Light Rail
The Bus and The Train Are Friends
Bus rapid transit has seen a recent spike in interest, and with that interest has come the analysis that BRT takes away from light rail projects and vice versa. But as this post points out, they need each other and work better when both are around.
Light Rail Among Cuts in Proposed North Carolina Budget
A new budget proposal in North Carolina could pull all funding for a long-planned extension of Charlotte's light rail system.
Billion Dollar Rail Proposed in Victoria
Planners in Victoria, British Columbia, are proposing a new light rail line for the city. Despite its $1 billion price tag, the transit line is expected to see wide support.
Friday Funny: Detroit Light Rail in the House
Enjoy this detailed demonstration of Detroit's Light Rail Proposal, using rap and LEGOs to communicate the message that light rail in the center of the road is better than then on the sides.
Hawaii Gets Mass Transit
A rapid transit system gets closer to reality in Honolulu as officials conduct groundbreaking ceremony, while some still object to the project for aesthetic reasons.
Transit Breaks Ground in Honolulu, But Will Development Follow?
Ground has broken on Honolulu's long-planned rail system, but locals still worry that the new transit won't lure new development to town.
New TOD Residents Become Anti-Transit NIMBYs
King Farm, a 440-acre development in the D.C. suburbs, was designed to be the perfect transit-oriented development, with a light rail to be built later. Now, residents have decided they don't want the transit to ever be built.
Staten Islanders Keep it in the Borough
The need to replace the Bayonne Bridge has inspired a discussion on Staten Island over including transit, and possibly light rail, over the new span. Yonah Freemark looks at the numbers, and isn't so sure.
DC Streetcars to Be a Shot in the Arm
It was nearly 50 years ago, when streetcars were seen on the roadways of downtown Washington, DC. Dan Tangherlini, the former transportation director for the District discusses why streetcars matter in the United States capital.
Slow Going for Light Rail in Dallas
A new 28-mile expansion makes the city's system is the largest in the nation, but is it actually changing travel habits? Yonah Freemark investigates.
Ridership Predictions Lowered, But Subway Plans Move Ahead
Despite predictions of ridership that are lower than previously thought, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency is still pushing ahead with plans to build a subway line in the center of the city.
Dark Clouds Over L.A.'s Light Rail
Los Angeles is in the midst of expanding its light rail system. But a new idea to speed up the process has backfired and caused delays and major increases in estimated costs.
Transit Transformation in New Orleans
Jonna McKone asks, "How can transportation and urban development—from housing to public spaces to landscaping—repair a blighted American city?"
Abu Dhabi Eyes Tram Network by 2014
Feasibility studies underway in Abu Dhabi predict that a new light rail tram network could be operational by 2014.
Light Rail Plans Emerge in Saudi Arabian Capital
The Saudi Arabian capital of Jeddah is looking to build a $5.6 billion light rail system.
Will Light Rail Kill Businesses?
Rick Harrison tells a parable of a small businessman who's auto shop is decimated when a traffic engineer decides to put a median on the adjoining road, eliminating left turns into his shop. Will light rail essentially do the same?
Getting it Built, Three Years Early
Tampa's light rail line to the airport could be completed three years early, if an upcoming ballot measure passes that would create a tax increase to pay for the rush job.
Pedestrian-Friendly Sydney On the Way
Officials in Australia have announced plans to recast downtown Sydney as a pedestrian-friendly central business district.
Bus Riders Union Blasts L.A.'s 30/10 Plan
A proposal in L.A. to use recently approved funding to push 30 years of transportation projects into the next decade has elicited a protest from the city's Bus Riders Union.
The Light Rail Diet
A new study from The Journal of Preventative Medicine says that drivers in Charlotte, North Carolina who switched to riding the Lynx Light Rail lost an average of 6 1/2 pounds.
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.
City of Albany
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
