Bay Area
BART's Transit-Oriented Development Bill Sets Disturbing Precedent, Says APA
AB 2923, which would allow the Bay Area Rapid Transit District to rezone their properties near stations for transit-oriented development, passed its first committee. The California chapter of APA objects to the preemption of local land use authority.
A Dissenting Take on the Bay Area's Proposed $3 Bridge Toll Hike
Beware of transportation officials promising traffic reductions, according to this opinion piece.
San Francisco Schools Teach Bike-Riding in P.E.
Bike safety could become part of the second-grade curriculum districtwide.
BART Has Had Enough of Dockless Bikes
With piles of them strewn around stations, the transit agency is "cracking down" on bikeshare companies.
Is CEQA the Main Impediment to Housing Construction in California?
According to a new study by UC Berkeley and Columbia University, local land use processes, specifically the approval process, rather than the California Environmental Quality Act, is the main impediment to housing production in California.
Bay Area Design Challenge Takes On Sea Level Rise
For the next several months, nine sites will be the focus of efforts to design for resilience as sea levels rise. Proposals involve "threading nature back into an urbanized terrain."
One Native American Family, Two Housing Crises
In Oakland, California and Torreon, New Mexico, Julian Brave NoiseCat reports that "[f]or Indigenous people, the crisis of the home is intergenerational."
Former Bay Bridge Piers Offer a New Approach to the Water
"Four piers from the old eastern span of the Bay Bridge will live on as a public boardwalk and vista point in Oakland and on Yerba Buena Island," reports Erin Baldassari.
Ballot Measure to Hike Bay Area Bridge Tolls Headed for June Ballot
A modest toll increase, $3 over six years, took a major step forward with the approval of a key Bay Area Toll Authority committee. With the exception of the Bay Bridge, the round-trip toll on each of the region's seven state-owned bridges is $5.
Only Bay Area Voters Support State's New 12-cent Gas Tax
According to a UC Berkeley poll released Dec. 22, 52% of likely voters statewide would support either of two initiatives that hope to be placed on the ballot next November to repeal the gas tax that took effect Nov. 1, while 43% would retain the tax.
Out-Migration from the San Francisco Bay Area Getting Wealthier and Wealthier
The effects of one of the most expensive housing markets in the country are in display in this data analysis of migration to and from the San Francisco Bay Area.
Bay Area Express Lanes Turn a Profit
Not all of them, just the I-580 lanes. One of the reasons is that most users are actually paying, unlike the other two express lanes where a majority of users are clean-air vehicles or carpools, neither of which pay.
Bay Area Displacement Spreads to Sacramento
A new study finds evidence that the ripple effect from the San Francisco Bay Area's housing affordability crisis has reached all the way to Sacramento.
Op-Ed: BART Should Embrace Driverless Trains
Daniel Borenstein points out the irony that while the Bay Area may be the world's top tech hub, BART has no real plans to consider driverless trains.
Increased Tolls for Bay Area Bridges Headed for a Vote
It is now up to the Bay Area's transportation planning agency to determine when to ask voters to hike tolls on seven Bay Area bridges, by how much, and whether to phase the increase. A bill to allow voters to fund Caltrain was also signed.
Wine Country Wildfires Put Focus on Wildland-Urban Interface
The fires in Northern California have caused at least 21 deaths, with over 500 people missing in Sonoma County. Wired science editor, Adam Rogers, looks at the problems posed when urban development encroaches wildlands.
Bay Area's Newest Express Lanes Opened Monday
Due to the high level of existing congestion, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission warns motorists that the new I-680 Contra Costa Express Lanes will offer relief just before and after the peak commute hour.
Bay Area's First Climate Adaptation Project Could Be a North Bay Highway
State Route 37 is a vital highway connecting four North Bay counties plagued by two unrelated problems: chronic flooding during high tides and traffic congestion. Fixing the problem will set a precedent for Bay Area climate adaptation.
Bay Area Not Prepared for Next Big One
As the death toll from Mexico's 7.1 magnitude earthquake on Sept. 19 climbs above 300, the San Francisco Chronicle investigates how well prepared the Bay Area is for an earthquake of comparable magnitude. Not very well.
Three Transportation Ballot Measures Could Be Headed to Bay Area Voters Next Year
The California Legislature approved bills to allow voters to decide on hiking sales taxes and tolls for regional transportation. Gov. Jerry Brown already signed a bill to allow San Mateo County voters to hike sales taxes for transportation.
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.
Caltrans
Smith Gee Studio
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
