Warren Buffett Doesn’t Like Spending on Streetcars (but Has No Problem With Crazy Highway Spending)

Warren Buffet has broken his practice of “staying out of local politics" to criticize a streetcar project in his home city of Omaha, NE…but why does he have nothing to say on the city’s ridiculous and reckless highway projects?

End Highway Expansion, Finance, Marohn, Top StoryCharles MarohnJanuary 30, 2023End Highway Expansion, public transit, public transportation, Streetcars, finance, local finance, investing, public investment, highways, Nebraska

Don’t Just Add Trains, Sidewalks, and Bike Lanes to Your City

…Because effective public transit isn’t just about the rails; it’s about what happens around them.

Owens, Public Transit, Transportation, Top StoryTiffany Owens ReedJanuary 3, 2023transit, public transit, New Mexico, transportation, car dependency

Why Is It So Expensive To Build Public Transit in the U.S.?

An NYU research group has found that the cost of constructing a subway in New York is double what it costs in Tokyo and 10 times what it costs in Paris. Let’s unpack why this is the case.

Membership, Podcast, Upzoned, Public Transit, Top StoryStrong TownsNovember 16, 2022Podcast, podcast, Upzoned, public transit, transportation, transit, New York

Planes, Trains, and Buses

Stranded with a dying phone and no car, our Neighborhood Storyteller relies this week on public transit and the kindness of strangers to get where she needs to go.

Neighborhood Storyteller, Theilen, Transportation, Public Transit, Top StoryKarla TheilenOctober 2, 2022neighborhood storyteller, bus, buses, public transit, public transportation, transportation, transit

If You Want People to Use Public Transit, Connect the Places Where People Want to Walk

The Strong Towns team got together recently and used some of Minneapolis’s public transit. Here’s our reflections from that experience.

Public Transit, Transportation, Stange, Top StoryJay StangeAugust 23, 2022transit, public transit, public transportation, transportation, Not Just Bikes, CityNerd, Minnesota, Minneapolis

Not Just Bikes and Strong Towns: What America Keeps Getting Wrong About Public Transit

Why is it that in the U.S. and Canada, we're always being told that we can't justify the ridership for transit projects? And why is it that when we do build transit, it struggles to gain riders?

Podcast, Marohn, ST Podcast, Transportation, Public Transit, Video, Top StoryStrong TownsAugust 15, 2022Podcast, podcast, Not Just Bikes, transit, public transit, suburban transit, Europe, canada, transportation

Indianapolis Transit Design Prioritizes People Over Parking

Leadership in Indianapolis has taken strides toward lifting parking minimums, and making their city less car dependent and more transit friendly—all while keeping their fiscal house in order.

Urban3, Public Transit, Success Story, Top StoryKerry HayesAugust 2, 2022Urban3, transit, public transit, Indiana, Indianapolis, car dependency, incrementalism, Infrastructure, buses, Light Rail, transportation, success, success stories

Our Year Without a Car (With Kids)

It’s not easy to live without a car when you have young children, but it’s certainly possible. Plus, having to walk can help you build unexpected connections with your community.

Public Transit, Walkability, Community, Top StoryGrace OlmsteadJuly 19, 2022walkability, Europe, Gracy Olmstead, children, bus, buses, public transit, community, Community

Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? (Transit Edition)

Don’t be fooled: Winnipeg’s newly proposed “rapid transit” project is actually a road-widening project in disguise. And it aims to borrow money so the City can destroy millions of dollars of its own tax base.

Less Parking Lots, More People Space

This interactive map allows you to view just how much space is being wasted in your city (and in the rest of the U.S.) on parking lots.

The Artist Date

This week, our Neighborhood Storyteller explores the important joy of simply being in public amongst one’s community members.

Neighborhood Storyteller, Theilen, Public Space, Public Transit, Top StoryKarla TheilenMarch 29, 2022neighborhood storyteller, montana, public space, public transit, coffee shops

High Gas Prices Are Just One Symptom of a Much Greater Problem

When gas prices spike, the core issue we, as a nation, should be fixating on is car dependency.

Herriges, Transportation, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesMarch 17, 2022gas tax, transportation, public transit, transit, fragility, cars, car dependency

The Bottom-Up Revolution Is...Building Bus Stop Benches

The Asheville Bench Project is a grassroots, “small-bet” approach to making Asheville a little more people-friendly.

Podcast, The Bottom-Up Revolution, Success Story, Top StoryStrong TownsFebruary 24, 2022taking action, The Bottom-Up Revolution, public transit, seating, bus

Snow Day: Can Your City Pass the Winter Test?

The effects of winter weather on your town is one way to gauge its resilience.

Member Post, Public Space, Suburban Experiment, Top Story, OwensTiffany Owens ReedJanuary 27, 2022snow, Snow, Antifragile, Small Towns, small towns, Texas, New York, natural disasters, public transit, public space

Jarrett Walker: "Prediction and Freedom Are Opposites"

Special guest Jarrett Walker shares his thoughts on the limitations of prediction.

ST Podcast, Transportation, Planning Profession, Podcast, Public Transit, Top StoryStrong TownsJanuary 24, 2022Podcast, podcast, Jarrett Walker, projections, traffic projections, transit, public transit, public transportation, planning profession, planning process, urban planning

Rick Harnish: Stronger Transit for Stronger Cities

What role does high-speed rail play in creating a strong town? We turn to Rick Harnish, executive director of the High Speed Rail Alliance, for insight.

Podcast, Transportation, Top Story, ST PodcastStrong TownsAugust 23, 2021public transit, high-speed rail, Podcast, transit

This Simple Program Allows People to Transport Their Stuff Without a Car

A brilliant cargo bikeshare program in Germany could serve as a model for North American cities.

Bikeability, Public Transit, Quednau, Success Story, Transportation, Top StoryRachel QuednauMay 10, 2021biking, bikeability, bike share, Germany, Europe, car-lite, public transit, transportation

Transit Agencies Venture Into Real Estate—But Why Weren't They Already?

Budget shortfalls are pressuring transit agencies to do what they should’ve been doing all along: put to productive use the land they own around their stations.

Public Transit, Herriges, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesMarch 24, 2021transit, BART, real estate, public transit, public transportation, transportation spending

An Incremental Campaign to Improve the Transit Experience

A grassroots effort to bring bus riders in Rochester a little comfort and a little dignity.

Incrementalism, Public Transit, Horbovetz, Success Story, Top StoryArian HorbovetzMarch 18, 2021incremental, public transit, public transportation, Rochester, success stories

Gabrielle Gurley: For Transit, "The Cuts are Coming"

The pandemic has turned conventional transit funding models on their heads. How will it change how we fund transit going forward…and what gets funded in the first place?

Podcast, Transportation, Public Transit, Top StoryStrong TownsJanuary 18, 2021transit, public transit, public transportation

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