The hottest Urban planning Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
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Top Technology Topics

Visit to Bataan NPP, 2013-09

Gordian Knot News • 124 implied HN points • 11 Feb 25
🕹 Technology Urban planning
  1. The Bataan Nuclear Power Plant was nearly finished but never started due to political issues. It had been built during Marcos' regime but was halted after his overthrow.
  2. The plant has been neglected since the 1980s, meaning it suffers from damage and requires significant investment to be operational again. Some believe it could be revived in the future with the right leadership.
  3. Despite being outdated in some ways, the plant's control systems are considered reliable since they don't have software vulnerabilities. There's a discussion about improving monitoring without losing the existing analog system.

The NIMBYs strike back

Odds and Ends of History • 67 implied HN points • 09 Jun 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Urban planning
  1. NIMBYs, or 'Not In My Backyard' groups, are causing issues for the Planning and Infrastructure Bill in Parliament. They often oppose new developments near their homes, which can hinder progress.
  2. Criticism is directed at major media and environmental organizations like The Guardian and Natural England for their views on housing and development. This shows a clash of opinions on how to manage land use and development needs.
  3. A former Conservative cabinet minister, Sir Simon Clarke, argues that his party must focus on building and development to stay relevant. This highlights the need for political parties to adapt their policies to current societal demands.

Let's Reconsider Moveable Chairs in Public Space

The New Urban Order • 99 implied HN points • 06 Sep 23
🪑 Design Urban planning
  1. Designing vibrant public spaces involves more than just adding moveable chairs, as it may sometimes feel like a shortcut to thoughtful design.
  2. Placemaking in cities has seen success with quick and cost-effective improvements using moveable chairs, but there's a need to consider the long-term development and meaningful enhancements of public spaces.
  3. Cities should move beyond relying solely on moveable chairs and explore more innovative and comprehensive approaches to developing public spaces that align with both form and function.

Human Habitrails

Street Smart Naturalist: Explorations of the Urban Kind • 199 implied HN points • 12 Jan 23
🎭️ Culture Urban planning
  1. Seattle has a lot of tunnels that help move things like sewage and trains, with over 40 miles of tunnels under the city. These tunnels have been built since the 1880s and include some famous ones like the Lake City Trunk Sewer.
  2. Many pedestrian tunnels exist in Seattle, connecting different buildings and areas. Some of these tunnels are accessible and can help people navigate safely without going outside.
  3. There's a lot of talk about secret tunnels in Seattle, especially in Chinatown, but many of these stories are more myth than fact. However, there are still some interesting historical stories about tunnels used for transporting goods.

The Questions Guiding IKEA's Future

Ruben Ugarte's Growth Needle™ • 39 implied HN points • 09 Jan 24
💼 Business Urban planning
  1. IKEA is looking at new ways to adapt by experimenting with smaller stores in downtown areas. This change could help them reach more customers who live in cities.
  2. The success of IKEA's regular big stores is leading to new ideas that might involve more innovative shopping experiences. They are trying to think outside the box to keep their business thriving.
  3. Nordstrom's closure in Canada shows that even popular locations can face challenges. It highlights the need for companies like IKEA to be flexible and responsive to market demands.
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The Housing Shortage by Metro Area, Part 4

Erdmann Housing Tracker • 84 implied HN points • 02 Dec 24
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Urban planning
  1. There is a housing shortage, which means there are not enough homes available for people who need them. This shortage can lead to high prices and long waiting lists for affordable housing.
  2. When rent control is put in place, it may help some tenants afford their homes but can also lead to declining quality of living conditions. Property owners often stop maintaining their properties, which can create additional problems.
  3. Access to mortgage loans is important for homebuyers. If people can't get loans to buy homes, it reduces the amount of housing being supplied in the market, contributing to the overall shortage of available homes.

The Housing Shortage by Metro Area

Erdmann Housing Tracker • 84 implied HN points • 25 Nov 24
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Urban planning
  1. There's a big housing shortage in many cities, meaning not enough homes are available for everyone who needs one. Building homes could help to lower rising rents and prices.
  2. The real estate market is affected by restrictions on building new homes. If these rules were eased, more homes could be built, which would make housing more affordable.
  3. Investing in new housing could change a lot financially. It could lower the overall value of land but make living situations better for many people, even if it seems risky at first.

Will the Reconnecting Communities program survive Trump?

Urben Field Notes • 27 implied HN points • 27 Jun 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Urban planning
  1. The Reconnecting Communities program aims to fix the damage caused by highways in Black neighborhoods, like the Rose Quarter Project in Portland. It's about healing and bringing back the community that was lost.
  2. The Albina Vision Trust is actively working to rebuild their neighborhood with affordable housing and community spaces, even if the Reconnecting Communities program faces cuts. Their goal is to create a mix of homes that support both the community's needs and the environment.
  3. Political challenges, especially with changing leadership, threaten funding for these important community projects. Despite the uncertainty, the efforts to redevelop with a focus on racial justice and community resilience continue to move forward.

Console #194 -- An Interview with Geoff of OSMnx - Python for Street Networks

Console • 177 implied HN points • 28 Jan 24
🕹 Technology Urban planning
  1. OSMnx is a Python package for downloading, modeling, analyzing, and visualizing street networks and geospatial features from OpenStreetMap.
  2. OSMnx simplifies the process of converting raw OpenStreetMap data into graph-theoretic models for network analytics.
  3. Python was chosen for OSMnx due to its rich geospatial and network science ecosystems, familiarity among urban planners and geographers, and low barrier to entry.

what might happen - one sequence

Douglass’s Newsletter • 19 implied HN points • 07 Feb 24
🌞 Climate & Environment Urban planning
  1. Very few are aware of major trends already happening on Earth, such as deforestation, floods, and food production decline
  2. A proposed sequence envisions a path from crisis to Gardenworld through stages like Lifeboats and Security
  3. The concept of Gardenworld offers a goal for continuous experimentation and improvement in education, medicine, and other areas

Tortoise Trumps Hare

Surfing the Future • 19 implied HN points • 04 Feb 24
🎭️ Culture Urban planning
  1. Change can happen at different tempos - either slowly and steadily or in sudden bursts.
  2. Traditional cities evolved through trial-and-error, messily, embracing human messiness, while tech-centric areas opt for a more exclusive lifestyle.
  3. Engaging with exponential trends is important for shaping the future, but sometimes slow change can lead to radical transformation.

The prophet of parking

The Works in Progress Newsletter • 30 implied HN points • 12 Feb 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Urban planning
  1. Donald Shoup changed how we think about parking, showing that it's too cheap and needs proper pricing to avoid problems like congestion. This change affects where we live and how our cities are planned.
  2. Minimum parking requirements can lead to unnecessary costs and too much parking being built, which wrecks city layouts and makes housing more expensive. Eliminating these requirements can help allow for better city designs.
  3. Shoup's approach includes using money from parking fees to improve local areas, gaining community support for pricing parking. His work has sparked a global movement for parking reform.

Follow-Up Against Agglomeration Economies

Erdmann Housing Tracker • 84 implied HN points • 14 Mar 24
💼 Business Urban planning
  1. Cities with blocked growth experience a process of migration due to housing costs rising, impacting residents' average incomes.
  2. Affordability in cities like Boston, NYC, and LA could have been maintained if they grew at rates similar to other cities like Oklahoma City or Salt Lake City.
  3. Limited growth approval in certain cities contributes to housing deprivation and lack of affordability, not an overflow of demand.

The magic of through running

The Works in Progress Newsletter • 13 implied HN points • 17 Jun 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Urban planning
  1. Cities can improve their transit systems by connecting existing rail lines instead of building entirely new ones. This means people can travel faster and more easily.
  2. Through running trains can help link suburbs directly to the city center, making public transport more efficient and reducing congestion in busy areas.
  3. Developing better rail connections can lead to urban growth, making neighborhoods more desirable and improving access to jobs and services.

Rabbit Holes 🕳️ #101

Creative Destruction • 28 implied HN points • 18 Dec 24
🎭️ Culture Urban planning
  1. Our culture often encourages constant consumption instead of creative thinking. This focus on consuming information can limit our ability to produce and solve problems.
  2. We have created a divide between age groups, leading to 'age apartheid.' This separation makes society more isolated and misses opportunities for different generations to connect and support each other.
  3. The trend towards 'cozy tech' might feel comforting, but it can also promote isolation. Instead of fostering genuine connections, it encourages us to retreat into our own comfortable spaces.

Slip Sliding Away

Street Smart Naturalist: Explorations of the Urban Kind • 99 implied HN points • 13 Jan 22
🌞 Climate & Environment Urban planning
  1. Seattle is known for landslides, especially after heavy rain. Homes can shift significantly when the ground becomes saturated.
  2. The city's geology plays a big role in these landslides, with layers of clay and sediment making it easy for the ground to slip.
  3. Efforts have been made throughout history to manage water and prevent landslides, but many areas still face challenges due to the unstable ground.

Issue 19: American S-Bahn

The Works in Progress Newsletter • 9 implied HN points • 12 Jun 25
🕹 Technology Urban planning
  1. Cities can improve public transport by building small tunnels to connect existing train lines, making systems more efficient without huge costs.
  2. New Zealand's unique approach to controlling inflation changed how many countries handle their economies, showing that bold ideas can lead to widespread change.
  3. Lead poisoning is a big global issue that can be mostly solved with actions that have worked in wealthier countries, like testing and regulating sources of lead.

The Greater London Project

The Greater London Project • 1 HN point • 18 Jul 24
🎭️ Culture Urban planning
  1. London is already great and has the potential to become even greater with its rich cultural scene, important companies, and global appeal.
  2. Challenges like housing shortages, infrastructure issues, and crime need to be addressed for London to reach its full potential.
  3. Proposals to improve London include creating more affordable housing, enhancing public transport, increasing safety measures, and embracing new technologies.

Making architecture easy

The Works in Progress Newsletter • 18 implied HN points • 22 Nov 24
🪑 Design Urban planning
  1. Architectural styles should prioritize ease of appreciation for the public, as buildings are experienced by many, not just their owners. This makes it important for styles to be friendly and accessible to everyone.
  2. There's a difference between 'easy' and 'challenging' styles in architecture. Easy styles are enjoyable without much effort, while challenging styles can be difficult to appreciate for most people.
  3. Modern architecture often tends to be less appealing to the general public, leading to a need for styles that blend traditional principles to ensure buildings fit well into everyday environments.

The Wells of Venice

Of All Trades • 12 implied HN points • 10 Feb 25
💾 History Urban planning
  1. Venice faced a big problem getting fresh water because it is surrounded by saltwater. To solve this, the people invented clever rainwater cisterns and wells.
  2. The Venetian wells used a special system that filtered rainwater to keep it clean. This made clean drinking water available despite the challenges of their environment.
  3. These historical wells show human creativity in solving problems. They remind us that, even without modern technology, people in the past found smart ways to adapt to their surroundings.

How Did Blocking Stuff Become Left-Coded?

I Might Be Wrong • 14 implied HN points • 03 Jan 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Urban planning
  1. Many people feel frustrated with the slow processes that delay housing and infrastructure projects. They want things to move faster so that communities can improve.
  2. There's a concern that building new housing might change the character of some neighborhoods. People worry about gentrification and displacing existing residents.
  3. More housing could help make neglected areas more livable. It could also lower rents and improve safety instead of letting decay continue in those neighborhoods.

Are Single-Stair Buildings the New ADUs?

The New Urban Order • 2 HN points • 10 May 24
🪑 Design Urban planning
  1. Building codes influence the architecture of cities, leading to big, boxy buildings with uniform designs.
  2. Advocates are pushing for building code reforms to allow single-stair buildings, which are common in European countries with fewer fire deaths per capita than the US.
  3. Recent changes in cities like Seattle, Tennessee, and Austin show a shift towards enabling single-stair buildings as a way to promote gentle density and climate resilience.

The perils of freeway caps

Urben Field Notes • 32 implied HN points • 15 Feb 24
🌍 World Politics Urban planning
  1. Covering urban freeways with parks through freeway caps is a popular urban planning trend, but it may not fully address the deeper issues of routing heavy traffic through dense neighborhoods.
  2. Freeway caps can be politically attractive solutions, especially in high-traffic areas, but may not be the most imaginative or effective options in all cases, potentially entrenching urban freeways for generations.
  3. Transportation planning often prioritizes vehicles over transit alternatives, showcasing a need for a shift towards more comprehensive approaches like full freeway removal projects, leading to better urban planning and community connectivity.

Three percent more Monaco: Links in Progress, infrastructure edition

The Works in Progress Newsletter • 11 implied HN points • 30 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Urban planning
  1. A new airport opened in Nuuk, Greenland, making it easier for larger planes to land and boosting travel from locations like New Jersey.
  2. Vietnam is planning an impressive high-speed rail line between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, which will cost around $67 billion and open in 2035.
  3. Monaco is expanding its land area by reclaiming land from the sea to build a new district, highlighting its ambition to develop upscale real estate.

5 Essays I'm Excited to Write This year

Exasperated Infrastructures • 9 implied HN points • 09 Jan 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Urban planning
  1. The writer plans to explore ways to spend federal transportation money more effectively. They want to understand past spending to improve future projects.
  2. There will be a focus on making air travel better by looking into its economics. The goal is to encourage airlines to adopt practices that benefit travelers and boost profits.
  3. The writer wants to investigate how municipal bonds can fund infrastructure projects. They aim to understand state spending behavior to create more resilient financial systems.

Congestion pricing reduces driving. That doesn't make it a good idea.

Economic Forces • 8 implied HN points • 09 Jan 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Urban planning
  1. Congestion pricing reduces the number of cars on the road, but this doesn’t automatically make it a good policy. We need to think about its overall impact on society.
  2. Different drivers react differently to congestion charges. Some can easily switch to other transport options, while others can't, so we see varying effects on traffic.
  3. How the money from congestion pricing is used is really important. If it is spent wisely on things like infrastructure, it can benefit everyone. But if not, it might just be wasted.

The damage caused by sea level rise to cities

Klement on Investing • 2 implied HN points • 11 Aug 25
🌞 Climate & Environment Urban planning
  1. Sea level rise can seriously damage city infrastructure, making some areas nearly unsellable. Insurance companies struggle to assess risks, especially in places like Miami.
  2. Most climate models suggest that sea levels will rise less than one meter by 2100, which is manageable for cities. However, cities like Osaka may face more significant challenges.
  3. We have three choices: do nothing and risk the worst, speed up efforts to reduce carbon emissions, or adapt our infrastructure to cope with rising sea levels. The future depends on the actions we take today.

A Robotaxi Regulation Wishlist

Urben Field Notes • 27 implied HN points • 11 Aug 23
🕹 Technology Urban planning
  1. The decisions made now by San Francisco and California about robotaxis will have a significant impact.
  2. Implementing specific regulations for robotaxis can help in managing traffic congestion and improving city transportation.
  3. There is a need for regulations like congestion pricing, robotaxi-free corridors, and designated pickup spots to enhance the integration of robotaxis in city transportation systems.

Proposal for flying car cable gondola system

Expand Mapping with Mike Morrow • 6 implied HN points • 14 Nov 24
🕹 Technology Urban planning
  1. Flying cars, or eVTOLs, currently have limited range and perform poorly in bad weather. These challenges need to be addressed to make them more practical.
  2. A cable gondola system could help overcome the limitations of flying cars by allowing them to hitch onto cables for part of their journey. This could improve their efficiency and reduce the need for long-range flight.
  3. Using suspended cables could be a less disruptive transportation method compared to traditional roads and rail systems. It's worth considering if this approach is more environmentally friendly, especially for wildlife.

I hate SUVs and pickup trucks

Klement on Investing • 5 implied HN points • 13 Dec 24
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Urban planning
  1. SUVs and pickup trucks are bigger than some tanks, making them a danger on the roads. Smaller cars can do the same job more safely.
  2. The design of SUVs can lead to more severe injuries or deaths for pedestrians, especially children. Studies show that if these larger vehicles were replaced with regular cars, many lives could be saved.
  3. Driving an SUV doesn't make motorists safer; advancements in car safety technology are the bigger reason for decreased motorist deaths. Choosing a smaller, regular car is better for everyone.

Sustainable Winter Cities

The Third Place • 1 HN point • 20 Mar 24
🪑 Design Urban planning
  1. Swedish winters can be challenging with prolonged darkness, cold temperatures, and limited vegetation, affecting mental health and activity levels.
  2. Improving public spaces in winter cities involves creating pedestrian-friendly infrastructure, clear bike lanes, and mixed-use development for vibrant and efficient neighborhoods.
  3. Cities worldwide are implementing creative approaches to make winter more enjoyable, such as ice skating rinks, winter sports events, snow parks, festivals, and illuminated paths, fostering community engagement and appreciation for the season.

vanshnookenraggen on the past, present, and future of transportation

Exasperated Infrastructures • 12 implied HN points • 11 Dec 23
💼 Business Urban planning
  1. Andrew Lynch, known as vanshnookenraggen, got into mapping and transportation history out of pure curiosity and interest in urban planning.
  2. His work focuses on creating maps that visualize transportation systems and history to make complex information easier to understand.
  3. There's a need to connect land use policy with transportation policy, understand the political realities of planning, and engage communities effectively in urban planning decisions.

Maui’s Post-Wildfire Housing Crisis Offers a Warning for Los Angeles 🌴 🔥

Hothouse // Solutions • 3 implied HN points • 06 Feb 25
🌞 Climate & Environment Urban planning
  1. After wildfires, many people in Maui ended up homeless and rents spiked by a lot. This situation could happen in Los Angeles if strong renter protections aren't put in place.
  2. In Maui, some landlords took advantage of the disaster by raising rents or evicting tenants to bring in higher-paying renters. This hurt those who were already struggling after losing their homes.
  3. Los Angeles leaders are under pressure to protect renters now. Activists are keeping track of price-gouging, but it's unclear if officials can enforce laws to help tenants.