United States

Denied: Proposed LNG Export and Gas Pipeline in Oregon Rejected by FERC

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission denied a contentious $7.5 billion Liquefied Natural Gas export facility, pipeline, and power plant in Coos Bay, Ore., which had received environmental clearance.

March 13, 2016 - The Oregonian

President Obama and Prime Minister Trudeau Agree to Reduce Methane Emissions

Climate change was front and center at a Thursday morning joint press conference at the White House, where U.S. President Barack Obama and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau agreed to several energy, environmental, and Arctic initiatives.

March 13, 2016 - Los Angele Times

Lessons From Helsinki's Failed On-Demand Bus Experiment

Kutsuplus—an attempt to "reinvent carpooling for the algorithm age"—has failed in Helsinki. What can new systems, still operating in the United States, learn from its example?

March 12, 2016 - Citiscope

Accounting for Seasonal Variations in Transportation Mode

People use different transportation systems depending on the time of year, yet transportation planning rarely accounts for this seasonal variation.

March 12, 2016 - Metropolitan Planning Council

Op-Ed: Transit Still Lacking in the Customer Service Department

An opinion piece says its time for transit agencies to start treating riders like valued customers.

March 11, 2016 - Voice of San Diego

Open Data Census Finds States Lagging

The recently released U.S. States Open Data Census discovered that the overwhelming majority of states have a lot of work to do in opening their data to the public.

March 11, 2016 - Government Technology

Efforts to Increase Pedestrian Safety Take Hold in Nevada and Kentucky

With a new Governors Highway Safety Association report estimating that the number of pedestrian fatalities jumped 10 percent in 2015, the highest ever, we look at efforts in Nevada and Louisville, Ky. to increase pedestrian safety.

March 11, 2016 - Las Vegas Sun

Affordable Housing

Using the Wrong Tools to Build Affordable Housing

What's the best way to deliver long-term affordable housing?

March 11, 2016 - Shelterforce/Rooflines

Friday Funny: John Oliver Skewers Special Districts

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver tackles the corruption and mismanagement of special districts, which are well known to professional planners, but perhaps not to the rest of the general public.

March 11, 2016 - Last Week Tonight with John Oliver

Bike on Sidewalk

Bicyclists on Sidewalks: Why They're Not Going Away, and What We Can Do About It

Simply banning bikes from riding on sidewalks does more harm than good. A better understanding of why people choose to ride bikes on the sidewalk will be necessary to create safer environments for all users.

March 10, 2016 - Ariel Godwin and Anne M. Price

Construction

Brookings: Time to Rethink Economic Development

A new policy paper argues that real economic development reaches all levels of the economy—not just the top.

March 10, 2016 - Brookings Institution

Distracted Driving Is the New Normal

A new study finds that U.S. drivers drive distracted more often than they devote their full attention to the road.

March 10, 2016 - CityLab

Report: Pedestrian Deaths Climbed 10 Percent in 2015

Pedestrian safety is a growing problem across the country, according to a new report from the Governors Highway Safety Association.

March 9, 2016 - The Christian Science Monitor

Op-Ed: To Fix Poverty, Make Housing Fair for Everyone

A Harvard sociologist and author of "Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City" supports a large expansion of housing vouchers to rebalance the scales of the housing market.

March 9, 2016 - The New York Times

Rainy Biker

Report Ranks the Cities With the Most Active Commuters

A benchmarking report by the Alliance for Biking and Walking reveals Boston as the nation's leader in active commutes.

March 9, 2016 - Fast Co.Exist

Top Priority for Federal Railroad Administration: Reducing Crossing Crashes

Vehicle crashes at grade crossings have emerged as a top priority for Sarah Feinberg, the new Federal Railroad Administrator. Fatalities at rail crossings in 2014 increased by 15 percent from 2013.

March 8, 2016 - Progressive Railroading

Zoning Has Not Outlived All Its Uses...Yet

With the sharing economy repurposing and mutating the one-size (and one size only) fits all world of zoning, is it time to jettison our old zoning codes?

March 8, 2016 - Governing

Glenmont Metrocentre

How One Developer Is Delivering Urban Infill

Doug Bauer, CEO of one of the nation's largest homebuilders, describes the political and design decisions that contributed to the success of urban infill projects in four unique case studies.

March 8, 2016 - Doug Bauer

The Case for Making Federal Housing Programs Like HAMP and HARP Permanent

There have been a number of federal and state programs to address the housing and foreclosure crisis. While these programs have helped a lot of people and continue to do so, many people that are qualified still have trouble completing these programs.

March 7, 2016 - DSNews

Baltimore Demolition

It's Time to Stop Blaming Historic Preservation For Affordable Housing Woes

In a rebuttal to criticisms leveled at historic preservation districts, Stephanie Meeks of the National Trust for Historic Preservation argues that historic preservation has value and can aid in creating affordable housing.

March 7, 2016 - CityLab

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.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

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