Transportation

Beltway Traffic

Connecting Maryland and Virginia By Transit

Bethesda and Tysons, in Montgomery County, Maryland, and Fairfax County, Virginia, respectively, look like neighbors on a map, but they lack a direct transit route. That could change.

December 4, 2020 - Greater Greater Washington

Ambulance

Hospitals and Healthcare Workers Brace for Influx of COVID Patients

Coronavirus infections, while at record-high levels, have decreased during the past week, unlike hospitalizations, which are still surging. Public health experts expect it to get a lot worse due to the Thanksgiving holiday travel.

December 3, 2020 - Bloomberg News

Portland, Oregon

Columbia River Crossing Back From the Dead With a New Name and Potential Changes

2021 will be a big year for planning on the Interstate Bridge Replacement project, née Columbia River Crossing, that will connect Washington and Oregon across the Columbia River.

December 3, 2020 - The Urbanist

Lake Michigan

Lessons From the Viral Video of Lake Michigan Taking Out a Bike Commuter

Climate change will only increase the frequency of incidents like the one captured by a television news station in Chicago earlier this week.

December 3, 2020 - Bicycling

Capitol Hill

More Transit Agencies Propose Cuts; Congress Finally Takes Notice

The stakes in the economic stimulus package under consideration on Capitol Hill this week are incredibly high.

December 3, 2020 - The Washington Post

Seattle

Researchers Flaunt the Benefits of Reduced Minimum Parking Requirements

Seattle is one of the U.S. cities shrinking minimum parking requirements to allow for denser, more affordable development near transit.

December 2, 2020 - Transfers Magazine

Wheelchair Accessible

Transport Access Manual: A Guide for Measuring Connection between People and Places

This new Manual is a guide for evaluating peoples' ability to access services and activities, and therefore the performance of transportation and land use configurations.

December 2, 2020 - Transport Access Manual: A Guide for Measuring Connection between People and Places

Scooter Citations

An Atlas of E-Scooter Policies

Introducing the Micromobility Policy Atlas.

December 2, 2020 - Shared-Use Mobility Center

Pedestrian Crosswalk

U.S. DOT Releases First-Ever Pedestrian Safety Plan

Record numbers of pedestrians have been killed by drivers in recent years. The federal government says a "team effort" will be necessary to stop the carnage.

December 2, 2020 - Smart Cities Dive

Muni Bus Overhead Wire

The Transit Catastrophe Continues: San Francisco, D.C. Forecast Service Cuts, Layoffs

Advocates have been waiting for the other shoe to drop as transit agencies deal with cratered revenues during the pandemic without support from Congress.

December 1, 2020 - San Francisco Examiner

Stormwater

Cars Pollute in More Ways Than One

Tires wear down and shed toxic microplastics into stormwater, which eventually ends up in rivers and the ocean. Recent research sheds new light on the extent of the damage.

December 1, 2020 - Hakai Magazine

Washington State

Connecting Light Rail Plans to Affordable Housing Opportunities

To keep up with affordable housing demand, Snohomish County needs to add 200,000 units by 2050. Planned light rail stations could be the ticket.

December 1, 2020 - The Urbanist

Coronavirus and Transportation

Thanksgiving Air Travel Breaks Pandemic Records

As expected, air travel in the United States reached heights not seen since before the pandemic, but still fell well short of the norm.

December 1, 2020 - The Dallas Morning News

Transit Planning

Dedicated Center Lane Planned for Madison Bus Rapid Transit

Some portions of the bus rapid transit (BRT) system planned for Madison, Wisconsin will resemble the fully realized BRT systems more common in other parts of the world.

December 1, 2020 - Wisconsin State Journal

Maryland Transit Administration

Maryland's Purple Line Gets the Green Light Again

The public-private partnership behind the Purple Line light rail project in Maryland fell apart in September, and has this past week been revived.

December 1, 2020 - The Washington Post

Parking

Opinion: Proposed Parking Tax Reduction Would Do More Harm Than Good

Recent investigations into the conditions facing workers in private parking lots in Philadelphia has produced a series of legislation reforms, but one idea, to lower the city's parking tax, isn't going to fly with this opinion writer.

November 30, 2020 - WHYY

Book in the Park

The Top Urban Planning Books of 2020

The public health crisis of the coronavirus pandemic upended all the normal day-today routines this year. At least there are plenty of great urban planning books to read.

November 30, 2020 - Josh Stephens

Pandemic Drive-Thru

Cities Double Down on Car-Centric Services During the Pandemic

The pandemic has created even more obstacles to participation in society for those without a car.

November 30, 2020 - Transfers

Los Angeles, California

Controversial Aerial Tram Proposed to Serve Dodger Stadium

A new electric aerial gondola system is being proposed to transport baseball fans and concert goers from Union Station over the Los Angeles State Historic Park to Dodger Stadium.

November 29, 2020 - Los Angeles Times

First Responders

New York City Traffic Fatalities Pass 2019 Totals

The visions of a car-free utopia that might have seemed like a potential silver lining in March and April have given away to a tragic reality.

November 29, 2020 - New York Post

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.

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.