Transportation

Cater to Commuters or Residents? Denver Rethinks its Rail Stops

Denver is confronting a dilemma facing many cities as they build out their transit systems: what types of uses should be developed in close proximity to stations, and who should these facilities serve.

July 27, 2012 - The Wall Street Journal

HealthLine Pumps Life into Cleveland

Cleveland's bus rapid transit system, called the HealthLine, only opened in 2008, but it has already shown signs of "stimulating economic growth significantly" along Euclid Avenue.

July 27, 2012 - Urban Land

To Fix Its Streets, China Turns to the Crowd

As China goes car crazy, a new crowdsourcing website seeks to address the needs of Beijing's lowly pedestrians and bicyclists, reports Nate Berg.

July 26, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities

Syracuse: Tearing Down the Viaduct is No Easy Task

Continuing its 'Cities Project' and its focus on roads and motor vehicles, NPR goes to Syracuse, N.Y. to report on a 1.4 mile stretch of elevated Interstate 81 that runs through the heart of the city, and efforts to tear it down, maybe.

July 26, 2012 - NPR:All Things Considered

$7 Billion Transformation of D.C.'s Union Station Proposed

You read that right...$7 billion. In a plan to be unveiled today, Amtrak is proposing to transform the second-busiest Amtrak station in the country into a hub for high-speed rail and redevelopment, report Jonathan O'Connell and Ashley Halsey III.

July 25, 2012 - The Washington Post

CA Transit Agencies Shouldn't Count on High Speed Rail Funding

The $4.7 billion high speed rail bond appropriation, signed by Gov. Brown on July 18 included $2 billion for transit upgrades in the Bay Area and Southern CA. Max Taves reports that litigation in the Central Valley could target that funding.

July 25, 2012 - The Wall Street Journal - San Francisco Bay Area

New York Seeks to Revive its Freight Rail Industry

Winnie Hu reports on how the reopening of the 65th Street Rail Yard in Brooklyn last week is part of a wider, regional rail expansion effort that aims to revive the moribund industry in order to boost economic and environmental benefits.

July 25, 2012 - The New York Times

Is a Slime Mold Competing for Your Job?

Transportation planners who thought the current job climate couldn't possibly get worse may want to ignore this piece. John Metcalfe reports on studies that show slime is just as effective in planning the path of an urban rail system as humans.

July 24, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities

Will 'Downtown Crossing' Project Heal New Haven's Divide?

A target of 1950s urban renewal, New Haven is looking to rewrite renewal's wrongs by re-connecting the Hill neighborhood with downtown via a highway cap project. Critics complain the project doesn't go far enough to heal the area's historic wounds.

July 24, 2012 - The New York Times

NPR Asks: "Is There A War On Cars?"

NPR interviews technology historian Peter Norton, D.C. Planning Director Harriet Tregoning, and motorists on D.C. streets who resent exclusive bus lanes, parking tickets, red light cameras, and parklets usurping parking spaces.

July 24, 2012 - NPR

Virginia Debates How to Make Mapquest Recognize Its 'Burger King Bridge'

As Virginia drafts new rules to govern the sale of naming rights to its highways, interchanges, and bridges, public officials want to ensure that their new "marketing technology" provides more than just a sign on the road, reports Liz Essley.

July 23, 2012 - The Examiner

Want to Encourage Bike Commuting? Supply a Shower

Eric Jaffe discusses the importance of providing showers and changing facilities at workplaces - the "hidden factor" in encouraging bike commuting - as revealed in the findings of a new study.

July 23, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities

Is 'Higher-Speed Rail' Coming to a City Near You?

A recently released Amtrak plan doesn't envision high-speed rail servicing the Northeast Corridor until 2040. Paul Nussbaum looks at whether an incremental approach might bring increased speed and amenities to passengers sooner.

July 23, 2012 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

Tired of Being Bumped and Bruised, Bicyclists Fight Back, With Technology

Increasingly utilized as 'black boxes' in the aftermath of collisions with motorized vehicles, video cameras are the newest addition to the arsenal of tools being employed to make streets safer for bikes.

July 23, 2012 - The New York Times

Bay Area to Study Regional VMT Fee

The Bay Area's two regional agencies approved funding a study to pursue a 9-county "vehicle-miles-traveled" fee of as much as 10-cents per mile that could involve GPS technology to fund regional transportation improvements.

July 23, 2012 - San Jose Mercury News

Final CA HSR Package Buys Partners Throughout the State

Although the first segment of the state's recently approved high-speed rail line terminates in California's Central Valley, a significant portion of the initial funding will go to improving rail lines from San Diego to San Francisco.

July 22, 2012 - KPCC

Reclaiming San Francisco's Market Street for Public Space

Following precedents from other cities, San Francisco is looking to redesign its famous Market Street by removing automobiles, creating raised bike lanes, implementing faster transit, and making for a more inviting public space.

July 22, 2012 - Streetsblog

How NOT to Do Bus Rapid Transit

As Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) gains popularity, Annie Weinstock describes new standards for BRT, taking a lesson from some failing systems.

July 21, 2012 - Next American City

CA High Speed Rail Bill is Now Law

In signing ceremonies in both Los Angeles's Union Station and San Francisco's Transbay Terminal (under construction), Gov. Jerry Brown appropriated $4.7 billion in Prop. 1A, 2008 bond funds that will be matched with $3.2 billion in federal HSR funds.

July 20, 2012 - CNN U.S.

Chicago Crowdsources a Superior Transit App

Kelsey Campbell-Dollaghan discusses the launch of Designing Chicago, an "unusual" Kickstarter campaign intended to utilize the brains and wallets of the city's residents to create an app covering the city’s various systems of public transportation.

July 19, 2012 - Fast Company Co.Design

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.

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