In September 2012, New Yorkers were offered a first glimpse of what the Low Line will look like – New York City’s newest subterranean park, designed by co-founders James Ramsey and Dan Barish. According to the New Yorker, the exhibition, entitled “Imagining the Low Line,” on view through September 27, 2012, allowed visitors to “feel [...]
Most people associate cable cars with San Francisco. However, it was only 125 years ago that cable cars were a popular form of transit in Seattle. In 1884, a horse-drawn trolley between Occidental Avenue and Pike Street in downtown Seattle marked the beginning of public transit in the city. Because of the similarities to San [...]
When you think of a mecca for public transportation, often times your mindset shifts to large cities; New York City, Tokyo, London all stick out to me. A new city is emerging, that is the city of Lincoln, Nebraska, which was named one of the top smart cities for transportation by the Natural Resources Defense Council. While Lincoln [...]
“Where you live is probably a bigger determinant of your health than whether you have health insurance,” as quoted in a Bay Area Regional Health Inequities Initiative (BARHII) report from 2008. In West Oakland, where 45% of the residents make under $25,000 a year, according to statistics from Mandela Market Place, liquor stores outnumber food [...]
Just months prior to the 2010 Winter Olympics, Vancouver authorities proudly announced the opening of “The Canada Line,” Canada’s only fixed link between a major city and its international airport. The rapid transit train, which runs primarily underground between Vancouver’s city center and the outlying suburb city of Richmond, takes only 25 minutes to move [...]
It is well known that urban planning has historically been a complicated affair. The process is often convoluted, requiring the coordination and cooperation of multiple public-private actors and stakeholders to approve new projects. In light of these facts and current economic trends, is it sensible for cities to continue major investments into this area? Milan [...]
Miami voted. Results were tallied. And Midtown took the “2012 Curbed Cup” contest for Miami’s Best Neighborhood. A former rail yard, now comprised of commercial and condo units, Midtown received more votes than popular destinations like Lincoln Road, Coconut Grove, and Sunset Harbour. What might make Midtown the best Miami neighborhood? The district offers a [...]
Cycling is one of the healthiest ways to get around our cities;providing valuable physical activity for people. This form of active transport can generate indirect public health benefits by reducing the use of vehicles, consequently reducing air, water, and noise pollution. Belfast, the leading city in Northern Ireland, is on the cusp of implementing a [...]
Montreal, Canada is a winter city. From November to March (and sometimes even April) the city grows cold, the days are short and it snows – sometimes a lot. Even so, in recent years cycling in winter months has increased dramatically, according to Vélo Quebec. As I write this post, it is a beautiful 6°C [...]
I live in Athens, Greece. For the last two years there has been a big increase of people traveling by bike in the city. It seems that the economic crisis, which began in 2010, has a positive effect, at least for the environment. Fuel prices, as well as the increasing cost of mass transit tickets, [...]
If Phoenix is loops and lollipops, then what is Seattle? After recently moving from Phoenix to Seattle, it is more apparent to me how sprawl has defined Phoenix’s landscape, with its vast amounts of highways interchanges (loops) and cul-de-sacs (lollipops). Disenchantment with the post-industrial city has consequently spawned debates about what constitutes “good” urban design. [...]
The Phoenix Metro area has seen a steady increase in ridership on the Valley Metro Light Rail.The surge in riders to almost 50,000 a day has prompted Phoenix Metropolitan area policymakers to accelerate the engineering, design, and completion of extensions, in some cases by seven years. Phoenix has made a valiant effort to provide access [...]
Let’s begin with a bit of word association. When you hear “Honolulu,” you probably imagine palm trees gently swaying in the wind along sunny beaches abutting the clear, cool ocean. While Honolulu is renowned for its lovely beaches and, of course, the famed Mai Tai, it is also notorious for its traffic. Bleary-eyed commuters are often at [...]
How does a city go from a bus-only transit system to a multi-modal network in a decade? Despite early setbacks, metropolitan Orlando is well on its way to getting connected. In the next few years, public and private projects — mostly on existing rails — will shape the way Central Floridians get around. Florida has [...]
The main slogan for this past August 29, 2012 event was “Towards the Buenos Aires of 2030;” and for now Megaciudades is the most important conference regarding Urban Planning and Sustainability taking place in the city on an annual basis. In its third year, the event was organized by the German-Argentine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, [...]
Today, Spokane, Washington and Portland, Oregon are home to multiple universities, both public and private. They also have a reputation with their locals for having quality live performances and concerts featuring local, as well as popular, artists. Both have their respective small coffee roasters that most residents are loudly proud of, Stumptown and Thomas Hammer. [...]
The city of Chicago’s flat topography makes it a bicyclist’s paradise, where despite the harsh winters, the lack of hills invites people to pedal. With the recent surge of citizens choosing sustainable two-wheeled transit, the city has struggled to keep the increasing numbers of cyclists safe, with a 38% increase in bicycle accidents from 2001-2011. [...]
During the 1990’s, and this past decade, the urban sprawl of Greater Buenos Aires has responded diligently to the (worst) example of North American cities, making the expansion and low density of Los Angeles, just a mere competitor in the race for urban sprawl. Considering the rapid expansion experienced by the city the question is [...]
In Spokane, WA, the hot button topic of the moment is something that affects everywhere from rural Wyoming and Montana, to the US/Canadian border city of Bellingham, WA,, to China: coal shipment. Essentially, the region is at least 3-5 years away from having a final environmental impact statement, let alone the approval for the port [...]
Minneapolis, Minnesota may best be known for its bitterly cold winters, so it may come as a surprise to some that the use of bicycles is one of the most prominent modes of transportation year round – even during those severely cold winters. The predominance of Minneapolis as the epicenter for biking culture has even [...]
