United States

Los Angeles Skyline with houses

California Spends $6.5 Billion on Homeowner Subsidies, 15 Times Less on Renters

A new report from the California Housing Partnership "revealed a wide gap between state support for homeowners and renters."

March 12, 2018 - Los Angeles Times

Road Usage Charge at Least 10 Years Away

Pilot programs are not the real thing, warned Michael Lewis, executive director of the Colorado Department of Transportation, testifying at a House transportation subcommittee on March 7. Colorado completed a successful four-month pilot last April.

March 12, 2018 - AASHTO Journal

Donald Trump

Trump Threatens Government Shutdown if Congress Funds Amtrak Gateway Tunnel

Trump's animus towards using federal funds to replace a century-old, hurricane-damaged rail tunnel under the Hudson River is so strong that he warned Congress he will veto a spending bill they must pass by March 23 to keep the government operating.

March 12, 2018 - The Hill

Autonomous Vehicles

Next Stop for Self-Driving Trucks: Atlanta

Arriving this week. Like, practically right now.

March 11, 2018 - The Washington Post

Trump Campaign

HUD Changing Mission

Although it's unclear if the change is final, it's been widely reported that leadership at the U.S. Department of Housing and Development is pushing to remove wording about racial discrimination from the organization's mission statement.

March 10, 2018 - The Huffington Post

Wheelchair ramp

House Bill 'Guts' ADA Enforcement for Public Places

Designed to thwart predatory lawsuits, the bill could make it easier for businesses to ignore barriers to access, disability rights advocates say.

March 10, 2018 - The Washington Post

A Map of the Country's Black Homeownership Gap

None of the top 100 American cities in African American population offers inclusive homeownership rates.

March 10, 2018 - Urban Institute

Federal Transit Administration

$500 Million in TIGER Grants Awarded

They say the pendulum swings, and the TIGER grant funding pendulum has swung away from public transit.

March 10, 2018 - U.S. Department Of Transportation

Lyft

Multiple Studies Find Ride-Hailing Contributes to Congestion and Transit Losses

Surveys on ride-hailing conducted by regional planning agencies, academic institutions, and public transit agencies throughout the U.S. reviewed by the Associated Press largely led to the same conclusion: more traffic and reduced use of transit.

March 9, 2018 - Associated Press

Erskine Fire

In California, Policies Spur Rebuilding in the Wildland-Urban Interface

After the worst wildfire season ever, changes to local land use and state insurance rules essentially ensure that the same thing will happen again.

March 9, 2018 - Bloomberg BusinessWeek

Sprawl

Revisiting Subdivision Regulations

For many decades now, most communities in the United States have grown as a series of subdivisions, built on a tried and true formula. It might be time to change the math.

March 9, 2018 - Strong Towns

Traffic

Road Pricing Shouldn't Stop at Ride Hailing Services

Extra charges for Uber and Lyft rides isn't enough to decrease traffic and speed public transit Joe Cortright argues in City Observatory.

March 8, 2018 - City Observatory

Exurbs Black and White

White Flight Hasn't Gone Anywhere

White flight gets described as a symptom of the racism of the mid- to late-20th century, but a new study finds evidence that it's still rampant and suggests that it's a sign of contemporary prejudice.

March 8, 2018 - Pacific Standard

Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao

Corrected: The Bell Tolls for the TIGER Grant Program

The Trump Administration signaled a desire to scrap a funding program that helped fund transit, pedestrian, and bike infrastructure. A new program likely focused on rural and toll roads could take its place.

March 7, 2018 - Streetsblog USA

Oil Pump in Los Angeles

Study: L.A. County's Urban Oil Wells Are Too Close to Homes and Schools

The Department of Public Health recommends taking action to better protect residents from oil operations that are sometimes only a few feet from where people live, work, eat, play and study.

March 7, 2018 - KPCC

Rosa Parks

Former President Barack Obama Addresses Gentrification

Former President Barack Obama is facing a new kind of politics while working to support the development plan for the Barack Obama Presidential Center.

March 7, 2018 - City Observatory

Mass Shootings

Where Mass Shootings Happen

It's tempting to try to find a link between sites of mass shootings, but data shows they happen in all types of American communities.

March 7, 2018 - CityLab

HUD

More Reports of Trouble at the Top of HUD

Another in a string of detailed exposés on the working conditions and policy agenda of the Department of Housing and Urban Development under the leadership of Secretary Ben Carson.

March 6, 2018 - The New York Times

Empty Carpool Lane

Climate Challenge: Not Enough EVs or Too Many SUVs?

Both are problems, but globally, sports utility vehicles sales are proliferating far faster than cars, be they electric or petrol-powered, posing a major challenge for governments committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

March 5, 2018 - The New York Times - Climate

Homeless Person

Austin Proposes Using Blockchain Technology to Help Its Homeless

The city wants to give its 7,000 citizens without permanent homes "[u]nique digital identifiers" to help them get reliable access to services.

March 5, 2018 - Quartz

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

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The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

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A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.