Transportation

What makes effective transit-oriented development? Transportation planner Alan Huynh makes a good argument for the proximity to a cup of coffee as a defining characteristic of quality TOD.

February 1, 2011 - The Alan Note

If a San Mateo County agency has its way, congestion pricing will be applied to two toll bridges to create additional revenue and reduce congestion as was done successfully on the S.F./Oakland Bay Bridge last July - but there are major differences.

February 1, 2011 - San Mateo County Times via Mercury News

Sharrows are a great way to give cyclists access to the full traffic lane without designating a bike lane, but as this case in San Francisco illustrates, not all applications are good ones. The presence of a bus-only lane created the problem.

January 31, 2011 - The Bay Citizen

The amount of people commuting in car pools has nearly halved since 1980.

January 31, 2011 - The New York Times

In this Q&A, urban planning professor Mitchell Moss explains how budget crises at the federal, state and local levels will affect transit funding in New York City and other places.

January 31, 2011 - The Shoshin Project

Governor Chris Christie announced the state would not repay the $271 million the Federal Transit Administration claims it is owed for the canceled trans-Hudson rail tunnel, reports Jim O'Grady.

January 29, 2011 - WNYC

Eric Jaffe pushes back on the Republican Study Committee's proposal to cut over $6 billion in rail funding over the next ten years.

January 29, 2011 - The Infrastructurist

Do you know the difference between taxis and livery cars? This op-ed by a taxi driver/author explains the difference. It is timely because Mayor Bloomberg will propose a rule that will make the two more similar, and (yellow) cab drivers oppose it.

January 29, 2011 - The New York Times - Opinion

Portlandia is a new TV show spoofing the self-righteously urban culture of Portland. In this clip, a hyper bicycle rights activist zips around the city decrying the evils of automobiles.

January 28, 2011 - My Damn Channel

The Regional Plan Association has released a $15 billion proposal to expand capacity at congested Kennedy and Newark Liberty International Airports by 50 million passengers per year.

January 28, 2011 - The New York Times

A new study of federal data on fatalities per 100,000 people and per 100 million miles driven finds significant differences in urban and rural roads.

January 27, 2011 - USA Today

Two Staten Island Republicans want to throw a wrench in the city's bike lane boom by requiring environmental review for all new lanes. Experts explain why that's a bad idea.

January 27, 2011 - Streetsblog

China plans to create the world's largest mega-city, which will be geographically 26 times larger than Greater London and double that of Wales.

January 27, 2011 - The Telegraph

New stats showing an increase in pedestrian deaths from automobile accidents have brought attention to urban design issues. But the Wall St. Journal's automotive critic places the blame squarely on the pedestrians themselves.

January 26, 2011 - Grist

Former Palo Alto Mayor Yoriko Kishimoto has formed "Friends of Caltrain" to help prevent the train from spiraling downhill due to lack of funds. The tri-county train faces a $30 million deficit, with a total budget of just under $100 million.

January 26, 2011 - Streetsblog San Francisco

Planners in Jacksonville are getting behind plans to encourage more infill development by getting rid of an older rule that was seen to contribute to sprawl.

January 26, 2011 - The Florida Times-Union

While transportation activists in Los Angeles are getting behind a plan to cram 30 years of transportation projects into a decade, environmentalists in nearby San Diego want to do 50 years worth in the same amount of time.

January 26, 2011 - Streetsblog LA

Getting around Atlanta can be a challenge, according to some in the city. And as growth continues, public transit will need to play a bigger part in moving the city, according to this article.

January 26, 2011 - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

This debate from China Daily offers a point-counterpoint over whether Chinese cities should be embarking on major subway building projects.

January 26, 2011 - China Daily

Yonah Freemark tackles the big question, as House Republicans deliver an agenda to reduce federal spending that proposes deep cuts to transit spending.

January 25, 2011 - the transport politic