Climate Change
Streetsblog Basics
How Much Can Bicycling Help Fight Climate Change? A Lot, If Cities Try
A new study from the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy attempts to measure the potential of bikes and e-bikes to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
November 18, 2015
WE ACT Climate Plan Calls for Better Upper Manhattan Bicycling, Walking
While most of Northern Manhattan escaped the harshest ravages of Hurricane Sandy, there was some flooding along the waterfront, including inside the 148th Street subway station. Next time around, a severe storm could take a different turn and things could be worse for waterfront areas in Harlem, Washington Heights and Inwood. WE ACT for Environmental Justice has developed a climate action plan for those neighborhoods -- and it includes some recommendations for walking, bicycling, and transit.
August 7, 2015
Sustainable Transportation Could Save the World (and Save $100 Trillion)
Dramatically expanding transit and active transportation over the next few decades could reduce urban vehicle emissions 40 percent more than following a car-centric trajectory. And it could also save the world economy $100 trillion.
September 23, 2014
Earth Day Resolution: Stop Building Projects Like the Zoo Interchange
Leading up to Earth Day, the New York Times ran an editorial, "Time Is Running Out," lamenting the lack of urgency in the United States to prevent a very urgent problem: catastrophic climate change. Today, Brad Plumer at Vox explained why it may be too late to keep average temperatures from rising more than 2 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels -- the threshold that climate scientists have been warning about.
April 22, 2014
Transit Union and Sierra Club Join Forces for Earth Day and Beyond
Earth Day is a week from tomorrow. How many people will drive to their local environmental festival without even a second thought to how they got there?
April 15, 2014
What Will Our Future Be Like If We Don’t Change How We Get Around?
How will Americans get around in the year 2030? A recent report from the RAND Corporation lays out two "plausible futures" developed though a "scenario analysis" and vetted by outside experts. While RAND takes a decidedly agnostic stance toward the implications of each scenario, the choice that emerges is still pretty stark.
December 5, 2013
Obama’s Climate Speech: Mostly Mum on Transportation
President Obama announced a sweeping package of measures to address combat climate change today. But with a couple of exceptions, he was largely silent on the third of carbon emissions that come from the transportation sector.
June 25, 2013
Most Candidates Endorse Traffic Reduction, But Few Offer Plans to Achieve It
Last night’s mayoral forum on sustainability at Cooper Union was the first to attract the full slate of candidates this election season, perhaps a sign that environmental issues now figure prominently in the campaigns’ electoral calculus. Organized by the New York League of Conservation Voters Education Fund and the Cooper Union Institute for Sustainable Design, the event packed all nine registered mayoral candidates onto the stage, where Brian Lehrer of WNYC guided a conversation that touched on topics ranging from climate change to energy efficiency.
April 23, 2013
Will Big Highway Projects Have to Consider Climate Change?
Since 1970, the National Environmental Protection Act has required federal agencies to consider the impacts of their projects on air, water, and soil pollution -- but not on climate change.
March 21, 2013
Study: Electric Cars Not So Green Unless Powered by Renewables
A study by the government of the Australian state of Victoria highlights the limits of electric cars, in isolation, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
December 5, 2012