After a $2.3 billion widening project, traffic once again chokes the Katy Freeway's 23 lanes. For road spending critics who are also taxpayers, this I-told-you-so moment is bittersweet.

Texas certainly isn't the only state to spend billion after billion widening its highways. But at 23 lanes and counting, the Katy Freeway (part of the I-10 near Houston) is an exercise in extremes. An article from Streetsblog throws doubt on the project's value.
U.S. Representative John Culberson boasted that the expansion is "moving more cars in less time, [and resulting in] more savings to taxpayers than any other transportation project in the history of Houston." But according to a recent analysis, "Traveling from Downtown outbound on the I-10 Katy Freeway to Pin Oak took 51% more time in 2014 than in 2011."
The article calls for an end to this kind of "futile" spending and for wiser investment in alternative modes as Texas continues to grow.
FULL STORY: The 23-Lane Katy Freeway: A Monument to Texas Transportation Futility

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?

LA’s Tree Emergency Goes Beyond Vandalism
After a vandal destroyed dozens of downtown LA trees, Mayor Karen Bass vowed to replace them. Days later, she slashed the city’s tree budget.

Sacramento Leads Nation With Bus-Mounted Bike Lane Enforcement Cameras
The city is the first to use its bus-mounted traffic enforcement system to cite drivers who park or drive in bike lanes.

Seattle Voters Approve Social Housing Referendum
Voters approved a corporate tax to fund the city’s housing authority despite an opposition campaign funded by Amazon and Microsoft.
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.
Ada County Highway District
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