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good traffic.
good traffic. episodes
- 51 / Biking from Canada to Mexico / with Sam Westby
Sam Westby — touring cyclist, bike commuter, and content creator — is in good traffic this week to talk all things biking. We delve into Sam's recent Tour Divide ride, traversing from the Canadian border to the Mexican border on varying surfaces. The conversation also touches on the evolving bike culture in cities like Boston, and the impact of ebikes. We touch on an upbringing in a cycling-focused family. We also discuss Sam's PhD work in network science, with potential applications in urban cycling infrastructure.
We discuss:
00:00 Sam's epic Tour Divide ride.
01:29 Bike touring preparation and decision making.
04:25 Diet and nutrition on biking excursions.
07:15 Bike community while on the road.
10:25 Urban vs. touring cycling.
16:27 Early beginnings and family influence.
22:03 Cycling amidst rapidly improving Boston infrastructure.
24:55 Boston's hardy biking culture.
26:29 Electric bike shares.
28:34 Social interactions.
30:04 The ebike debate and sufficient infrastructure.
34:09 PhD work in network science.
39:04 Navigating urban cycling via technology.
47:13 Best commutes and memorable rides.
Further context:
The Tour Divide ride.
Sam's video on biking across the U.S.
Connect with Sam:
On Instagram.
On YouTube.
On TikTok.
On Strava.
Connect with me, Brad:
On Instagram.
On TikTok.
On LinkedIn.
51 min - 50 / Everyone loves a firefighter, & this one loves bikes / with The Biking Fireman, Steve Dunn
Steve Dunn — New Jersey firefighter and safe infrastructure advocate — is in good traffic this week to talk bikes as financial freedom, bike commuting as a public servant and emergency responder, and work done with his organization Union County Connects. The discussion also covers suburban and urban dynamics, the economic implications of car dependence, and the need for greater collaboration and understanding between fire departments in urban planning efforts. Steve offers a hopeful perspective on the future of biking and mobility in the states.
We discuss:
00:00 Introduced to urbanism via our former guest.
01:33 Bike commuting.
06:04 Advocacy and community impact as a fireman.
08:20 Navigating suburban and urban dynamics.
19:58 Car dependency and alternative transportation.
27:35 An $11 billion turnpike expansion debate.
28:21 The psychology of infrastructure spending.
30:01 Hope for American transit and biking.
32:45 Balancing car use and sustainable living.
33:25 Advocating for bike parking and safer infrastructure.
34:18 Perceptions of car use.
46:30 The role of firefighters in the urban planning dialogue.
52:22 The future of emergency services and urbanism.
56:28 Wrapping up, and Steve's ride to work.
Further context:
Union County Connects (Steve's org).
The Biking Fireman.
Connect with Steve:
On Instagram.
Connect with me, Brad:
On Instagram.
On TikTok.
On LinkedIn.
59 min - 49 / A new urban design handbook / with professor Nico Larco
Nico Larco — professor and director of the Urbanism Next Center at the University of Oregon — is in good traffic this week to dive deeply into his new book, The Sustainable Urban Design Handbook, and utilizing Portland as a laboratory for developing leading urbanism practices.
We discuss:
00:00 Portland, Oregon's urban design.
02:15 Bike commuting culture in Portland.
03:07 Portland's national perception.
06:14 Authoring a new sustainable urban design framework.
27:57 Intricacies of urban design.
29:37 Trees in urban environments.
33:02 Portland's neighborhoods.
38:16 University of Oregon's Sustainable Cities Institute and Urbanism Next Center.
43:41 An academic viewpoint on tactical urbanism.
46:09 Grassroots involvement in local urban design.
47:53 Favorite commutes and final thoughts.
Further context:
Nico's new book - The Sustainable Urban Design Handbook.
From the book: Sustainable Urban Design Framework.
The Urbanism Next Center.
Portland's South Waterfront neighborhood.
Connect with Nico:
On LinkedIn.
Connect with me, Brad:
On Instagram.
On TikTok.
On LinkedIn.
52 min - 48 / Transportation engineering & congestion pricing / with The Transit Guy, Hayden Clarkin
Hayden Clarkin — a NYC-based transportation engineer known widely as The Transit Guy — is in good traffic this week to talk the engineering profession, getting transit projects across the finish line, and storytelling the technical aspects of the process.
We cover the background, and current stasis, of halted congestion pricing implementation in New York City.
We discuss:
00:00 The Transit Guy namesake.
02:15 Falling in love with transit.
08:54 Visually storytelling our arguments for transit.
18:08 Challenges and misconceptions.
23:32 Congestion pricing, and looming NYC subway system questions.
31:17 Governance and policy upgrades needed, with examples in Austin and Philadelphia.
37:48 Transportation engineering education and challenges.
47:06 Wrapping up.
Further context:
On the shortage of true transportation engineers (via Strong Towns).
Some background on the congestion pricing standstill (via New York Times).
Connect with Hayden:
On Instagram.
On Twitter.
Connect with me, Brad:
On Instagram.
On TikTok.
On LinkedIn.
50 min - 47 / A pedestrian in Portland.
Portland, Oregon has a polarizing reputation — it seems drugs and homelessness dominate headlines nationally. Though it has uphill battles like any place, it’s also an undisputed leader in urban design and multi-modal infrastructure. We’re spending the next two weeks here, biking and walking all over the city and its surrounding neighborhoods. Today, we start with three (of many) physical choices that Portland practices well, and that more American cities should develop patterns after.
I. Neighborhood greenways / practical paths.
II. Separated spaces for different modes.
III. Network-level planning and design.
Subscribe early to the new newsletter — first publishing in August. Appreciate your time, as always.
More Portland context (mentioned in the audio):
The South Waterfront neighborhood.
On Portland bike safety (via People Powered Movement).
Portland protected bicycle lane planning and design guide (via PBOT).
31 min - 46 / Women moving people, regional passenger rail, & North Carolina insight / with Joan Lyons
Joan Lyons — transportation planner and urbanism writer — is in good traffic sharing on the Women Moving People project, which focuses on emboldening women's perspectives in the planning and transportation industries. We agree strongly on the importance of early exposure to urbanism for children and students.
Joan also talks her career as a transportation planner in Louisiana, Denver, and North Carolina.
Plus, a look at passenger rail corridors being identified, and funding challenges, across the states.
We discuss:
00:00 Women Moving People: a project overview.
10:43 Introducing urbanism to coming generations.
15:48 Personal tales on public transit.
32:55 North Carolina's unique transportation landscape.
43:20 Regional connectivity and passenger rail initiatives.
48:40 Challenges in transportation funding.
54:54 Sign up for your city's newsletter, and fill stuff out.
01:01:22 Wrapping up.
Further context:
Women Moving People.
A look at identified passenger rail corridors, particularly in North Carolina and Ohio (via Trains.com).
Transportation management organizations (e.g. Boulder Transportation Connections).
Connect with Joan:
On Instagram.
On LinkedIn.
Connect with me, Brad:
On Instagram.
On TikTok.
On LinkedIn.
1 hr 3 min - 45 / Duality of space.On inefficiency of single-use spaces. Questioning the norm of planning for exceptions rather than the rule. Cities and individuals make choices based on rarer needs, leading to underutilized spaces. In homing differing usages in one space — like a morning coffee shop turning into a bar at night, or a parking lot hosting a farmer's market — we can deduplicate resources, overhead, and infrastructure.We discuss:00:00 Shared space.01:46 Decision-making for the exception, vs. the rule.06:29 Examples of shared spaces, and deduplicating resources and infrastructure.10:54 On Stoa.13:54 Combining retail-specific spaces.17:52 Upcoming topics and conversation.Further context:On Stoas (via Sidewalk Labs).23 min
- 44 / Permaculture in your city / with Kev Polk
Kev Polk — founder of Edenicity — is in good traffic this week discussing a permacultural approach to urbanism. This is: ecologically sound cities that provide housing, food, energy, and transportation in a cohesive system. Kev shares his path from space exploration to realizing the importance of localized systems and cities in addressing environmental crises. Kev emphasizes the potential for greater freedom and convenience (the American wishlist) through thoughtful urban design and holistic planning.
We discuss:
00:00 Welcome to the new studio.
00:21 On Edenicity as a concept.
01:24 Permaculture and urban planning.
02:12 From space exploration to permaculture.
03:38 Cities as the solution to environmental issues.
05:01 Opportunities in urban permaculture.
11:57 Examples of successful urban permaculture.
20:45 Holistic system design, governance, and execution.
28:54 Lessons from the roundabout project in Bloomington, Indiana.
29:48 Experiences in Ohio.
31:22 Tiny house community roadblocks.
36:13 Promoting abundance and freedom, instead of austerity.
42:22 Fake green vs. real green.
46:38 EV specticism.
48:42 Wrapping up.
Further context:
Edenicity on YouTube.
Biophilic building design in Singapore (via Summer Rayne Oakes).
Electric vehicles by state (via Exploding Topics).
Connect with Kev:
On Youtube.
Connect with me, Brad:
On Instagram.
On TikTok.
On LinkedIn.
52 min - 43 / Overparked (part one of many).
On the hobby of spot-checking availability in nearby parking garages, and American driving and parking data.
We discuss:
00:00 Counting unused parking spots in downtown Columbus, Ohio.
00:27 Parking garage supply and demand.01:47 Reevaluating urban land use.02:44 U.S. parking data.03:57 Parking case study: Des Moines, Iowa.06:09 Larger implications of car-centric infrastructure.11:11 Personal finance and transportation costs.14:46 Coming Thursday: Kev Polk (Edenicity).Further context:
Number of parking spots, compared to cars on the road in the U.S. (via Fast Company).
The parking density of American cities (via Bloomberg CityLab).
Cities' 'parking scores' (via Parking Reform Network).
Average car ownership count by household (via Forbes).
Average American household size (via Statistica).
16 min - 42 / Branding American cities / with Ryan Short
Ryan Short — cofounder of CivicBrand — joins good traffic to emphasize why cities and towns of all sizes should care more about branding. We talk the need for civic pride and intentional urban design, qualitative and quantitative data collection, and using community perspective to refine strong, holistic, evergreen messaging.
From Dallas, to suburban North Carolina, to mountain town Colorado, Ryan's perspective is forged from work in communities of all stripes. He's truly of wealth of successful precedents for proper placemaking.
We discuss:
00:00 On CivicBrand, and branding cities.
04:29 On community engagement.
05:30 Car-centric design has ruined civic identity.
08:12 How to approach community engagement and placemaking.
16:37 Collecting data at community meetings.
25:23 Qualitative data in branding.
26:03 Personal taste versus city identity.
27:18 Toyota's branding as a model for cities.
30:44 Civic pride and economic growth.
34:13 Case study: High Point, North Carolina.
40:18 Learning from small towns.
45:16 Wrapping up.
Further context:
CivicBrand.
Connect with Ryan:
On LinkedIn.
Connect with me, Brad:
On Instagram.
On TikTok.
On LinkedIn.
48 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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