Bake Sales for Crosswalks

Idahoan advocates had to get desperate to fund basic pedestrian safety features—all while the state DOT is budgeting $100 million to overhaul a single freeway interchange.

American Suburbs Are a Horror Movie and We’re the Protagonists

Walking alone to the grocery store is, for me, like walking through a creepy hallway at night. Why? Because America is filled with liminal spaces.

Neighborhood Design, Suburban Experiment, Walkability, Top Story, ShayestehShina ShayestehJanuary 13, 2022walkability, Pedestrian Safety, pedestrian safety, #PedestrianUnfriendly, pedestrians, Safety, Texas, Austin, suburban development pattern, suburban experiment, psychology, Psychology

Renderings vs. Reality: A Roundup of 2021s Most Egregious Development Illustrations

If a picture can say a thousand words, it can probably also tell at least 100 lies—as demonstrated by these development projects that did not turn out as promised.

Fisher, Transportation, Urban Design, Walkability, Top StoryLauren FisherJanuary 10, 2022urban design, #PedestrianUnfriendly, pedestrian crossing, Diverging Diamond, intersections, pedestrians, Pedestrian Safety, pedestrian safety, design, walkability

It Ain't Easy Being Seen

Pedestrians don’t bear primary responsibility for road safety—but to an extent, neither do drivers. These photos illustrate why.

Roads and Streets, Walkability, Top StoryAddison Del MastroNovember 23, 2021Pedestrian Safety, pedestrians, Street Design, Safety, #SlowTheCars, design, walkability

Designing Streets with the Human Mind in Mind

Humans are messy, complicated, and unpredictable: why doesn’t our street design account for that?

Engineering Profession, Pattison, Walkability, #SlowtheCars, Top StoryJohn PattisonOctober 14, 2021pedestrian safety, pedestrians, pedestrian crossing, #SlowTheCars, Springfield, risk, engineering profession, traffic engineering

Are Traffic Engineers Sociopaths?

Why is it that traffic engineers seem to value the flow of cars over human lives and safety? Are they just sociopaths?

"Improvements"

So many engineering projects are formally called "improvements." The subtle bias of this language provides a glimpse at the values embedded within the profession.

One Billion Bollards

If the federal government wants to fund transportation, skip the megaprojects. Start with a billion bollards.

#SlowtheCars, Marohn, Transportation, Urban Design, Walkability, Top StoryCharles MarohnJuly 26, 2021Safety, Pedestrian Safety, public safety, transportation, pedestrians, #PedestrianUnfriendly

One Centuries-Old Trick Can Solve Your City’s Problems

Does YOUR city have problems? Learn how to solve them with one WEIRD, simple trick!

Transportation, Walkability, Top StoryBill LindekeJuly 13, 2021walkability, biking, Streets.MN, pedestrians, transportation

A Tale of Two Walks: Part 2

Our walk together continues on Fairfax Boulevard, where we encounter a much different (i.e., less friendly) pedestrian experience.

Roads and Streets, Urban Design, Walkability, Top StoryAddison Del MastroJuly 7, 2021walkability, Addison Del Mastro, pedestrians, car culture, Virginia

A Tale of Two Walks: Part 1

Let’s take a walk together down two different streets, and observe what car-oriented places are like from the viewpoint of a pedestrian.

Roads and Streets, Urban Design, Walkability, Top StoryAddison Del MastroJuly 6, 2021walkability, fine-grained, Addison Del Mastro, pedestrians, car culture, Virginia

5 Reasons Why Walking Your City (Most Likely) Sucks

Although many of us agree that walkability makes sense for countless reasons, few of us actually walk the cities where we live. Why? Because it sucks.