Free transit: In Tacoma, all public high school students will get free transit passes.
Shutdown avoided: Major transit strike has been avoided in Vancouver, British Columbia as TransLink operators agree to tentative deal with management.
Decongesting SF streets: San Francisco is taking another look at decongestion pricing.
Sounds like Washington: Connecticut has come up with a $21 billion transportation package that is status quo highway pork over sustainable, equitable transportation options.
CA’s multifamily spike: Multifamily permitting is rising for housing as the new-build rate grows in California.
Runnability: What would a city’s run score look like?
Regulate AVs: The federal government is still debating what to do about autonomous vehicles despite their extraordinary danger to the general public as they undergo testing.
Affordable housing contributions: As part of its community benefits package to Arlington County, Amazon is proposing affordable housing contributions for its new HQ2.
Uniformity in surplussing: A California judicial decision has set a precedent under statute that charter cities, like San Jose, cannot adopt less stringent affordable housing requirements for surplussed land.
Going RER: Moscow just heralded the opening of two new suburban passenger rail lines modeled on Paris and Berlin with more to come.
SB 35: How is California’s new fast-track permitting law for heavily affordable, income-restricted housing projects performing?
Reducing delivery impacts: Paris wants to tax Amazon deliveries to reduce congestion and carbon emissions.
Ban SUVs: The United Nations is not hot on sports utility vehicles, which are growing in number and harming the planet.
There are better solutions: Residents in the Gold Bar and Sultan area want a new bypass highway ($).
VMT: California’s transportation department is dropping the level of service standard in favor of vehicle miles traveled to assess projects.
Staying put: The rate of Americans moving around has hit a 72-year low.
Not a panacea: Many states are now taxing online retail sales, but if the goal is to reverse the brick and mortar retail apocalypse, it probably won’t succeed in doing that.
Potty success: San Francisco’s pilot program for 24/7 public bathrooms appears to be a success and poised for expansion.
Map of the Week: Where is flooding most affecting property values in America?
Stephen is a professional urban planner in Puget Sound with a passion for sustainable, livable, and diverse cities. He is especially interested in how policies, regulations, and programs can promote positive outcomes for communities. With stints in great cities like Bellingham and Cork, Stephen currently lives in Seattle. He primarily covers land use and transportation issues and has been with The Urbanist since 2014.