Transportation
All Aboard New Jersey's Gambling Express!
New Jersey launched a new express train service, ACES, to carry visitors to the bustling Atlantic City casinos from NY Penn Station. The trip will take 2 hrs, 45 minutes. Though there won’t be gambling aboard, each train has two bars.
Dangerous Driving at RR Crossings On the Rise
In Wales, the rail authority has recorded a major upswing in near misses at rail crossings. The article is accompanied by a video of dangerous near misses.
The Battle Over Snow Parking
Residents of Boston's South Side are marking public parking spots with cones, coolers, and chairs, in an effort to save them for later after personally cleaning out the snow. The Mayor ok'ed the practice, but some shovelers are abusing the system.
Randal O'Toole asks, Dude, Where's My Driverless Car?
For decades, people have been talking about how driverless cars would make highway traffic a thing of the past. Randal O'Toole asks, where are they?
Transit Agencies Cutting Back
While demand has increased, the weakening economy is drying up operating revenues for municipal public transit services, and the billions of dollars promised in the federal stimulus package - intended for capital projects - won't help either.
The BRT vs. Light Rail Debate Rages On
A recent study by the World Resources Institute for Maryland's upcoming Purple Line project sided with BRT. WorldChanging asks researchers Greg Fuhs and Dario Hidalgo how they came to side with buses.
Kunstler Receives Seaside Prize
Attendees packed the room for the presentation of the Seaside Prize to James Howard Kunstler and to hear new urbanist luminaries discuss the current state of the economy.
Why San Francisco's Bike Sharing Plan Won't Work
This piece from Streetsblog San Francisco looks at the city's recently announced plans for a bike sharing program and why the 50-bike pilot is likely to fail.
Drive Like an Ant, Eliminate Traffic
The patterns of leafcutter ants are not unlike vehicular traffic patterns, yet they never get stuck in traffic or get in accidents. This article shows what we can learn from them, and why we probably never will.
Bus Funding Plans Draw Criticism
The chairman of the Twin Cities' Metropolitan Council announced Monday plans to use federal stimulus money to fund the bus system rather than "shovel-ready" projects for which they were intended.
Subsidize Green Neighborhoods, Not Green Cars
DC writer Alec Dubro questions the pursuit of the green car, concluding we should cease its financial support. Though people may prefer the car culture, it would make more sense to pursue a ‘post car future’, citing Portland’s compact neighborhoods.
Study Finds Quality of Life Undamaged by Wal-Mart
The arrival of a town's new Wal-Mart is notorious for being detrimental to the community. But when it comes to social capital, obesity, leisure time, and social and political values, Wal-Mart might not be so bad after all, according to one study.
Twin Cities Transit Ridership Up, Funding Down
Ridership is up on transit in the Twin Cities. Fewer cars are being sold, and tax revenues are down. With little funding expected to fill the gap, transit fare increases may be on the horizon.
EPA's Emissions Waiver Not Enough
This editorial lauds the new president for acting hastily on granting the waiver to allow CA and 13 states to require higher mileage vehicles, but warns it must not be an end in itself. A higher gas tax, it notes, will do more to reduce emissions.
Peter Calthorpe's Stimulus Prescription
In this op-ed, Peter Calthorpe warns against a massive investment to stimulate sprawl as was done after WWII. He notes 3 areas that need smart investment to make the American Dream sustainable: urban transit, environment, and multi-family housing.
Towards A Transit Future
This piece from The Nation looks at the prospect of transit in America, what a renewed nationwide system could accomplish, and what it would take to achieve politically.
Driving On A Beer Buzz
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. is working with startup E-Fuel to create gas from their brewing yeast waste.
"Exceptional" Subways to Bring Toronto Up to Speed
Toronto, a land of cheap gas and unclear traffic reduction policies, has a long way to go in improving public transit, according to one architect. But designers are making progress as they make city's new subway stations as enticing as possible.
Opinion: Beware Toll Road Privatization
Author, WSJ columnist and Huffington Post blogger Thomas Frank cautions against the public-private partnerships that are leasing public toll roads, warning that it isn't in the public interest; that they will become affordable only to the wealthy.
Atlanta Beltline Project's Future Unclear
Mixed communication, contested railway lines and the collision of local, state and federal entities has put the future of Atlanta's Beltline greenspace and transit project.
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
