We Know the Solution to Transit’s Last Mile Problem — It’s Walking
To solve the "first and last mile problem," there's no substitute for walkability.
April 12, 2017
Denver Is Your 2017 Parking Madness Champ!
Denver's monster parking crater is a classic of wasted urban potential: a huge swathe of land close to downtown, served by three light rail stations, and overwhelmed by massive parking lots for sports stadiums that barely get used much of the year.
April 11, 2017
Enough With the Gondolamania Already
In American cities, gondolas have mainly served as a distraction from bigger problems facing urban transit systems.
April 10, 2017
Parking Madness Championship: Denver vs. Poughkeepsie
Readers have delivered a David vs. Goliath match-up in the final, with Poughkeepsie taking on Denver for the rights to the Golden Crater and -- we hope -- a blistering round of local press coverage calling attention to the shame of parking blight.
April 10, 2017
Who’s Gonna Get Stuck With the Bill for Seattle’s Highway Tunnel Misadventure?
Seattle's massive downtown highway tunnel, originally slated at $3.1 billion, is now expected to cost at least $4 billion when all is said and done. Who's going to pay?
April 7, 2017
The Traffic Safety Establishment Needs to Take More Responsibility for Soaring Pedestrian Deaths
America's traffic safety establishment has long been focused on "behavioral" explanations for traffic deaths -- things like seatbelt usage and drunk driving. By ignoring the role of the high-speed, car-centric transportation systems they've created, they don't have to face their own culpability.
April 7, 2017
3 Steps to Fight Street Harassment
Cat calls, patronizing enjoinders to "smile," and more aggressive forms of harassment can make walking or biking uncomfortable or threatening. Katie Matchett, an urban planner who writes about pedestrian issues at Where the Sidewalk Starts, still recalls getting harassed on the streets of San Diego as she was beginning her career 20 years ago. She says it's up to everyone -- men and women -- to combat it.
April 6, 2017
Is Portland Losing Its Resolve Against Highway Expansions?
In the 1970s, some American cities revolted against highway expansion and kept the worst excesses of the interstate construction spree in check. Those cities tend to be the most walkable and transit-oriented places in the nation today. But in Portland that legacy is in jeopardy.
April 5, 2017
Atlanta’s I-85 Collapse — Another “Carmaggedon” That Wasn’t
When a heavily-traveled section of Atlanta's I-85 collapsed in a fire last week, the traffic predictions were dire. But the highway disruption appears to be another case of "carmaggedon" that never materialized -- and that should inform the way we plan our transportation systems.
April 5, 2017
Atlanta’s I-85 Collapse — Another “Carmaggedon” That Wasn’t
Few cities are built around highways more than Atlanta. So when a heavily-traveled section of I-85 collapsed in a fire last week, the traffic predictions were dire.
April 4, 2017