan to Study Highway Teardown
With great fanfare, St. Louis put out an RFP last year to study the conversion of a portion of the elevated I-70 highway separating downtown St. Louis from its historic riverfront into a boulevard. That study has been scrapped for vague reasons.
Cool Happenings in Paris’s Urban Landscape
Two events held in the same week in the historic heart of Paris show just how serious the city is about its contemporary urban landscape.
HOT Lanes Slow to Catch on With Users
High-Occupancy Toll lanes have become a popular tool to help reduce congestion and raise revenues. But recent projects in cities throughout the U.S. have failed to meet expectations. Eric Jaffe investigates the reasons why.
A Dutch Evaluation of American Cycling
Warning: This five-minute video may be the most critical evaluation of American cycling conditions you will ever watch. After viewing, you may understand what separates cycling in the U.S. from that in The Netherlands - it's not just infrastructure.
Pagination
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.
KFH Group Inc.
Greater Baltimore Committee
Eagle County Government
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello