San Jose
A Change of Direction for California High-Speed Rail
In the face of political opposition and mounting construction costs in Southern California, the state High-Speed Rail Authority has chosen to build north from the Central Valley to San Jose rather than south from Fresno to the San Fernando Valley.
Rail Extensions Receive Sizable FTA Grants in Omnibus Spending Bill
Sound Transit, L.A. Metro, and Santa Clara VTA received sizable funding in FTA's New Starts/Small Starts program for their light and heavy rail extensions, thanks to Congressional representatives who included them in the omnibus bill,.
Beware of Energy Rankings for Cities
In a special "Energy for Tomorrow" report, The New York Times looks at "clean city rankings" of energy efficiency and land use. But ranking cities is no easy task—"winners on one list may appears as sinners on another."
Bus Rapid Transit Hitting Speed Bumps in the Silicon Valley
A proposed BRT route between Palo Alto and San Jose is the latest to hit a setback.
Can a Single Regional Planning Agency Fix What Ails the Bay Area?
The potential to address the housing and transportation issues of the Bay Area by a single regional agency will be addressed this week.
Open Streets Events Enjoy Coast-to-Coast Popularity
New York City and San Jose have expanded or added rules that temporarily close some of their streets to automobile traffic. This continues a string of successes for the open streets movement.
California First: Carbon Fees Used to Fund Affordable, Transit-Oriented Housing
On June 29, the California Strategic Growth Council awarded $121.9 million in Greenhouse Gas Reduction Funds to help build 28 affordable housing developments on major transit lines. Funding originates from proceeds of the cap-and-trade market.
Unpacking the Idea 'More Housing Equals Lower Prices'
It makes economic sense: increase supply in desirable areas to match demand. These articles look at some of the factors complicating that story in on the west coast.
Second Largest Bikeshare in U.S. will be Bay Area's by 2017
Bay Area Bike Share will grow from 700 to 7,000 bikes by 2017 after the expansion proposal was approved by a unanimous vote of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission. It is a regional, not a city program, though most usage is in San Francisco.
U.S. Census Releases 2014 Population Estimates
The U.S. Census Bureau's 2014 population estimates shows persistent trends of growth in the Sun Belt along with a few other noteworthy data points.
Study: NIMBYs Stunt the National Economy
A new study calculates the national consequences of restrictive housing regulations in three cities: San Francisco, New York, and San Jose.
Silicon Valley's Latest Innovation: Recycled Water
A proposed $800 million facility in Santa Clara County will put recycled water on the tech boom's doorstep.
Bay Area Bike Share Poised to Grow from 700 to 7,000 Bikes
The regional system would expand to the the East Bay cities of Berkeley, Oakland and Emeryville. Bikes would be added in San Jose and San Francisco.
Tech Giants Bank on Growth, Acquire More Space
To provide room for long-term expansion, companies like Google, Facebook, and LinkedIn are buying up even more Bay Area real estate. Their flush cash reserves have them nudging out the traditional development and investment crowd.
Local Revenue Funding More Bay Area Road Maintenance
The greater Bay Area is enjoying a substantial increase in road maintenance funding from local measures, like bonds, city and county sales taxes, and development fees, part of a growing trend in compensating for a shortage of state gas tax funds.
Op-Ed: Time for the Bay Area to Embrace Regional Planning
An op-ed by the San Francisco Chronicle's editorial board takes cues from London's regional transportation planning efforts in an argument supporting regional planning for the San Francisco-San Jose Bay Area.
San Jose Enacts 'Pedestrian Safety Zone'—Bans Bikes from Sidewalks
The city of San Jose has responded to concerns of seniors in the community by banning bikes from sidewalks a large swath of downtown near the convention center, City Hall, and San Jose State.
BRT Planned for the Silicon Valley
A region dominated by automobile-friendly infrastructure has released a Draft EIR for a bus rapid transit project connecting central San Jose to Palo Alto via El Camino Real.
Two Proposed San Jose BART Stations on the Chopping Block
Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) officials have sparked a controversy after announcing that they are likely to cut two of the four proposed stations, one in San Jose and one in Santa Clara, from BART extension plans.
Transportation Planning a Key Issue in Upcoming City Elections
Rachel Dovey provides a roundup of mayoral races that feature special interest and attention on the issues of public transportation and transit-oriented development.
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
