#SlowtheCars is our campaign to make streets safe and prosperous.

Featured
Dying to Widen Highways
#NoNewRoads, Member Post, #SlowtheCars traffic, congestion, car crash Joe Cortright Comment
#NoNewRoads, Member Post, #SlowtheCars traffic, congestion, car crash Joe Cortright Comment
Dying to Widen Highways
#NoNewRoads, Member Post, #SlowtheCars traffic, congestion, car crash Joe Cortright Comment
#NoNewRoads, Member Post, #SlowtheCars traffic, congestion, car crash Joe Cortright Comment

Oregon’s DOT seems to be more concerned with making cars go faster than saving lives.

#NoNewRoads, Member Post, #SlowtheCars traffic, congestion, car crash Joe Cortright Comment
#NoNewRoads, Member Post, #SlowtheCars traffic, congestion, car crash Joe Cortright Comment
Springfield, we have a problem
#SlowtheCars, Engineering Profession, Marohn pedestrian safety, speed Charles Marohn Comment
#SlowtheCars, Engineering Profession, Marohn pedestrian safety, speed Charles Marohn Comment
Springfield, we have a problem
#SlowtheCars, Engineering Profession, Marohn pedestrian safety, speed Charles Marohn Comment
#SlowtheCars, Engineering Profession, Marohn pedestrian safety, speed Charles Marohn Comment

Springfield admits it has a speeding problem. It's time for the elected officials to order that State Street be redesigned to make travel speeds safe.

#SlowtheCars, Engineering Profession, Marohn pedestrian safety, speed Charles Marohn Comment
#SlowtheCars, Engineering Profession, Marohn pedestrian safety, speed Charles Marohn Comment
It all depends on who is looking
Marohn, #SlowtheCars, Parking Charles Marohn Comment
Marohn, #SlowtheCars, Parking Charles Marohn Comment
It all depends on who is looking
Marohn, #SlowtheCars, Parking Charles Marohn Comment
Marohn, #SlowtheCars, Parking Charles Marohn Comment

The world is experienced much differently at thirty miles per hour than it is at two or three.

Marohn, #SlowtheCars, Parking Charles Marohn Comment
Marohn, #SlowtheCars, Parking Charles Marohn Comment
An open letter to the City of Springfield
Marohn, #SlowtheCars pedestrian safety, car crash, #PedestrianUnfriendly Charles Marohn Comment
Marohn, #SlowtheCars pedestrian safety, car crash, #PedestrianUnfriendly Charles Marohn Comment
An open letter to the City of Springfield
Marohn, #SlowtheCars pedestrian safety, car crash, #PedestrianUnfriendly Charles Marohn Comment
Marohn, #SlowtheCars pedestrian safety, car crash, #PedestrianUnfriendly Charles Marohn Comment

The condition on State Street is dangerous for anyone outside of a automobile. The city is well aware of this fact. Something must be done.

Marohn, #SlowtheCars pedestrian safety, car crash, #PedestrianUnfriendly Charles Marohn Comment
Marohn, #SlowtheCars pedestrian safety, car crash, #PedestrianUnfriendly Charles Marohn Comment
Traffic Engineers’ Epic Fail
#SlowtheCars, Member Post pedestrian safety, pedestrian crossing, page highlight Jon Larsen Comment
#SlowtheCars, Member Post pedestrian safety, pedestrian crossing, page highlight Jon Larsen Comment
Traffic Engineers’ Epic Fail
#SlowtheCars, Member Post pedestrian safety, pedestrian crossing, page highlight Jon Larsen Comment
#SlowtheCars, Member Post pedestrian safety, pedestrian crossing, page highlight Jon Larsen Comment

The consequence for minor lapses in judgment shouldn’t be death.

#SlowtheCars, Member Post pedestrian safety, pedestrian crossing, page highlight Jon Larsen Comment
#SlowtheCars, Member Post pedestrian safety, pedestrian crossing, page highlight Jon Larsen Comment
These resources will help you host a pop-up traffic calming demonstration in your town.
Walkability, Top Story, Tactical Urbanism, #SlowtheCars, #StrongCitizens, Member Post, summit Street Design, narrow streets, resource Marielle Brown Comment
Walkability, Top Story, Tactical Urbanism, #SlowtheCars, #StrongCitizens, Member Post, summit Street Design, narrow streets, resource Marielle Brown Comment
These resources will help you host a pop-up traffic calming demonstration in your town.
Walkability, Top Story, Tactical Urbanism, #SlowtheCars, #StrongCitizens, Member Post, summit Street Design, narrow streets, resource Marielle Brown Comment
Walkability, Top Story, Tactical Urbanism, #SlowtheCars, #StrongCitizens, Member Post, summit Street Design, narrow streets, resource Marielle Brown Comment

Get out there and start making your streets safer.

Walkability, Top Story, Tactical Urbanism, #SlowtheCars, #StrongCitizens, Member Post, summit Street Design, narrow streets, resource Marielle Brown Comment
Walkability, Top Story, Tactical Urbanism, #SlowtheCars, #StrongCitizens, Member Post, summit Street Design, narrow streets, resource Marielle Brown Comment
The Benefits of Closing a Street
#SlowtheCars, Hood, Roads and Streets, Top Story, Urban Design Street Design, Minneapolis Nathaniel M. Hood Comment
#SlowtheCars, Hood, Roads and Streets, Top Story, Urban Design Street Design, Minneapolis Nathaniel M. Hood Comment
The Benefits of Closing a Street
#SlowtheCars, Hood, Roads and Streets, Top Story, Urban Design Street Design, Minneapolis Nathaniel M. Hood Comment
#SlowtheCars, Hood, Roads and Streets, Top Story, Urban Design Street Design, Minneapolis Nathaniel M. Hood Comment

What if we moved beyond temporary "open streets" events and used what we learned there to make lasting changes to our street design?

#SlowtheCars, Hood, Roads and Streets, Top Story, Urban Design Street Design, Minneapolis Nathaniel M. Hood Comment
#SlowtheCars, Hood, Roads and Streets, Top Story, Urban Design Street Design, Minneapolis Nathaniel M. Hood Comment
Best of 2016: Is your city pedestrian-unfriendly?
#SlowtheCars, Top Story, Walkability, Kobos #PedestrianUnfriendly Sarah Kobos Comment
#SlowtheCars, Top Story, Walkability, Kobos #PedestrianUnfriendly Sarah Kobos Comment
Best of 2016: Is your city pedestrian-unfriendly?
#SlowtheCars, Top Story, Walkability, Kobos #PedestrianUnfriendly Sarah Kobos Comment
#SlowtheCars, Top Story, Walkability, Kobos #PedestrianUnfriendly Sarah Kobos Comment

We’ve spent the better part of 70 years building our cities for cars, not people, and it shows.  It’s time to make walkability a priority, not just a feel-good buzzword. 

#SlowtheCars, Top Story, Walkability, Kobos #PedestrianUnfriendly Sarah Kobos Comment
#SlowtheCars, Top Story, Walkability, Kobos #PedestrianUnfriendly Sarah Kobos Comment
Slowing the Cars in St. Louis
#SlowtheCars, #StrongCitizens, Walkability, Urban Design, Member Post, Tactical Urbanism, Success Story St. Louis Marielle Brown Comment
#SlowtheCars, #StrongCitizens, Walkability, Urban Design, Member Post, Tactical Urbanism, Success Story St. Louis Marielle Brown Comment
Slowing the Cars in St. Louis
#SlowtheCars, #StrongCitizens, Walkability, Urban Design, Member Post, Tactical Urbanism, Success Story St. Louis Marielle Brown Comment
#SlowtheCars, #StrongCitizens, Walkability, Urban Design, Member Post, Tactical Urbanism, Success Story St. Louis Marielle Brown Comment

Watch how a simple and cheap traffic-calming project made a big impact on neighborhood safety and productivity.

#SlowtheCars, #StrongCitizens, Walkability, Urban Design, Member Post, Tactical Urbanism, Success Story St. Louis Marielle Brown Comment
#SlowtheCars, #StrongCitizens, Walkability, Urban Design, Member Post, Tactical Urbanism, Success Story St. Louis Marielle Brown Comment
How About Schools on Safe Routes?
Walkability, #SlowtheCars, Marohn, Neighborhood Design, Roads and Streets, Transportation Safe Routes to Schools, schools, children, Public Health, page highlight Charles Marohn Comment
Walkability, #SlowtheCars, Marohn, Neighborhood Design, Roads and Streets, Transportation Safe Routes to Schools, schools, children, Public Health, page highlight Charles Marohn Comment
How About Schools on Safe Routes?
Walkability, #SlowtheCars, Marohn, Neighborhood Design, Roads and Streets, Transportation Safe Routes to Schools, schools, children, Public Health, page highlight Charles Marohn Comment
Walkability, #SlowtheCars, Marohn, Neighborhood Design, Roads and Streets, Transportation Safe Routes to Schools, schools, children, Public Health, page highlight Charles Marohn Comment

Safe Routes to School is a very popular federal program designed to make is easier for students to walk and bike to school. What if we instead chose to build Schools on Safe Routes?

Walkability, #SlowtheCars, Marohn, Neighborhood Design, Roads and Streets, Transportation Safe Routes to Schools, schools, children, Public Health, page highlight Charles Marohn Comment
Walkability, #SlowtheCars, Marohn, Neighborhood Design, Roads and Streets, Transportation Safe Routes to Schools, schools, children, Public Health, page highlight Charles Marohn Comment

Why Slow the Cars?

Strong Towns advocates for financial solvency and productive land use in American cities. Places that are built for people, using traditional development patterns, can help us achieve both of those goals. On the other hand, neighborhood streets with wide lanes, huge clearance zones and other dangerous design features cause thousands of pedestrian and car passenger deaths every year. Dangerous roads do not make productive use of our land or our lives. Furthermore, they depress investment in our cities by making our neighborhoods less pleasant places to be.

People are the indicator species of success. We know that pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods are more economically productive, healthier and safer.  We need to build places where people want to be.

Top Stories

Featured
Traffic Engineers’ Epic Fail
#SlowtheCars, Member Post pedestrian safety, pedestrian crossing, page highlight Jon Larsen Comment
#SlowtheCars, Member Post pedestrian safety, pedestrian crossing, page highlight Jon Larsen Comment
Traffic Engineers’ Epic Fail
#SlowtheCars, Member Post pedestrian safety, pedestrian crossing, page highlight Jon Larsen Comment
#SlowtheCars, Member Post pedestrian safety, pedestrian crossing, page highlight Jon Larsen Comment

The consequence for minor lapses in judgment shouldn’t be death.

#SlowtheCars, Member Post pedestrian safety, pedestrian crossing, page highlight Jon Larsen Comment
#SlowtheCars, Member Post pedestrian safety, pedestrian crossing, page highlight Jon Larsen Comment
Strength Test #6: Can children safely walk and bike in your town?
Bikeability, Top Story, Strength Test, #SlowtheCars, Gardner, Schools children, page highlight Spencer Gardner Comment
Bikeability, Top Story, Strength Test, #SlowtheCars, Gardner, Schools children, page highlight Spencer Gardner Comment
Strength Test #6: Can children safely walk and bike in your town?
Bikeability, Top Story, Strength Test, #SlowtheCars, Gardner, Schools children, page highlight Spencer Gardner Comment
Bikeability, Top Story, Strength Test, #SlowtheCars, Gardner, Schools children, page highlight Spencer Gardner Comment

These four steps will help you assess whether your town is a safe place for children to walk and bike on their own.

Bikeability, Top Story, Strength Test, #SlowtheCars, Gardner, Schools children, page highlight Spencer Gardner Comment
Bikeability, Top Story, Strength Test, #SlowtheCars, Gardner, Schools children, page highlight Spencer Gardner Comment
How Fire Chiefs and Traffic Engineers Make Places Less Safe
#SlowtheCars, Engineering Profession, Top Story pedestrian safety, Fire Trucks, trees, Street Design, narrow streets, page highlight Steve Mouzon Comment
#SlowtheCars, Engineering Profession, Top Story pedestrian safety, Fire Trucks, trees, Street Design, narrow streets, page highlight Steve Mouzon Comment
How Fire Chiefs and Traffic Engineers Make Places Less Safe
#SlowtheCars, Engineering Profession, Top Story pedestrian safety, Fire Trucks, trees, Street Design, narrow streets, page highlight Steve Mouzon Comment
#SlowtheCars, Engineering Profession, Top Story pedestrian safety, Fire Trucks, trees, Street Design, narrow streets, page highlight Steve Mouzon Comment

Of all the urbanism specialists with tunnel vision, fire chiefs, fire marshals, and traffic engineers are probably the most dangerous.

#SlowtheCars, Engineering Profession, Top Story pedestrian safety, Fire Trucks, trees, Street Design, narrow streets, page highlight Steve Mouzon Comment
#SlowtheCars, Engineering Profession, Top Story pedestrian safety, Fire Trucks, trees, Street Design, narrow streets, page highlight Steve Mouzon Comment
Strength Test #1: How's your Main Street doing?
Strength Test, #SlowtheCars, Quednau, Top Story, Urban Design, Walkability page highlight Rachel Quednau Comment
Strength Test, #SlowtheCars, Quednau, Top Story, Urban Design, Walkability page highlight Rachel Quednau Comment
Strength Test #1: How's your Main Street doing?
Strength Test, #SlowtheCars, Quednau, Top Story, Urban Design, Walkability page highlight Rachel Quednau Comment
Strength Test, #SlowtheCars, Quednau, Top Story, Urban Design, Walkability page highlight Rachel Quednau Comment

We're kicking off a new series going in-depth on the Strong Towns Strength Test with an exploration of main street health. Today's question: Does your main street have more cars than people? 

Strength Test, #SlowtheCars, Quednau, Top Story, Urban Design, Walkability page highlight Rachel Quednau Comment
Strength Test, #SlowtheCars, Quednau, Top Story, Urban Design, Walkability page highlight Rachel Quednau Comment
Best of 2016: Please, do not build that crosswalk
Field Notes, Top Story, Walkability, #SlowtheCars pedestrian crossing, Crosswalk, page highlight Gracen Johnson Comment
Field Notes, Top Story, Walkability, #SlowtheCars pedestrian crossing, Crosswalk, page highlight Gracen Johnson Comment
Best of 2016: Please, do not build that crosswalk
Field Notes, Top Story, Walkability, #SlowtheCars pedestrian crossing, Crosswalk, page highlight Gracen Johnson Comment
Field Notes, Top Story, Walkability, #SlowtheCars pedestrian crossing, Crosswalk, page highlight Gracen Johnson Comment

A signalized crossing is an unnecessary expense for what a few traffic cones could easily accomplish. Humanizing Brunswick Street, on the other hand, would be in the best interests of the province and city.

Field Notes, Top Story, Walkability, #SlowtheCars pedestrian crossing, Crosswalk, page highlight Gracen Johnson Comment
Field Notes, Top Story, Walkability, #SlowtheCars pedestrian crossing, Crosswalk, page highlight Gracen Johnson Comment
Pay Your Fair Share
#SlowtheCars, #NoNewRoads, Top Story, #DotheMath page highlight Rachel Quednau Comment
#SlowtheCars, #NoNewRoads, Top Story, #DotheMath page highlight Rachel Quednau Comment
Pay Your Fair Share
#SlowtheCars, #NoNewRoads, Top Story, #DotheMath page highlight Rachel Quednau Comment
#SlowtheCars, #NoNewRoads, Top Story, #DotheMath page highlight Rachel Quednau Comment

What would our transportation system look like if all users—cyclists, car drivers, pedestrians—paid their fair share?

#SlowtheCars, #NoNewRoads, Top Story, #DotheMath page highlight Rachel Quednau Comment
#SlowtheCars, #NoNewRoads, Top Story, #DotheMath page highlight Rachel Quednau Comment
How to Improve Your Town’s Bike Network on a Budget
#SlowtheCars, Bikeability, Member Post, Planning Profession, Top Story, Transportation, Gardner bike lanes, shared space, protected bike lane, Crosswalk, how to, resource, page highlight Spencer Gardner Comment
#SlowtheCars, Bikeability, Member Post, Planning Profession, Top Story, Transportation, Gardner bike lanes, shared space, protected bike lane, Crosswalk, how to, resource, page highlight Spencer Gardner Comment
How to Improve Your Town’s Bike Network on a Budget
#SlowtheCars, Bikeability, Member Post, Planning Profession, Top Story, Transportation, Gardner bike lanes, shared space, protected bike lane, Crosswalk, how to, resource, page highlight Spencer Gardner Comment
#SlowtheCars, Bikeability, Member Post, Planning Profession, Top Story, Transportation, Gardner bike lanes, shared space, protected bike lane, Crosswalk, how to, resource, page highlight Spencer Gardner Comment

These low-cost strategies will make biking easier and safer in any community.

#SlowtheCars, Bikeability, Member Post, Planning Profession, Top Story, Transportation, Gardner bike lanes, shared space, protected bike lane, Crosswalk, how to, resource, page highlight Spencer Gardner Comment
#SlowtheCars, Bikeability, Member Post, Planning Profession, Top Story, Transportation, Gardner bike lanes, shared space, protected bike lane, Crosswalk, how to, resource, page highlight Spencer Gardner Comment
How About Schools on Safe Routes?
Walkability, #SlowtheCars, Marohn, Neighborhood Design, Roads and Streets, Transportation Safe Routes to Schools, schools, children, Public Health, page highlight Charles Marohn Comment
Walkability, #SlowtheCars, Marohn, Neighborhood Design, Roads and Streets, Transportation Safe Routes to Schools, schools, children, Public Health, page highlight Charles Marohn Comment
How About Schools on Safe Routes?
Walkability, #SlowtheCars, Marohn, Neighborhood Design, Roads and Streets, Transportation Safe Routes to Schools, schools, children, Public Health, page highlight Charles Marohn Comment
Walkability, #SlowtheCars, Marohn, Neighborhood Design, Roads and Streets, Transportation Safe Routes to Schools, schools, children, Public Health, page highlight Charles Marohn Comment

Safe Routes to School is a very popular federal program designed to make is easier for students to walk and bike to school. What if we instead chose to build Schools on Safe Routes?

Walkability, #SlowtheCars, Marohn, Neighborhood Design, Roads and Streets, Transportation Safe Routes to Schools, schools, children, Public Health, page highlight Charles Marohn Comment
Walkability, #SlowtheCars, Marohn, Neighborhood Design, Roads and Streets, Transportation Safe Routes to Schools, schools, children, Public Health, page highlight Charles Marohn Comment
Do we really care about children?
#SlowtheCars, Top Story, Transportation, Urban Design, Walkability, Marohn, Schools children, cars, car crash, schools, page highlight Charles Marohn Comment
#SlowtheCars, Top Story, Transportation, Urban Design, Walkability, Marohn, Schools children, cars, car crash, schools, page highlight Charles Marohn Comment
Do we really care about children?
#SlowtheCars, Top Story, Transportation, Urban Design, Walkability, Marohn, Schools children, cars, car crash, schools, page highlight Charles Marohn Comment
#SlowtheCars, Top Story, Transportation, Urban Design, Walkability, Marohn, Schools children, cars, car crash, schools, page highlight Charles Marohn Comment

As a society, we are zealous when it comes to the safety of children. And rightfully so. Still, for some reason we find it perfectly acceptable to routinely include them in the most dangerous activity of American life: riding in a car.

#SlowtheCars, Top Story, Transportation, Urban Design, Walkability, Marohn, Schools children, cars, car crash, schools, page highlight Charles Marohn Comment
#SlowtheCars, Top Story, Transportation, Urban Design, Walkability, Marohn, Schools children, cars, car crash, schools, page highlight Charles Marohn Comment

What's a Stroad?

Strong Towns coined the term "stroad" several years ago to describe the over-built, over-wide streets you find in suburbs, towns and cities throughout America. A street is a platform for wealth creation, and a road is a high-speed connector between two productive places. A stroad is a dangerous hybrid of both.

We call this "the futon of transportation" because, like a futon, which is neither a good bed nor a good couch, a stroad is neither a good street nor a good road. Let's turn our stroads into streets or roads, and put our country back on a path towards being financially productive.

Read more about stroads and watch a video that demonstrates how they fail.