Urban Design
Basics
Who’s to Blame for Drive-to-Urbanism?
Developments can have the trappings of a walkable place but still be very difficult to access without a car.
November 27, 2017
Taco Bell Ditching Drive-Thrus in Cities
The chain is planning to open more than 300 restaurants without drive-thrus by 2022.
October 2, 2017
Global Street Design Guide Now Available Free Online
As of this week, the Global Street Design Guide, a handbook for cities around the world to design safe, sustainable streets, is available to the public as for free online.
May 18, 2017
Paris to Return Its Great Public Squares to the People
If you look at paintings from the pre-automotive era, Paris's monumental public squares were full of people strolling comfortably. But over time, car traffic has consumed most of these squares.
September 19, 2016
People Won’t Ride the Tysons Corner Metro If They Can’t Walk to Stations
A year after the Washington Metro opened the Silver Line in Northern Virginia, apartment rentals are booming and development is roaring ahead. But Martin Di Caro of WAMU reported Monday that the Metro itself isn’t meeting expectations:
August 5, 2015
The Key Human Factors That Can Lead Any City to Transform Its Streets
How did Portland get to be a national model for sustainable transportation and walkable development? Yes, Mayor Neil Goldschmidt stopped the Mount Hood Freeway from being built in 1974 and began negotiations that eventually led to the implementation of the urban growth boundary. But Goldschmidt didn’t do it alone.
August 4, 2015
Playable Cities Are Livable Cities
Play is so important to kids’ physical, mental, and social development that the United Nations considers it a human right. But not all cities fulfill these rights equally.
June 19, 2015
Shared Space: The Case for a Little Healthy Chaos on City Streets
Dick van Veen is a Dutch architect and engineer at consultancy company Mobycon. This post originally appeared on the blog of The Green Lane Project, a PeopleForBikes program that helps U.S. cities build better bike lanes to create low-stress streets.
November 17, 2014
Sign of the Times: Protected Bike Lanes Pop Up in Lego Book
Michael Andersen blogs for The Green Lane Project, a PeopleForBikes program that helps U.S. cities build better bike lanes to create low-stress streets.
November 13, 2014
Lousy Neighborhoods, Not Lax Zoning, Make Sunbelt Houses Cheaper
The middle class is getting priced out of liberal cities, while red-state urban areas remain affordable. Does that mean our cities should be less like tightly regulated San Francisco and more like permissive Houston? It's a common argument -- but it doesn't fit the facts.
October 31, 2014