Technology

Key Points From the Tesla Data Leak
Thousands of leaked safety complaints about the electric carmaker reveal a pervasive effort to hide problems from the public and prevent customers from filing lawsuits.

Is Twitter Still an Effective Planning Tool?
Twitter has been a daily dose of drama and upheaval ever since Elon Musk offered to pay over $40 billion to buy the social media platform. Media outlets and public transit agencies had been abandoning the social media platform—should planners?

Healing a Neighborhood: Amy Stelly’s Efforts to Tear Down the Claiborne Expressway in New Orleans
Amy Stelly’s childhood dream was to remove the highway that devastated her neighborhood. Now that those efforts have gained traction, institutional biases remain as much of a barrier to neighborhood healing as the highway itself.

Columbus Launches E-Bike Rebate Program
The Ohio capital will offer rebates for residents purchasing e-bikes as part of its goals to reduce carbon emissions and encourage active transportation.

Waymo Expansion Makes Phoenix ‘World’s Largest Self-Driving Car Zone’
The company’s autonomous taxis will soon be available in most parts of the metro area including Tempe, Mesa, and a new airport pick-up location.

Oklahoma Launches 'Pay-per-Mile' Pilot
Mileage fee programs go by different names. In the West, it's the road usage charge or RUC. Oklahoma adopted a simpler term. What most have in common, though, is the for-profit company helping to manage them.

The Growing Importance of Data Storytelling
Data storytelling refers to the ability to effectively communicate insights from data using narratives and visualizations. When done right, it can be used to put data insights into context and inspire action from decisionmakers.

Las Vegas Doubles Down on Elon Musk and the Boring Co.
The Clark County Commission wants more Teslas in more tunnels.

The City Beyond Amazon's ‘Great Return’
In GeekWire, Chuck Wolfe explains how, as the Amazon (and other) “Great Returns” to the office unfold, it's essential to dig deeper.

How Self-Driving Cars Are Integrating—or Not—Into the Urban Fabric
As they become more common on some U.S. streets, autonomous vehicles are impeding emergency response operations and blocking traffic, idling in neighborhoods, and defying law enforcement.

Recommended Mobile Apps for Urban Planning in 2023
Planetizen's annual list of top apps for planners is back, ten years after its first appearance on the site. Scores of apps have been recommended by planners as examples of planning in action, or tools for planning action.

The Growing Importance of Location Intelligence
Location intelligence is transforming decision-making, with an increasing number and type of organizations modernizing operations with a geographic approach to problem-solving, planning, and prediction.

LEGO Building Carbon-Neutral Factory in Virginia
The Denmark-based toy company just broke ground on a new carbon-neutral run factory in Chesterfield County near Richmond, Virginia.

Transit Agencies Could Lose Access to Twitter Updates
Twitter announced it would start charging for access to its API, which many transit and government agencies rely on to provide real-time service updates.

Can Federal Emissions Standards Hasten the Transition to EVs?
The EPA unveiled two far-reaching rules to tighten emission standards for light, medium and heavy duty vehicles that can only be met by transitioning to zero-emission vehicles. The proposal is certain to be challenged in court as an agency overreach.

Tracking Mobility in New York City
A new program uses sensors to detect how people move and using which modes, but road safety advocates argue the city already knows how to make streets safer for vulnerable users.

Driverless Cars Blocking Buses, Traffic in San Francisco
Footage from buses and trains show self-driving cars from Waymo and Cruise frequently make unscheduled stops, blocking transit vehicles and causing traffic snarls.

D.C. Bus Cameras Will Ticket Drivers Blocking Bus Lanes, Bus Stops
The program will mark the first use of automated enforcement to ticket vehicles blocking access to bus stops.

When ‘Zero Emission Vehicles’ Aren’t
The growing popularity of large, heavy SUVS—and the energy needed to produce and operate them—could limit the environmental gains made by electric vehicles.

Study: Autonomous Cars Won’t Solve the Parking Problem
In hyper-dense cities where incentives to reduce car use and eliminate parking are already high, mass adoption of AVs won’t significantly reduce parking demand.
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