Detroit is a “a grim symbol of America’s diminished status in the world,” according to PBS’ Blueprint America. The former car capital exemplifies our country’s need for more efficient, sustainable and reliable transportation paradigms. PBS will be broadcasting a 90-minute documentary in February that looks at the history of Detroit’s transportation identity, and the state of transportation in America, by setting Detroit’s “blighted urban landscape” against modern examples of success. Watch a preview of BEYOND THE MOTOR CITY below, or visit this PBS.org page to read more…
View this complete post...Archive for the ‘Competitiveness’ Category
DETROIT: A CASE STUDY OF OUR TRANSIT PROBLEMS
Wednesday, December 30th, 2009Transportation Adaptation to Global Climate Change
Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009BIPARTISAN POLICY CENTER
Rising sea levels, greater weather variability, and more extreme weather events like hurricanes, permafrost thawing, and melting Arctic sea ice are just some of the important changes that will impact transportation networks and infrastructure. Coastal areas are particularly vulnerable. A large portion of the nation’s transportation infrastructure is in coastal zones: nearly half of the U.S. population lives within fifty miles of the coast, and many roads, rail lines, and airports were built at or near water’s edge to take advantage of available right-of-way and land. Increasingly intense storm activity and surges, exacerbated by rising sea levels, are putting an ever-increasing range of this coastal infrastructure at risk…
Guest on The Infra Blog: Robert D. Yaro, President, Regional Plan Association
Tuesday, November 24th, 2009Robert D. Yaro is the President of Regional Plan Association, America’s oldest independent metropolitan policy, research and advocacy group. Mr. Yaro co-chairs the Empire State Alliance and the Friends of Moynihan Station, and is Vice President of the Forum of Urban Design. He serves on Mayor Bloomberg’s Sustainability Advisory Board, which helped prepare PlaNYC 2030, New York City’s new long-range sustainability plan. Since 2001 Mr. Yaro has been Professor of Practice in City and Regional Planning at the University of Pennsylvania. He also taught at Harvard University and the University of Massachusetts…
View this complete post...Climate Change in the United States: The Prohibitive Costs of Inaction
Thursday, November 12th, 2009UNION OF CONCERNED SCIENTISTS
“Recognizing the urgency of global warming, policy makers are beginning to pursue solutions to help us avoid the worst effects of climate change, while transitioning the nation to a clean energy economy. However, the debate over comprehensive climate and energy policy often focuses on the costs of climate action, rather than on the serious economic and environmental consequences if we fail to act. One study shows that if global warming emissions continue to grow unabated—a high-emissions scenario—the annual economic impact of more severe hurricanes, residential real-estate losses to sea-level rise, and growing water and energy costs could reach 1.4 percent of GDP by 2025, and 1.9 percent by 2100 (Ackerman and Stanton 2008).”
A Systems Approach to Water Resources
Thursday, October 29th, 2009AMERICA 2050/ REGIONAL PLAN ASSOCIATION
“Climate change, underfunded infrastructure, outdated management approaches, and the pressures of urbanization are creating a looming crisis for America’s water…”
High-Speed Solar Train
Friday, September 25th, 2009This story first appeared in La Razón on September 11, 2009. To visit the Spanish-language original, please click here. The rail, which will achieve 321 KPH, is designed such that only light propels it. Moreover, its hydrogen batteries and its conduction system will generate and distribute water throughout its entire length. All great cities of […]
View this complete post...Guest on The Infra Blog: Elliot G. Sander, Former Executive Director and CEO of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) of New York
Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009“Historically, people have not cared about infrastructure until the part of the infrastructure that they have been depending upon to get through their daily lives suffers some calamity…”
“I think that the Obama administration wants to do more than it has done in the past…”
“There was some disappointment about the level of infrastructure spending given by the stimulus…”
View this complete post...School Conditions in Summit County, CO
Thursday, August 20th, 2009“In an attempt to better understand the conditions of K-12 schools across Colorado, the Donnell-Kay Foundation, a Denver-based educational foundation, launched a wide-reaching assessment project…” (www.crumblingclassrooms.org) Dave Myers, facilities manager for the Summit School District in Summit County, Colorado gives a tour of the facilities in his comparatively wealthy school district.
View this complete post...Follow InfrastructureUSA
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