The Greening of Hamburg
A team of 30 city planners in Hamburg, Germany are working on a massive project that is sure to keep Hamburg in the list of one of Europe’s most sustainable cities. A previous winner of the European Green Capital award in 2011, Hamburg has recently announced ambitious plans for reshaping the city centre over the next […]
Equality the goal in planning cities of the future
We came across another great TED talk in December, featuring the former mayor of Bogotá, Colombia, Enrique Peñalosa, who suggests a new yardstick by which to measure our cities of the future. “An advanced city is not one where even the poor use cars, but rather one where even the rich use public transport.” Peñalosa […]
Car vending machines address transport issues
Reported last month by news.com.au, Hangzhou’s nine million residents will be encouraged to relinquish car ownership in favour of a greener solution – electric hire cars available on demand from giant vending machines! In this attempt to spearhead the problems of pollution, traffic congestion and overcrowding, all exacerbated by spiralling car ownership in China, Hangzhou […]
Melbourne’s congestion levy expanded
Last month, the Victorian government announced plans to expand the reach of the congestion levy imposed on Melbourne parking spaces. Introduced in 2006, the current levy is restricted to the CBD area, but commencing 2015, the tax will be extended in all directions encompassing most of the City of Melbourne municipality. The new “Category 2” […]
Brisbane’s UBAT project addresses congestion issues
As reported by the ABC news, the Queensland government recently announced a 5.4 km tunnel project in Brisbane, designed to ease the city’s congestion problems at a cost of $5 billion. Dubbed the UBAT (Underground Bus and Train), the double-decker tunnel will accommodate buses on the upper level and trains below. The combined project replaces […]
Architecture accolades for Perth Arena
Perth Arena has added another accolade to its growing list of prestigious awards. As reported in ArchitectureAU, the designers ARM Architecture and Cameron Chisholm Nicol were recently recognised with the top national architecture award, the Sir Zelman Cowen Award for Public Architecture. The award jury described the structure as a ‘radical, abstract, graphic alien that […]
Smartphone option for ticketless transport
The city of Rio de Janeiro has recently launched a pilot program allowing travellers to use their smartphones as a mobile wallet for public transportation, reports Techworld. The phones are equipped with NFC (Near Field Communication) technology which allows safe, contactless data exchange between devices. A collaborative project between RioCard Tecnologia da Informação, Gemalto, Motorola […]
$36 billion Transport Plan unveiled for South Australia
Making news this week is the South Australian government’s announcement of a new 30 year, $36 billion Transport Plan, as reported in the Adelaide Advertiser. It is the State’s first Integrated Transport and Land Use Plan, and it is now open for public comment. A collaborative effort between planning, transport and various interest groups, South […]
Hillary Clinton gets unexpected extra at awards event
All in a day’s work! Reported last week in the International Business Times, a Westminster City Council parking warden rather courageously slapped an £80 penalty notice on the car of former First Lady, Hillary Clinton, while she was attending an event at Chatham House. No fewer than five Secret Service minders jumped out of nearby […]
Reclaiming your city – lessons from the transformation of NYC
Here’s an inspiring and interesting TED talk from Janette Sadik-Khan, the Transportation Commissioner of New York City, sharing her strategy for transforming urban areas into a place for people. In the space of five years, New York has been reclaimed by the people thanks to some bold moves in the area of transport and planning. […]
Sydney bike lanes to absorb some parking spaces
Not everyone will be happy with the NSW government’s new City Centre Access Strategy, and that is expected when dealing with complex transport issues, multiple stakeholders, and the fixed infrastructure in a city the size of Sydney. The Sydney Morning Herald reports this week that planned expansion of bike lanes will be particularly detrimental to […]
(Un) expected fallout from UK workplace parking levy
The introduction of Britain’s first workplace parking levy has been causing a spot of bother in the UK. The City of Nottingham was the first in the UK to introduce the levy in 2012 in an attempt to reduce congestion in the city. Employers are being charged £334 for each parking space offered to employees, […]
Double yellow lines under review in UK
It seems that many metropolitan town centres around the globe are facing the same dilemmas—trying to support local businesses and residents with the availability of short term parking, while managing the impact on traffic flows and the public purse. A complex issue, to be sure, to be sure… Reported this week in the UK Telegraph, […]
Traffic ban to protect the Colosseum
Rome’s new mayor, Ignazio Marino, is making an early impact with the introduction of a traffic ban around the iconic Colosseum. Met with both celebrations and protests, the mayor has started by banning private vehicles and trucks from a portion of one of Rome’s busiest roads, Via dei Fori Imperiali. For the moment, buses, taxis, […]
The impact of driverless cars on our cities
As we posted in last week’s Wayfinding Forum, auto companies are now striving beyond the development of self-parking cars. They are building self-DRIVING cars. Whilst the technology has advanced rapidly in recent years, public acceptance and understanding is still in its infancy. This week, an interesting perspective was offered by The New York Times. The […]
A world without parking consultants? Surely not!
Ever imagined a world without cars? Some might think a world without oxygen is more palatable, but would it really be so bad? There’d be no traffic, no car accidents, no parking tickets. Goodness, there’d be no need for traffic and parking consultants whatsoever….. Actually maybe this isn’t such a good idea! Seriously though, would […]
Driverless trains are headed for Sydney
The NSW budget handed down last week delivered significantly on transport, with over $6 billion pledged towards infrastructure projects. Along with the light rail project previously mentioned on Wayfinding Forum, heavy rail was the big winner with funding confirmed along the north-west corridor of Sydney. The NSW Government describes The North West Rail Link as […]
Japan’s underground bike parking solution
Tokyo is a metropolis of over 13 million people, all trying to get around by the best means possible. Overwhelming congestion means that car travel is sluggish and we’ve all seen images of “train pushers” (or oshiya) cramming passengers onto Japan’s subway system. As a result, cycling is trending as a preference for many commuters. […]
Brazilian people power leads to transport policy review
In a follow up to last week’s blog article on the protests in Brazil, the country’s President, Dilma Rousseff, has held discussions with ‘peaceful protest leaders’ in an attempt to end days of nationwide unrest. The dialogue has led to the President unveiling a series of reforms including creating a national plan for urban public […]
Cyclists take over the streets of Colombia
Bogotá, Colombia is the second most populous city in South America and one of the highest capitals in the world at a lofty 2625m above sea level. From Monday to Friday it is not unusual to hear ‘Bogotanos’ complaining about heavy traffic, pot-holed roads and an overburdened public transport network. However each Sunday and most […]
Commercial parking minimums in Latin America
Still in Colombia, take a look at this commentary from Reinventing Parking on a new parking policy guide that was launched last week in Bogotá. From the data provided, it is evident that there is a distinct split across South American countries in parking space provisions for new commercial buildings. The graph shows Mexico, Brazil […]
Woes over public transport fare increases in Brazil
Still in South America, scenes have turned ugly in Brazil this week as citizens continued their protests that started out as a demonstration about an increase in local bus fares. The rise from R$3.00 to R$3.20 (the equivalent of 10c) may seem miniscule on the surface, however the country’s poorest felt they had no option […]
Opal expands to Sydney’s rail network
The NSW Government will extend the trial of its Opal smartcard ticketing system to some of Sydney’s trains from the end of this week. The trial, which has previously been introduced on two of Sydney’s ferry routes, will now include train stations on the City Circle and Bondi Junction lines. The rollout brings Sydney closer […]
Melbourne’s parking squeeze to tighten
As with many of the world’s big cities, Melbourne’s CBD is experiencing a chronic shortage of parking spaces, an issue that is likely to worsen in the coming years. According to The Age, over the past 13 years only 9551 car spaces have been added to the CBD’s supply of 38,085 commercial places while the […]
Bike sharing program launched in NYC
New York City’s bike-sharing program was officially launched last week, sending 6,000 bright blue “Citi Bikes” onto the streets of Manhattan and Brooklyn. The system will feature 24/7 access to terminals at hundreds of subway stations around New York. Each terminal is equipped with a touchscreen kiosk, a map of the service area and a […]
Synchronization gets the green light in LA
Los Angeles has long been a symbol of America’s traffic congestion with its polluted stretches of multi-lane freeways turning into car parks during rush hour, aggravating its users. However, if city planners are correct, this is about to change — with LA turning from eternal gridlock into a best practice model for traffic control. This […]
Quest to improve cycling safety in Otago NZ
Two recent deaths of cyclists on the streets of Dunedin have prompted councillors to investigate options for rejigging parking and traffic management protocols on some of the city’s busiest thoroughfares. The Otago Daily Times reported requests have been made to council and the NZ Transport Agency to investigate the option of increasing parking limits for […]
Tackling abuse of disabled parking spaces
Around the world, parking enforcement agencies battle with illegal use of disabled parking spaces by unauthorised drivers. On the Gold Coast, along with increasing fines, the city council hopes to ratify a proposal for photo IDs to be displayed with disabled parking permits. According to the Gold Coast News website, Councillor Bob La Castra admitted […]
Is paid parking the solution for Canberra?
Following our post on Wayfinding Forum in January, the parking landscape in the ACT’s Parliamentary Triangle is about to change forever, but it may not be to everyone’s liking. In last week’s budget, Federal Treasurer, Wayne Swan announced 9,000 pay-parking spaces will be introduced in Parkes, Barton, Russel and Acton from July next year. At […]
Plans to arrest the parking crisis in Mumbai
India is the world’s second most populous nation and traffic on the streets of Mumbai reflects this. In fact, the number of cars in Mumbai has increased by 51% in the last six years, meaning not only is pollution and congestion on the rise, but the fight for parking spaces is too. As a result, […]