It’s time to harness technology for cleaner, healthier, and safer cities.
This article calls for the elimination of vehicular exhaust from urban centers within the next ten years. It draws an analogy between tolerating polluted air in our city streets and smoking on an airplane, which was finally banned in the year 2000.
The writers state: "With the ever-improving performance of electric-powered vehicles - from autonomous shuttles to new forms of micromobility - and a growing realization that quality of life is not all about moving traffic, there is no reason that we can’t have city centers that are cleaner, healthier and safer than what we have today."
The article discusses other sources of pollution, including particulate matter, and explains that electrically powered vehicles still have better environmental performance even when their power source is derived from fossil fuels. Finally, the article challenges North American cities to catch up with European cities in taking on bold proposals to limit fossil fuel engines and create environments that better accommodate pedestrians, bikes and other clean modes of transportation.
FULL STORY: Exhaust-free city centers by 2030!
LA’s Trees Absorb More Carbon Than Expected, But Can’t Do It Alone
A USC study finds that Los Angeles’ urban trees absorb more carbon than expected, but while they provide crucial environmental benefits, they cannot replace the urgent need for systemic emissions reductions.
Ways the EPA Can Still Fight Climate Change
Despite the Supreme Court’s recent decision to limit the EPA’s ability to regulate emissions from power plants, the agency still has a range of tools at its disposal for enforcing pollution controls and reducing harmful emissions.
Assessing Prince George's County's Climate Action Plan
The Prince George's County draft Climate Action Plan includes ambitious goals and timetables, but falls short of recommended targets for emissions reductions in the transportation sector.
Alabama: Trump Terminates Settlements for Black Communities Harmed By Raw Sewage
Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
The 120 Year Old Tiny Home Villages That Sheltered San Francisco’s Earthquake Refugees
More than a century ago, San Francisco mobilized to house thousands of residents displaced by the 1906 earthquake. Could their strategy offer a model for the present?
In Both Crashes and Crime, Public Transportation is Far Safer than Driving
Contrary to popular assumptions, public transportation has far lower crash and crime rates than automobile travel. For safer communities, improve and encourage transit travel.
Report: Zoning Reforms Should Complement Nashville’s Ambitious Transit Plan
Without reform, restrictive zoning codes will limit the impact of the city’s planned transit expansion and could exclude some of the residents who depend on transit the most.
Judge Orders Release of Frozen IRA, IIJA Funding
The decision is a victory for environmental groups who charged that freezing funds for critical infrastructure and disaster response programs caused “real and irreparable harm” to communities.
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.
Clanton & Associates, Inc.
Jessamine County Fiscal Court
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service