Originally posted to citylab.com on August 4, 2016 by Laura Bliss. A basic principle of finance could yield big wins for U.S. cities, according to a new policy agenda. Proportionally speaking, Americans living in poverty pay more for basic necessities. On energy bills, the poorest 20 percent of Americans spend more than seven times the share […]

Originally posted to citylab.com on August 18, 2016 by Laura Bliss. Houston’s overnight bus network transformation in August 2015 was a transportation planner’s dream. The old hub-and-spoke system that had for decades funneled commuters downtown was straightened into a grid that cross-cuts the sprawling city, with fewer redundancies, more frequent service, and all-day, all-week service on […]

Originally posted to citylab.com on July 12, 2016 by Laura Bliss. A new survey of 3,000 riders finds frequency, speed, and walkability are key for satisfying, effective transit. Sad but true: Not all officials who make decisions about public transit actually use public transit. That disconnect can sometimes lead cities to make transit investments in things […]

Originally posted to citylab.com on April 5, 2016 by Laura Bliss. Not long ago, Houston’s bus service befit a version of the city out of the 1950s. Despite decades of decentralized urban growth, most bus lines still zig-zagged into one small section of the downtown core, where only 25 percent of the region’s jobs are located. […]

Originally posted to streetsblog.net on March 24, 2016 by Angie Schmitt. Downtown Columbus, Ohio, is facing a parking crunch. But parking prices aren’t high enough in this city to make garage construction a viable private investment. Faced with this situation, a lot of cities would pour a bunch of money into a big subsidized garage or two. But […]