Cities and Countries
Streetsblog Basics
The Climate Pitfalls of Denmark’s Electric Car Parking Perk
Outside of China, only two cities of more than a million people are known to have a bicycling mode-share over 30 percent: Amsterdam and Copenhagen. As Rutgers urban expert John Pucher has documented, cycling's vibrantly high percentage of urban trips throughout Denmark, the Netherlands and Germany was not the product of amorphous cultural factors. Rather, it came about through public policies that not only made cycling safe and convenient but also made driving costly and cumbersome.
December 4, 2009
Eyes on the Street: Placard Abuse, From Sea to Shining Sea
We got a tip yesterday about an errant driver hogging a curbside spot in a residential area:
December 3, 2009
Streetfilms: The Case for Bicycle Boulevards in NYC
We've seen lots of new, innovative bikeway designs appear on New
York City streets over the past few years. But there’s one very
promising concept we haven't seen -- bicycle boulevards. Bicycle
boulevard design uses a variety of techniques to create low-traffic,
low-speed streets where cyclists mix comfortably with cars. They’re
very popular in Portland and Berkeley, two cities with high bicycle
mode-share. Here in New York, though, they don’t seem to be part of the
playbook yet. In this Streetfilm we ask: Why not?
December 3, 2009
It’s Official: Chicago Parking Privatization a Massive Rip-Off
City parking meters are a gold mine, and in Chicago, Morgan Stanley is rolling in parking riches. Secret
company documents leaked to reporters show the company will rake in a 70 percent profit
margin this year from its $1.15 billion, 75-year lease of Chicago's parking
meters. This profit is on top of the millions Morgan paid to buy new, high-tech
meters. The good times will keep on rolling for investors: In 2010, after another meter
price hike, Morgan expects to make monthly profits of $4.8 million, roughly 55 percent
higher than in 2009.
November 20, 2009
Bike-Share: Not Just for French Commies
The Times ran a piece on Vélib's growing pains this weekend. The story is more thoroughly reported than the hatchet job we saw from the BBC back in February -- no claims that bike-share in Paris will flame out quickly this time around. Vélib is part of Parisian life now, and some level of theft and vandalism is part of the bargain.
November 3, 2009
LA Road Rage Doc Convicted for Horrific 2008 Cyclist Assault
Following a highly-publicized, intensely-followed trial, Christopher Thompson, the physician accused of using his car to seriously injure two cyclists in the Brentwood section of Los Angeles, is behind bars.
November 3, 2009
Philly Mayor Tells Senate: Climate Bill Can Help Make Cities Greener
As the Senate opened its second round of climate change hearings today, Philadelphia mayor Michael Nutter delivered the urban case for climate legislation, outlining an array of infrastructure improvements and green reforms that would be made possible by federal action to reduce carbon emissions.
October 28, 2009
Streetfilms Shorties: Why Don’t We Plant Trees in the Road?
Clarence recently dug up a few unused nuggets from last year's junket to Melbourne, Australia. Watch and see how curbside space in residential neighborhoods has been repurposed for plantings that double as traffic calming treatments. Whatever red tape they had to hack through to plant trees in the roadbed, not just on the sidewalk, they've hacked through it in Melbourne. Have to say, though, the trees planted in the bike lane (or the bike lane painted around the trees) had me scratching my head.
October 20, 2009
TOD Stalls as Lenders Continue to Bank on Parking
Elana linked to this story out of Salt Lake City in the Capitol Hill headline stack this morning, and it's worth everyone's full attention. Derek Jensen reports on what may be the biggest impediment to urbanism of them all: The widespread bias of banks against walkable development.
October 16, 2009
Donald Shoup on San Francisco’s Groundbreaking Parking Meter Study
If you're interested in the power of parking policy to reduce congestion and make streets more livable, the most exciting place to be right now is San Francisco. For the past year and a half, the city has pursued an innovative slate of policies designed to manage parking supply wisely and deftly, thanks in part to a federal grant from the Urban Partnership program -- the same pot of money that New York City could have accessed if Albany had passed congestion pricing last year.
October 15, 2009