Brookings Metropolitan Policy Program

Mobile Phones

Location Data Could Unlock a Less Car-Centric Future

A report from the Brookings Institution shows how planners can use new types of anonymized data to inform mobility planning decisions.

October 22, 2020 - Route Fifty

U.S.-Mexico

What President Trump's Border Wall Can't Stop

William H. Frey, a demographer with Brookings, argues that racial diversity is a good thing for the country by many measures. Trump's wall would make it harder to benefit from demographic changes, but changes is still coming.

February 19, 2019 - Brookings: The Avenue

Des Moines, Iowa

A Case for Giving Midsized Metro Areas More Attention

As major cities draw in wealth and population, midsized metros may be getting less attention than they deserve. After all, many of their economic, demographic, and political challenges resemble those of the nation as a whole.

February 11, 2019 - Brookings

Traffic

2016 Sets New U.S. Driving Record as Gas Prices Remain Low

So much for the 2015 record of 3.148 trillion miles. Last year saw a cumulative travel increase of 2.8 percent to 3.218 trillion miles, setting a new record as cheap gas contributed to increased driving.

February 22, 2017 - E&E News

Welcome

More Evidence of the 'Neighborhood Effect'

Two recent studies find evidence of a powerful "neighborhood effect" for economic mobility—especially on the incomes of blue collar and service workers as compared to knowledge and creative workers.

January 16, 2015 - CityLab

'The Way Forward': What Would Expanded Public-Private Partnerships Look Like?

Robert Puentes and Bruce Katz call for expanded partnerships to build the infrastructure of the future. These new partnerships will require customization by sector and the development of new models for revenue and risk sharing.

July 11, 2014 - ReNew Canada

In Absence of Gas Tax Increases, States Look to Tolls

States are increasingly looking to alternative transportation revenue sources due to the failure of state and federal gas taxes to keep up with inflation and transportation needs. More states are turning toward tolling to make up the gap.

November 13, 2013 - Stateline

10 Innovations Driving America's Cities and States Forward

"America is renewing itself from the bottom up." That is the premise underlying the second annual “Innovations to Watch” list just released by The Brookings Metropolitan Policy Program and The Rockefeller Foundation.

January 20, 2013 - Brookings

Defeat of Atlanta Tax Measure is Huge Loss to the Region

In light of the resounding defeat of Atlanta's regional referendum on a transportation sales tax that could have brought 'transformative infrastructure' to the sprawling region, Brookings' Adie Tomer provides a brief post-mortem on the historic vote.

August 3, 2012 - TNR (The New Republic)

How Does A Gas Tax Reduce The Deficit?

The deficit commission has proposed a 15-cent gas tax, which would fund the Highway Trust Fund for needed infrastructure projects as opposed to deficit reduction. Brooking's Robert Puentes explains why it was included.

December 14, 2010 - The New Republic

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.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.