It's a bus! It's a train! It's a cost-saving mechanism (that part I can't stress enough)! It might even become a larger buzzword in any transit planning conversation, if it isn't already. However, with any innovation (new or otherwise), there’s always a group of naysayers that just don't agree with it and you may wonder why the contention? Well, to understand what people don't understand it is to understand what Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system achieves. Or should… The Federal Transit Administration defines BRT as, "a high-quality bus-based transit system that delivers fast and efficient service ..read more

The Urban Information Lab at the University of Texas recently found that about 4 million people, or 7% of the population, in 52 major United States cities live in a transit desert. The same study defines a transit desert as an area that is not equipped with enough transit to meet people's travel needs. In the absence of transit, Americans rely on private automobiles to fill in the gaps or take them to their destination. It comes as no surprise that a majority of Uber's top largest markets are within America's borders. With the passage of Proposition 22 and the growing concerns with how large r ..read more

Property taxes are seemingly ingrained into the prototypical American city. Schools, municipal governments, and many other public services are dependent on property taxes for their survival. Yet, property taxes also seem to further enforce the effects of income inequality and many Americans are fed up with the property tax system. That has many people thinking, is there a valid substitute for property taxes? Can we dramatically overhaul this tax system in order to benefit the majority of Americans, especially those who are low-income? Actually, there is a valid solution to this issue. This sol ..read more

At this point, we’ve all accepted that we will have to live with Covid-19 for what seems to be an eternity. And as a result, education has gone online. This article is intended to help Urban Planning Students cope with the changes on-campus Urban Planning Programs are undergoing through the transition to virtual platforms. The following list shares the secrets to online learning success from a recent Urban and Regional Planning Master’s Program graduate. Make a schedule that works for you and stick to it. Pick a time of day when your brain works best. My brain works best in the morning so I m ..read more

Planning in the global South is an approach to urban planning that entails the events of cities and people in often contested and complicated urban realities. It is realizing that a different role for planning is needed in the different contexts of cities around the world. As a result, the conversation of how and where to plan has opened up to a new urban planning ideology. The global South is then tasked with knowledge construction to shed light on the identity of other cities. It is important to note that the global South does not refer to a geographical location in the Southern Hemisphere ..read more

With the murder of George Floyd in late May, America – specifically white America – experienced a mass awakening. We realized, yes, police brutality is indeed prominent and directed at people of color (POC) and especially Black people. We began to realize what Black Americans have said for so long: racism is embedded in our society, and the police are just one more widespread means of enforcing systemic racism. Every single industry and subindustry is guilty of being complicit in accepting and furthering racist practices, if not being racist outright, via their involvement of law enforcement ..read more

Every year, the month of October is declared as the “Urban October” by UN Habitat. This initiative is intended to create international awareness around the important topics of urban development and planning. Urban October is kicked off by World Habitat Day and concluded by World Cities Day on October 31st. This year, World Cities Day is going virtual. Together with UN Habitat, the Government of the Republic of Kenya is organizing the global celebrations in Nakura, making it the first global observance of World Cities Day in Africa. The theme is “Better City, Better Life”, with the sub-theme “V ..read more

Biking has been growing as a means of travel across the world as a result of increased desire for leisure activities and government programs to decrease trips made by car. Global Newswire reported in January 2020 that the fastest growing region for the bicycle market is the Asian-Pacific market including China, Japan, Australia, India and South Korea as the top contributing countries. Here in the US, an Arizona based company, Letric bikes reported a 140% increase in sales since March 15th. E-Bikes provide a substantial environmental benefit over cars, reducing traffic and pollution. Lithium an ..read more

In this blog, I want to highlight Charles Claybourne Allen one of trailblazing pioneers in black urban planning. Charles Claybourne Allen was born in 1936 to John Christopher Allen and Margaret B. Colvert Allen. In 1958, he graduated from Hampton University with his Bachelor's in Architecture. He later served in the U.S. Army as captain at Fort Hood. He became the first African-American to graduate with his Master's in Urban Planning from Columbia University School of Architecture in 1963. After graduating with his Master's, Allen began his urban planning career working with Clarke and Rapuano ..read more

In last week's blog, tactical urbanism was touched on. Tactical urbanism is one form of creative placemaking. "Creative placemaking is a process where community members, artists, arts and culture organizations, community developers, and other stakeholders use arts and cultural strategies to implement community-led change." Although urban planners are not indicated as one of the main people involved in creative placemaking, they do play a key role in the process. Without planners many of these creative placemaking projects will not be able to be implemented because planners are responsible for ..read more