Category Archives: Active transportation

Riding the rails of interstellar discovery at the Very Large Array

It’s hard to fathom that a mere 39 miles of railway track could deliver the entire galaxy to astronomers around the globe. But, when the cargo is limited to 230 ton radio telescopes being moved into position, then such a … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, aerospace, Astronomy, distribution, education, engineering, fun, geography, history, infrastructure, land use, logistics, Maps, Outer Space, planning, Radio, rail, Railroads, Science, shipping, Skies, spatial design, Statistics, technology, tourism, transportation, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Walkable placemaking with outdoor public stairways

Note: – For purposes of this blogpost, stairways, stairs, and stair-steps are used interchangeably. Post updated 2/16/23 _______ The first time it occurred to me that outdoor stairways could be an important walkability tool for cities was while visiting Edinburgh, … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, Advocacy, Alternative transportation, archaeology, architecture, art, book reviews, books, branding, brewpubs, business, cities, civics, coffee shops/cafes, commerce, culture, demographics, diversity, downtown, economic development, economic gardening, Economy, engineering, entertainment, environment, fitness, fun, geography, government, health, Health care, hiking, historic preservation, history, Housing, humanity, infrastructure, land use, landscape architecture, literature, logistics, Maps, Mining, mountains, natural history, nature, new urbanism, pictures, placemaking, planning, product design, recreation, revitalization, shopping, social equity, spatial design, sprawl, Stairway networks, Statistics, sustainability, third places, topography, tourism, traffic, trails, transit, transportation, Travel, urban design, urban planning, walking, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

North America’s tallest bridge towers and pylons (Las torres y pilones de puentes más altos de América del Norte)

The following list identifies the tallest bridge towers and pylons in North America. Such support structures are principally found on cable-stayed and suspension bridges and the height is measured from ground or water level to the top of the tower/pylon. … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, architecture, bicycling, bridges, Canada, Caribbean, cities, economic development, engineering, geography, highways, historic preservation, history, infrastructure, land use, Latin America, North America, Passenger rail, planning, product design, rail, recreation, rivers/watersheds, skylines, skyscrapers, spatial design, States, Statistics, technology, topography, tourism, traffic, trails, transit, transportation, Travel, urban planning, walking | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Celebrity bridges of the United States in pop culture

The following images and information identify 12 of the most well-known and recognizable “celebrity” bridges in the United States . These impressive structures have starred in a variety of pop culture media, including movies, documentaries, television and radio shows, books, … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, advertising, archaeology, architecture, art, bicycling, books, branding, bridges, business, Cars, cartoons, cities, civics, commerce, Communications, culture, economic development, engineering, entertainment, film, fitness, fun, geography, highways, hiking, historic preservation, history, infrastructure, land use, movies, music, pictures, place names, placemaking, planning, product design, psychology, recreation, scenic byways, Science fiction, skylines, songs, spatial design, Statistics, technology, Television, topography, tourism, Trade, traffic, trails, transit, transportation, Travel, urban design, urban planning, video, walking, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Finding “Los Angeles” amid the aura of “LA”

Downtown Los Angeles with the San Gabriel Mountains in the background – Source: unsplash.com Every city is unique unto itself. Just like human beings, cities have their own character, appearance, identity, flaws, attributes, and aesthetics. As a result, no single … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, Alternative transportation, architecture, art, bicycling, Biking, books, branding, business, Cars, cities, civics, commerce, culture, diversity, downtown, economic development, engineering, entertainment, entrepreneurship, environment, film, fun, geography, highways, hiking, historic preservation, history, homelessness, Housing, humanity, inclusiveness, land use, literature, Love, mountains, movies, Music, nature, new urbanism, Passenger rail, pictures, place names, placemaking, planning, politics, rail, Railroads, recreation, skylines, skyscrapers, songs, spatial design, sprawl, technology, Television, theaters, third places, topography, toponymy, tourism, Trade, traffic, trails, transit, transportation, Travel, urban design, urban planning, walking, writing, zoning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Confessions of a recovering freeway nerd

Source: wired.com I’ll admit it. In my younger days, I was a certified freeway nerd. Growing up in Indianapolis, I was in awe of the Interstate Highway System. Lucky for me, Indy had plenty of them, including my teenage and … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, Advocacy, Alternative transportation, bicycling, bike sharing, Biking, bridges, Bus transportation, Cars, cities, civics, climate change, commerce, culture, density, distribution, downtown, economic development, electric vehicles, energy, engineering, environment, EVs and hybrids, fun, futurism, geography, health, Highway displacement, highways, historic preservation, history, humanity, infrastructure, land use, nature, new urbanism, Passenger rail, pictures, placemaking, planning, politics, pollution, poverty, product design, racism, rail, Railroads, recreation, Renewable Energy, revitalization, scenic byways, social equity, spatial design, sprawl, sustainability, technology, topography, tourism, Trade, traffic, trails, transit, transportation, Travel, trucking, tunnels, urban design, urban planning, visual pollution, walking | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

America’s most charming walkable neighborhood is in…

Los Angeles! Yes, you read that correctly. The city known for miles of freeways and lengthy traffic jams is also home to what this retired urban planner feels is the most charming walkable neighborhood in the United States. In fact, … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, Alternative transportation, architecture, art, books, Cars, cities, civics, culture, density, engineering, entertainment, environment, fitness, fun, geography, health, hiking, historic preservation, history, Housing, inclusiveness, infrastructure, land use, landscape architecture, Maps, mountains, nature, new urbanism, parking, pictures, place names, placemaking, planning, product design, recreation, skylines, spatial design, technology, third places, topography, tourism, traffic, trails, transportation, Travel, urban design, urban planning, walking, zoning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Ten planning lessons from LA’s South Bay beach cities

We had the pleasure of visiting the three South Bay beach cities of Redondo Beach, Manhattan Beach, and Hermosa Beach over the Christmas holiday weekend. Below are ten planning lessons learned from these charming and beautiful communities. Peace! Esplanade nearest … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, adaptive reuse, Alternative energy, Alternative transportation, architecture, bicycling, Biking, branding, business, cities, civics, climate, climate change, commerce, culture, demographics, density, economic development, Economy, ecosystems, electric vehicles, entertainment, environment, fun, geography, health, hiking, historic preservation, history, Housing, humanity, industry, infrastructure, land use, landscape architecture, nature, pictures, placemaking, planning, pollution, recreation, Renewable Energy, revitalization, spatial design, Statistics, sustainability, third places, topography, tourism, trails, transportation, Travel, urban design, urban planning, visual pollution, walking, water, zoning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

“All aboard”: Ten planning lessons from riding USA railways

Moonlight over Fort Madison, Iowa After completing a long-distance trip across much of the United States this week, it seemed appropriate to list those planning lessons learned from this and previous rail travel experiences. While much of my ridership has … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, advertising, air travel, Alternative transportation, art, books, Canada, Cars, cities, commerce, downtown, economic development, engineering, entertainment, environment, Europe, fun, geography, government, highways, historic preservation, history, infrastructure, land use, landscape architecture, Passenger rail, pictures, placemaking, planning, product design, rail, Railroads, spatial design, technology, topography, tourism, Trade, traffic, trails, transit, transportation, Travel, urban design, urban planning, visual pollution | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Ten planning lessons from Daniel Burnham’s Chicago

The following are ten planning lessons from multiples visits to the dynamic City of Chicago. Source: onlyinyourstate.com ________ If Chicago intrigues you too, here are several books about the city that are available via Amazon.com.* ……….Link – The Third Coast……………………………………………Link … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, air travel, airport planning, airports, Alternative transportation, architecture, bicycling, Biking, Bus transportation, Cities, civics, commerce, culture, downtown, engineering, fun, geography, historic preservation, history, land use, Passenger rail, pictures, placemaking, planning, rail, Railroads, rivers/watersheds, skylines, skyscrapers, spatial design, sprawl, Statistics, third places, tourism, traffic, transit, Transportation, Travel, Uncategorized, urban design, urban planning, weather, zoning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments