The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has provided the first look at what their version of the next federal transportation authorization might look like, and complete streets gets prominent placement.
There’s some exciting news out of Washington, DC to report this morning, where US EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson announced in Senate testimony this morning that EPA is joining with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Department of Transportation (USDOT) in a special partnership to work together to promote smart growth and more livable, sustainable communities across America.
Huge, sprawling “mega-schools” built at the edges of town aren’t required by law in Minnesota. But minimum acreage recommendations from the Minnesota Department of Education have forced local communities into a one-size-fits-all approach, resulting in new schools that are unwalkable and unconnected to the rest of their communities. On July 1st, this is going to change in Minnesota.
The room was packed on Friday, June 6th for the Capitol Hill briefing, “Complete Streets: Integrating Safety and Livability into the Next Transportation Bill,” sponsored by Representative Doris Matsui, the Environment and Energy Study Institute, Transportation for America, and the National Complete Streets Coalition.
Far too often, the insanity of minimum parking requirements drive development decisions, to the detriment of just about everyone — a theme best developed by UCLA’s Don Shoup in his terrific book, The High Cost of Free Parking. Another story, as both data point and lesson: Our favorite local micro-brewery gives tours; we went last Friday evening, where we heard a version of this story.
Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter signed a Complete Streets executive order yesterday, June 4, at noon, establishing Philadelphia as the first city in Pennsylvania to adopt a complete streets policy. It emphasizes the many benefits of complete streets, from cleaner air to more efficient use of road space, and pays special attention to the safety of its most vulnerable citizens: children, older adults, and those with disabilities.
Today in Louisville, Kentucky, hundreds are taking part in the opening day of the second Reclaiming Vacant Properties Conference. The conference is a ray of hope in the midst of our housing and economic crises — and an incubator for the ideas and solutions that can bring prosperity back to the cities, communities and neighborhoods … Continued
The Environmental and Energy Study Institute and Transportation for America invite you to a briefing to discuss how the next transportation authorization bill can help create complete, safer streets and more livable communities. The briefing, which is free and open to all, takes place on Friday, June 4 from 10-11:30 in B318 Rayburn House Office Building.
Pediatricians should help work against conventional suburban development (top) and for traditional neighborhoods (lower). Why? For starters, so kids can walk to school again. AAP’s Policy Statement includes this drawing by Duany, Plater-Zyberk. A version of the drawing is available at http://www.dpz.com/research.aspx, Diagram #25. Yesterday, the American Academy of Pediatrics adopted a ground-breaking policy statement … Continued
A new report from AARP’s Public Policy Institute, “Planning Complete Streets for the Aging of America,” is packed with new information and calls for adoption of Complete Streets policies to address the needs of the estimated 64 million Americans who will be over 65 in 2025. Many transportation planners and engineers have not begun to prepare for the coming increase in Americans over 65 years old.