A startup called Placemeter is using public surveillance to track pedestrian traffic in New York City to provide real time information about wait times at services and facilities around the city.
Jessica Leber writes about a new startup called Placemeter, which "is working to cobble together video feeds from different sources and cover all or most of New York City’s sidewalks and public spaces within the next year or so." With the data, Placemeter hopes to provide residents with real time congestion information, including, for example, "how long the line is for a cronut."
Placemeter is still far from comprehensive in its coverage of New York City, however. "Placemeter needs about 2,000 to 3,000 well-placed cameras to cover 90% of the city, and so far the company has access to about 500," reports Leber.
The 500 cameras already employed by Placemeter are the result of "a partnership with New York City to more easily access its publicly available traffic camera feeds as well as [Placemeter's] work with live webcam sites like Earthcam."
FULL STORY: One Company Is Trying To Count And Track All Of New York City's Pedestrian
Standardizing and Sharing City Data
New York City is moving forward with a plan to create a singular clearinghouse of public agency information -- an effort to help improve the way city departments work together.
The Data-Driven Key to Unlocking New York's Congestion
Wired profiles Charles Komanoff, who's hoping to use his immense spreadsheet of New York City traffic data to clear the city's congestion.
A Visual Celebration of Manhattan’s Chinatown Elder Community, Through Food
Lanterns, cafeteria trays, and community connection take center stage in this stunning photo essay.
Alabama: Trump Terminates Settlements for Black Communities Harmed By Raw Sewage
Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”
Study: Maui’s Plan to Convert Vacation Rentals to Long-Term Housing Could Cause Nearly $1 Billion Economic Loss
The plan would reduce visitor accommodation by 25% resulting in 1,900 jobs lost.
Why Should We Subsidize Public Transportation?
Many public transit agencies face financial stress due to rising costs, declining fare revenue, and declining subsidies. Transit advocates must provide a strong business case for increasing public transit funding.
Paris Bike Boom Leads to Steep Drop in Air Pollution
The French city’s air quality has improved dramatically in the past 20 years, coinciding with a growth in cycling.
Why Housing Costs More to Build in California Than in Texas
Hard costs like labor and materials combined with ‘soft’ costs such as permitting make building in the San Francisco Bay Area almost three times as costly as in Texas cities.
San Diego County Sees a Rise in Urban Coyotes
San Diego County experiences a rise in urban coyotes, as sightings become prevalent throughout its urban neighbourhoods and surrounding areas.
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.
Smith Gee Studio
Alamo Area Metropolitan Planning Organization
City of Santa Clarita
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