Sprawl

On the Surprising Efficiency of Big City Commutes
Logically we might assume that as cities grow larger, commutes get harder. It can certainly feel that way. But research points to structural factors that actually make commuting in big cities more efficient.

Calgary Ends the 'Sprawl Subsidy'
An op-ed by the mayor of Calgary, Canada celebrates the adoption of a new off-site levy that will change the financing formula for new development and the necessary infrastructure that comes with it.

Are Tiny Houses All They Are Cracked Up To Be?
Maybe not so much, according to an article in the Globe and Mail.

How to Teach About Sprawl (and Law)
Describing a seminar on "Sprawl and the Law" at the University of Pittsburgh.
Dallas Area Ready for More Greenfield Developments
A pair of articles details two new, massive greenfield developments on the way in North Texas.

Time to Take the Self-Driving Car Seriously?
So far, only a small minority of major cities have considered self-driving cars in their long-range transportation plans. The question is, should policymakers embrace them or stand in their way?

Conservatives Have a Bad Feeling About Smart Growth
Bloggers, pundits, authors, and researchers, have made the case for conservatives to embrace the effects of smart growth. Yet still, a distinctly partisan divide flavors the debate about how to make room for a growing number of Americans.

Where the Candidates Live
Some presidential candidates favor sprawl, but a surprising number live in cities or inner-ring suburbs.

A Growing Mexico City Faces Infrastructural Hurdles
As Mexico City continues to add population, issues of sprawl, inequality, and water infrastructure remain challenges in the growing megalopolis.
New Jersey Golf Course Gives Way to Sprawl
Once upon a time, golf courses were a popular component of development plans. Much more common now: single-family detached housing on the former site of a golf course.
More Americans Living Next Door to Fire Danger
A summer of drought and devastating fires has demonstrated the dangers of allowing residential developments to sprawl ever farther into wild, natural environments.

Op-Ed: Stop Attacking My Suburb!
A proud suburban resident defends her neighborhood from the criticisms of city-dwellers. It's not walkable, it's not perfect, but it's home.

Uber's Stumble Into Urban Design
As companies like Uber, Lyft, and Bridj expand to small scale transit options, they are setting the stage for a new kind of small scale transit oriented development where the new station is the sidewalk.
Sprawl Connected to Traffic Fatalities in Louisville
A Louisville case study of the findings and recommendations of the World Resource Institute's "Cities Safer By Design" report.

With Texas Sprawl: Fewer Places to Roam
An outdoors enthusiast laments the explosive sprawl that is quickly sucking up places to hunt and fish in the state of Texas.

Smart Planning for Economic Opportunity
The Center for Opportunity Urbanism has a wonderful goal—to improve economic opportunities for working class households—but uses terrible research to reach confusing recommendations about which policies are best. Please do better!
On the Ballot: $700 Million in Bond Funding for Roads in Houston's Harris County
The legacy of sprawl in and around Houston has forced local officials to seek $700 million in bond funding (part of an $848 million bond package) to pay for road improvement projects.

Debating the Feasibility of Retrofitting Suburbia
Is the challenge of retrofitting sprawl intractable or unavoidable?

Most Downtowns Still Lagging Behind
Central districts have been surging back since the 1980s. But in most cities, the upper third of earners still favor outlying areas and are underrepresented closer to downtown.

Homebuyers Return to the Exurbs
It's been a while since 2008, and a new crop of homeowners is colonizing the far-flung exurbs. Mostly foreclosed and even abandoned last time around, the exurbs are still a risky buy.
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