Recent Streetsblog USA posts about Network Roundup

Parking Lots Shouldn't Take Up Prime Streetfront Real Estate

By Sarah Goodyear | Apr 20, 2010 | No Comments

The parking lot is behind these Boca Raton residences. (Photo: faceless b via Flickr) It might seem like a simple idea — that having an enormous parking lot in front of a business makes it unattractive to pedestrians and disrupts the fabric of a neighborhood. Unfortunately, this is the way that huge swaths of American […]

Rep. Steve LaTourette Backpedals on Dismissive Cycling Remarks

| Apr 16, 2010 | No Comments

Big thanks to Streetsblog Network member Iowa Bike Blog for alerting us to a post on the website of Rep. Steven LaTourette (R-OH). You may remember that LaTourette caused a bit of a stir in the bicycling community last month with some remarks he made while questioning DOT officials last month about funding for bicycle […]

Chicago's New BRT Push Will Be Linked to "Livability"

By Sarah Goodyear | Apr 6, 2010 | No Comments

Bogotá’s Transmilenio BRT. Could Chicago get something like this? (Photo: the mikebot via Flickr) Today on the Streetsblog Network, we hear about new plans for Bus Rapid Transit from the blog of the Metropolitan Planning Council (the MPC is "an independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan organization…[that] serves communities and residents by developing, promoting and implementing solutions for […]

Los Angeles as a Model Transit City?

| Mar 31, 2010 | No Comments

Is LA setting a global transit example? (Photo: hustle roses via Flickr) Today on the Streetsblog Network, Jarrett Walker at Human Transit talks about how the push for better transit in Los Angeles provides an example for planners in other parts of the world, especially in newer cities that don’t benefit from European-style density. Walker […]

What's So Scary About Bicycle Infrastructure?

By Sarah Goodyear | Mar 29, 2010 | No Comments

Better bicycle infrastructure is no threat to trucks. (Photo: Wayan Vota via Flickr) Statements made by U.S. DOT Secretary Ray LaHood in recent weeks — including one regarding "the end of favoring motorized transportation at the expense of non-motorized" — have gotten a lot of favorable coverage from members of the Streetsblog Network. But they’ve […]

What We're Really Saying When We Say "Alternative"

By Sarah Goodyear | Mar 23, 2010 | 17 Comments

US DOT Secretary Ray LaHood has drawn ridicule for his support of bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure. (Photo: Reconnecting America) The word "alternative" is one of the most fraught in the English language. While it can have some positive connotations, especially for those who want to be seen as opposing the mainstream (like "alternative newspapers"), when […]