Transportation
Friday Funny: Pedestrian Haiku
NPR reports on NYC's new set of hilarious Haiku traffic street signs, that are meant to make drivers, bicyclists, and pedestrians more aware when sharing the street.
Good News/Bad News For GM's Volt
October saw the first time the plug-in hybrid Volt outsell the all-electric Leaf; Consumer Reports rates Volt owners the most satisfied, but the car's potential to catch on fire is being investigated, and the $7,500 EV tax credit is under attack.
Congress Mulling Extending Transit Pretax Benefits
The benefits, which allow for up to $230 a month of pretax income to be set aside for transit commuting, may dip to just $125 a month if Congress does not decide on an extension by the end of the month.
How Planning is Like Growing Tomatoes
An organic system is rarely the sum of its parts. Nothing demonstrates this as clearly as sinking your teeth into a store-bought tomato, writes Ben Brown.
New Report: States Held Accountable For Their Gas Tax Policies
The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy has released a '50-state report' on state gas excise taxes - when they were last raised, the revenue loss to each state due to failure to maintain the tax, and what it would cost drivers to raise it.
Columbia Pike Streetcar is the Better Design
According to Miles Grant, "the streetcar is a relative bargain purely on the basis of direct cost per estimated user, not even including the external costs of sprawl and pollution that new and improved highways engender."
High-Speed Rail Project Faces Opposition
In California, a recent poll, according to Charles Chieppo, brought bad news stating that 53% of the states voters approved a $9.9 billion bond three years ago, but of those polled, 64% support a re-vote, and 59% would vote no if they had the chance.
Implementation of L.A.'s New City-Wide Bike Plan Hits a Rough Patch of Road
Writing in The Atlantic Cities, Nate Berg looks at why the discouraging results of one pilot project has implementation of L.A.'s heralded new bicycle master plan off to an inauspicious start.
European Cyclist's Federation (ECF) Study on Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emmissions
In the fight against climate change, it is still unclear how, according to SustainableCitiesCollective, "the world’s nations will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and achieve limited temperature rise." A recent ECF study sheds light on the topic.
Tiger III Grant Funds Awarded to Streetcar Project
In Cincinnati, Ohio, the "shovel-ready" Streetcar project has been awarded 10.9 million dollars in grant funding, according to Jenny Kessler, to "restore the project to its original aim of connecting the Uptown and Downtown employment centers."
Banning Cell Phone Use by Drivers Nationwide
The National Transportation Safety Board's recommendation is voluntary - it is up to the states to enact them into law. The CA state senator responsible for the ban on talking on hand-held cell phones and texting called it a 'political nonstarter'.
Folding Bikes Gain Popularity in Brazil
Maria Fernanda Cavalcanti, a resident of Brazil, writes that folding bicycles "...have been catching the attention of urban cyclists everywhere."
Debating Urban Transit Tax Credits
New Jersey's Urban Transit Hub Tax Credit provided $1.5 billion in incentives for 13 projects, garnering mixed opinions over the past two years. Intended to build communities a half mile from transit, some question if it even works.
San Francisco's Performance Parking Pilot Less Successful Than Hoped
In San Francisco, a performance parking pilot program has not had as big an impact as many thought it would. According to Michael Perkins, "Even with high rates, popular blocks still fill up, and other blocks remain under-filled even at low prices."
The High Cost of Free Roads
In Wisconsin, taxpayers pay roughly $779 per household for roads and $50 for transit. But most drivers still believe that transit is subsidized and roads pay for themselves, writes Tanya Snyder.
Exxon Predicts Energy Future For World At 2040
By 2040, half of all cars will be hybrids or running on alternative fuels; energy demand will be flat for the developed world but will increase 60% for developing nations, and non-conventional oil sources will handily meet the demand of 110m barrels.
Washington DC Imagines Itself Without Transit
Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority is celebrating its 35th anniversary and is finding ways to ascertain exactly what the agency has brought to the region.
Even or Odd? Rome Restricts Car Use
With pollution levels becoming dangerous in Rome, Italy, the government is taking a hard line on driving. In late November, only cars with even-numbered license plates were allowed to drive in the city, with odd plates the next.
Zurich, the World's Best Transit City
Transportation expert Norman Garrick reports on the amazingly effective transit system of Zurich, Switzerland. Garrick says the system is one of the factors that makes Zurich one of the most livable cities in the world.
The Dreamers Behind the Interstate Highway System
Josh Stephens reviews Big Roads by Earl Swift, which profiles Thomas MacDonald and Frank Turner, the civil engineers who made the Interstate Highway System a reality.
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
