Infrastructure

CoolClimate Policy Tools
The CoolClimate Network's Interactive Policy Tools calculate and compare the GHG reductions provided by various emission reduction policies. These tools can help households, businesses and communities identify the best emission reduction strategies.

Los Angeles Parents Demand Greener Schoolyards
With asphalt temperatures reaching as much as 150 degrees, parents and advocates are asking the city’s school district to provide more shade, trees, and other heat mitigation features on its schoolyards and playgrounds.

Houston Inches Toward Reduced Car Dependency
The city is investing more in biking, walking, and public transit, but a lack of funding and counterproductive moves from the Texas Department of Transportation are slowing the process of shifting away from personal automobile dependency.

Electric Driving Is the Future; Now Is the Time to Price It
EVs are great, but they’re not perfect. Let’s end their free ride.

World’s First Municipal ‘Heat Officers’ Combat Extreme Heat
As extreme heat threatens infrastructure and public health, municipal ‘heat officers’ work to develop cooling strategies to keep urban residents safe from increasingly hot temperatures.

Fort Worth Spending More on Flood Control; Still Well Short of What’s Needed
Fort Worth could spend $136 million on stormwater infrastructure and flood control over the next five years. In all, the city needs more like $1 billion of investment.

Inland Port Planned for Mojave Desert
California’s Kern County approved plans to build a 410-acre logistics hub to expand capacity for cargo coming from the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

How Locals Are Planning to Spend $2.2 Billion in RAISE Transportation Grants
The U.S. Department of Transportation earlier this month announced $2.2 billion in RAISE grants. The Biden administration has promised that the RAISE grant program will improve equity and sustainability in the nation's transportation systems.

What Is the Urban Heat Island Effect?
Man-made surfaces and urban density contribute to higher temperatures, intensifying heat waves and posing a growing danger to public health.

Department of the Interior Forced to Intervene on the Colorado River
More questions than answers on the Colorado River this week as the federal government failed to deliver on threats to force Southwest states to cut back on water use.

Dallas Names 66-Mile Bike and Walking Trail
When complete, the newly named DFW Discovery Trail will incorporate 50 miles of existing trails into a regional ‘super highway.’

Vision Zero Still a Pipe Dream as Road Deaths Continue to Climb
U.S. traffic fatalities hit a twenty-year peak in the first quarter of 2022.

Opinion: Los Angeles Transportation Plan Will Increase Driving
L.A. Metro’s plan to add hundreds of miles of new traffic lanes is projected to increase carbon emissions by 10 million metric tons.

What Is the Transect?
In urbanism and planning, the term transect provides a conceptual framework for understanding how the scale of built environments can vary from place to place.

Houston Bike Advocates Propose Two Bridges Across White Oak Bayou
An as-yet-unfunded proposal to build two new bridges would create essential connections and help riders avoid a mile-plus detour.

Salt Lake City Streets To Get Traffic Calming
After a 19-year hiatus, the city is restarting its traffic calming program to combat the growing pedestrian death crisis.

Flooding 210 Days a Year—No Storms Necessary
It no longer takes a storm to cause flooding in many coastal areas of the United States. Galveston, Texas could eventually face floods more than half the days of the year.

Rhode Island Funding Highway Expansion Despite Poor Road Conditions
In a Strong Towns article passionately argued by Charles Marohn, Rhode Island’s penchant for building new highway capacity while the rest of the state’s roads crumble is compared to Emperor Nero.

Checking in on the Progress of the Sound Transit 3 Plan
The Seattle area's $53.8 billion transit expansion plan is moving along in fits and starts.

Colorado Could Reject Highway Expansion in Favor of Climate-Friendly Planning
A proposed transportation strategy could shift the state’s focus away from driving and toward incentivizing public transit use, walking, and biking.
Pagination
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
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
EMC Planning Group, Inc.
Planetizen
Planetizen
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service