Economics

An high-speed train pulls into a station and passengers approach. (Photo courtesy Midwest High Speed Rail Association)

High-Speed Rail Benefits Small Towns and Large Cities

There are many ways a high-speed rail system can benefit the urban hubs of a megaregion, but small towns along the alignment can also...

Now Is the Time to Re-Read Jane Jacobs Backwards

My copy of Jane Jacobs’ The Death and Life of Great American Cities is dog eared and marked up. There are little arrows on...

Sunday Video: Just One More Lane, Bro

Will one more car lane really fix congestion? Jason Slaughter from Not Just Bikes digs into all those promises made by highway departments to...
Harrell stands at a lectern and looks down as his notes. He wears a grey suit and stands in front of a red curtain.

Harrell Calls Musk, Thiel ‘Smart Innovators,’ Tells Downtown Businesses He’s Fighting for Them

On Tuesday, Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell praised conservative billionaires as "smart innovators," but pledged to push back on federal overreach and advance cybersecurity, telling business leaders: "I will fight for you."

Map of the Week: Every Job in the Puget Sound

Jobs, jobs, jobs. It's all about the jobs. But where exactly are they? Robert Manduca, a PhD student at Harvard University who specializes in sociology, data, and...
A rainy downtown Seattle street scene with bus 590 approaching.

America’s Pessimism Isn’t Economic, Stupid – It’s Human 

Economists are trying to figure out the dissonance between a recovering economy and America's deep pessimism. They're looking in the wrong place.

Sunday Video: The Hidden Traffic Metric That Makes Cities Worse

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEE4bSWBHdQ Dave Amos of City Beautiful explains what level-of-service is and the pitfalls of using it mitigate transportation impacts from new development. He also talks...
Third Avenue near Madison Avenue with office towers, some of the historic, in the background.

Seattle Hopes to Spur Office-to-Housing Conversions with Regulatory Incentives

Facing waning demand for office spaces, landlords are weighing housing conversions, with Mayor Harrell and the Seattle City Council aiming to nudge them in that direction with a recently passed package of regulatory incentives. Financial incentives could be next, but hurdles remain.