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good traffic.
good traffic. episodes
- 61 / Revamping the bus reputation / with Jerome Horne
Jerome Horne — transit advocate and communications executive — is in good traffic to talk buses, better transit advocacy, and Baltimore (among other places).
We discuss:
00:00 Choosing cities for transit advocacy.
02:36 Career transition to public transportation.
09:37 On community building.
17:36 Youth engagement in urban planning.
21:35 Strategies for promoting bus usage.
23:36 Improving bus systems and user experience.
24:52 Transit bar crawls.
27:13 Comparing transit systems across American cities.
31:45 Infrastructure failures.
34:09 Favorite commute experiences.
Connect with Jerome:
On Instagram.
On LinkedIn.
Connect with me, Brad:
On Instagram.
On TikTok.
On LinkedIn.
37 min - 60 / Voting with feet.
Urbanization is a forgone conclusion. Yet, we still hear remnants of the old, more rural American dream being presented as American cultural taste. But, even in our most rural states (like Texas), the vast majority of folks reside in cities. Economic productivity and impact follow suit.
People vote with their feet, and taste/preference account for more than aesthetics. The 'shithole' city narrative is extraordinarily uncomprehensive, and an over-squeezed political talking point.
This is why investing in transportation infrastructure and systems in our great cities should be seen as a state and national priority, as well as local.
We discuss:
00:00 Urbanization trends.
01:57 Election season and sociological implications.
03:33 The American dream.
06:52 Cognitive dissonance in preferences.
09:13 Texas as a case study.
12:26 Urban growth in Ohio.
13:33 On American urbanism.
15:04 The historic value of cities and what they provide.
16:13 Public opinion on in-person work.
17:05 Innovation through collaboration.
18:59 Economic contributions of cities.
19:15 Wrapping up.
22 min - 59 / Overheard urbanism.
Sharing a few conversations that have veered into urban planning / design, transportation, American mindset, and the like.
Clips shared during the episode:
Ari Matti on Matt and Shane's Secret Podcast, on the American pedestrian experience.
George Kamel (of the Dave Ramsey Show) on The Iced Coffee Hour, talking the biggest wealth crushers.
Neil DeGrasse Tyson on Joe Rogan, discussing the rollout of cars and highways in the states.
Morning Brew staff, acting out the key takeaways from a stellar recent Economist piece concerning vehicle weight and fatalities.
25 min - 58 / Five (& a half) reflections from year one.
We've passed the year mark. Huge thanks to you all.
Here, we hit on five (and a half) summative takeaways from twelve+ months of weekly conversations.
These are points that keep showing up( in dialogue, notes, and research. They will help to steer much of what we do here, in the coming years.
29 min - 57 / Active American towns / with John Simmerman
John Simmerman — Founder of Active Towns — is in good traffic to talk the push for more active towns across the U.S. John travels the world's cities via active mobility, and creates stellar content to summarize the trips. By trade, he's an exercise scientist that believes in the power of the built environment as an avenue for solving some of our most pertinent health challenges (obesity, isolation, etc...).
We discuss:
00:00 The active towns concept.
02:03 John's background and career.
05:37 Transportation challenges in Honolulu.
17:41 Empathy and behavior change.
21:59 Mobility choice and infrastructure.
36:54 Evaluating active communities.
39:27 Categorizing active towns.
41:35 Emerging active towns.
42:47 Latent active towns and their transformation.
44:19 Success stories: Oklahoma City and Austin.
56:10 Wide and inclusive infrastructure.
01:00:26 Impact of active commutes.
01:02:39 Reframing mobility and the commuting.
01:05:30 Wrapping up.
For context:
activetowns.org
The YouTube.
Connect with John:
On YouTube.
On Instagram.
On LinkedIn.
On Patreon.
1 hr 7 min - 56 / Law & disorder (bike edition).
Aside from better infrastructure, varying and incongruent laws make biking very challenging. Should I ride on the sidewalk, or on the road? Where do I belong? Will I actually get a ticket if I make a judgement call?
Through the wacky ways that we regulate bikes in the states, we see starkly how they are not viewed as a viable transportation method (yet).
We scratch the surface on the head-scratching confusion; it's no wonder that folks are too overwhelmed and afraid to start biking, even if they want to.
Rest in Peace, Johnny Gaudreau.
We discuss:
00:00 Briefly on Johnny Gaudreau's death.
04:08 Cars and alcohol.
08:52 Legal inconsistencies in cycling and bike laws.
21:03 The Idaho Stop and its benefits.
24:42 Wrapping up.
Further context:
On the Idaho Stop (via the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration).
32 min - 55 / The nature of our cities / with Dr. Nadina Galle
Dr. Nadina Galle — ecological engineer and author of new book, The Nature of Our Cities — is in good traffic this week to hash out the crossroads of cities, nature, and technology. We talk proper park planning and tree management, and the cities leading the way. The nature side of the urbanism conversation is something we’ll be exploring more deeply here, soon. Nadina is the perfect person to help frame the needed emphasis.
We discuss:
00:00 Dr. Nadina Galle is in good traffic.
01:09 Publishing a book in two languages.
03:04 Embracing technology in urban design.
04:55 Smart cities and urban ecosystems.
11:11 Global leaders in urban nature solutions.
19:02 Opportunities in urban nature.
33:46 On ecological engineering.
33:52 The Miyawaki method and technological integration.
34:57 Building biodiversity in cities.
36:56 More on ecological engineering.
38:47 Communicating complex concepts.
42:30 The Internet of Nature concept.
44:42 North American urban greening outlook.
51:44 Wrapping up.
Connect with Nadina:
The book.
nadinagalle.com.
On Instagram.
On Twitter.
Connect with me, Brad:
On Instagram.
On TikTok.
On LinkedIn.
58 min - 54 / Back to school... & thus stuck in carline.
Schools are back in session — and in less than a week, we're already fielding car line and traffic complaints.
There has to be a better way to empower children's movement.
We discuss:
00:00 Back to school.
01:22 The daily commute struggles.
03:08 Alternatives: The bike bus movement.
05:47 Practical tips for parents and students.
10:54 Commuting while in college.
16:44 Empowering student and teacher movement.
21:33 Next week.
24 min - 53 / Cars? In this economy?! / with Kyla Scanlon
Kyla Scanlon — author of In This Economy? How Money and Markets Really Work — is in good traffic to talk oil and gas economics and sociology, consumer sentiment and election voting driven by vibes, the implications of widespread car ownership, and more at the X of econ and urbanism.
Kyla’s book is the best entry-level econ read out there. Read it, ASAP. You can get your copy, here.
We discuss:
00:00 Kyla Scanlon is in good traffic.
01:13 On the new book.
03:40 Housing market complexities.
06:52 The vibes economy, election years, and gas prices.
11:17 Subsidies and green energy.
18:39 Transportation alternatives.
23:29 Cycling infrastructure and safety.
28:20 Human behavior and economics.
28:43 Challenges of car-centric infrastructure.
32:14 Market demand for walkable neighborhoods.
34:47 Congestion pricing and public transit.
38:51 The financial burdens of car ownership.
44:32 Effective communication in urban planning and design.
46:33 Wrapping up.
Further context:
The book (again).
Connect with Kyla:
kylascanlon.com
Kyla’s newsletter.
Kyla’s podcast — Let’s Appreciate.
On TikTok.
On Instagram.
On YouTube.
Connect with me, Brad:
On Instagram.
On TikTok.
On LinkedIn.
51 min - 52 / Overhauling parking pseudoscience / with Donald Shoup
Donald Shoup — economist, author, and distinguished research professor at UCLA — is in good traffic this week re-emphasizing the economic implications of free parking and its hidden costs, advocating for reforms such as market-based pricing for curb parking and parking benefit districts. He delves into the nuances between doctrine and dogma, sharing his perspective from a summary of lifelong research and practice in cities nationwide. The conversation explores various cities (including good traffic's home base in Columbus, Ohio) that are implementing these changes, promoting the idea that paid parking and strategically managed space can improve urban environments dramatically.
We discuss:
00:00 Donald Shoup is in good traffic.
00:37 Doctrine vs. Dogma in urban planning.
01:53 Challenging minimum parking requirements.
03:48 The evolution of parking policies.
04:44 On parking economics within research and universities.
07:23 On American parking reform.
10:20 Parking benefit districts and performance parking.
10:49 Unexpected success stories.
18:29 The political landscape surrounding parking.
19:26 Value of an economist approach to the parking conversation.
24:16 Parking cash outs and employer transit stipends.
28:57 The hidden costs of free parking.
32:58 The direction of parking reform.
36:40 Wrapping up.
37:35 A Shoup pitch: paid parking and free podcasts.
Further context:
Donald's book: The High Cost of Free Parking.
The Shoup Doggma, referenced in this episode.
A summary of the three reform tools discussed, from Vox.
Connect with Donald:
shoupdogg.com
On LinkedIn.
On Twitter.
Connect with me, Brad:
On Instagram.
On TikTok.
On LinkedIn.
38 min
About good traffic.
From the publisher's feed
A workshop for American urban design + urban planning. Join a prolific collective of neighborhood staples as we look to better brand American urbanism.
New conversations, each week.
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