Transportation
Can Smart Phones Ignite America's Passion for Walking?
Sarah Goodyear looks at how smart phones and augmented reality applications may hold the key to enriching urban exploration and getting Americans off their sofas and out exploring their environments.
Bad Deals Plague Transit Agencies Across America
Compounding the pain caused by decreased funding from local and national sources, transit agencies across the country are haunted by "toxic pre-recession bank deals" that have them paying exorbitant borrowing costs.
Extension Looms as Federal Transportation Talks Reach an Impasse
With the House/Senate Conference Committee under pressure to agree to a transportation reauthorization bill, House Speaker John Boehner indicated that if agreement can't be reached by June 31, a 6-month extension (rather than 3 months) is preferable.
What is the Surest Way to Increase Transit Ridership?
Eric Jaffe discusses findings reported in the upcoming issue of Transport Policy that compare the relative effectiveness of subsidizing fares, regulating auto use, and expanding systems to increase transit ridership.
Curitiba Fails to Keep Up With its Vaunted Reputation
The waning popularity of its transportation system and the lack of attention to its lower-income population has put Curitiba’s “reputation as an urban planning model” on the line.
Why Economic Analysis for Transportation Projects Makes Sense
As Congress haggles over a new transportation bill, a report out last week argues that all stakeholders would be better served if state and federal governments conducted rigorous economic analysis before spending money on transportation projects.
Confronting Amsterdam's Parking Problem
Amsterdam has a serious parking problem, but it's not what you might think. In this bike friendly city, their problem is of the two- rather than four-wheeled kind. Duncan Geere looks at a potential solution.
Pencilling Out the Twin Cities' Transportation Subsidies
Curious about a legislator's offhand remark that light rail is "a total waste of money," Marlys Harris investigates the extent to which motorized transportation modes in the Twin Cities are subsidized. It turns out light rail is a heavy bargain.
Angelenos Find That Freedom From Cars Can Be Liberating
The high cost of driving in Los Angeles has led some residents to swap their cars for bikes, buses, and the subway. This change has inadvertently allowed them to find freedom in their lives and a better connection with the City of Angels.
Pop-up Infrastructure Makes a Street Green and Complete
Imagine converting a downtown street into a bicycle, people, and eco-friendly one - for just one week, by a crack team of urban design graduate students. Such an undertaking was done by Kent State U.'s urban design collaborative. Watch and learn!
Is Transportation Deregulation the Key to Improving Our Cities and Economies?
Diana Lind argues that transportation regulations needlessly stifle competition that could "benefit our intertwined problems of high prices, congestion and slow service."
States Take the Lead in Implementing Driving Fees
With D.C. abandoning its leadership position in funding road infrastructure improvements, states such as Oregon and Minnesota are going forward with pilot plans to transition to road usage fees.
Parking Privatization Goes to College
Richard Perez-Pena reports on the new frontier in the rush to monetize publicly owned resources - the college parking lot.
Public Sours on California Bullet Train
With Governor Brown and federal leaders pressuring state legislators to approve construction of the key first step in the $68-billion bullet train plan, a new survey from USC and the L.A. Times shows that California voters are backing away.
Propelling Change at the Pump
Karen E. Klein profiles Propel Fuels, and their ambitious plan to lead the nation in providing alternative fuels to would-be consumers at their "gas station of the future," the first of which opened last month.
Can CA Gov. Jerry Brown Save High Speed Rail From CEQA?
Gov. Jerry Brown is asking the state legislature to alter the state's environmental law (CEQA) in order to begin construction of the high speed rail project in the Central Valley. It is aimed at heading off lawsuits intended to delay the project.
Is Traffic Congestion Really a Bad Thing?
No one wants to be stuck in traffic. But next time you find yourself pounding the steering wheel out of frustration just think about Eric Dumbaugh's findings regarding the connection between congestion and economic productivity.
Gov. Brown Points To Similarities In Golden Gate Bridge, HSR, And Water Project
Joseph Strauss' dream of spanning the Golden Gate is remarkably similar to Gov. Jerry Brown's of spanning the Golden State with high speed rail, and providing fresh water under the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Public opposition is the common link.
Friday Funny: Bike Fever Spreads
If you need any additional indication that bike fever is sweeping North America, check out this video of Norman pedaling through some finely manicured suburban streets. Norman, by the way, is a dog.
Beer Bikes: Coming Soon to America
As European bike culture spreads across America, get ready for the next import from Amsterdam - the Beer Bike.
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.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
