Our perception study examining some of the key tenets of accessibility, recently published our new edited book, was picked up by TheAtlanticCities.com in this article.
Objects on ground may be closer than they appear
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Archive: December, 2012
Stop being an S O V
I am listening to the radio. The holiday advertisements are rolling. Then a new ad rolls out. It is quick, pithy, and pointed. It draws our attention to the environmental and other costs of driving. Then it jumps right to urging you not to be an SOV (single occupancy vehicle).
The tagline is edgy, no doubt. It is surprising. It catches you (or at least, me) off-guard. I thought: who really is behind paying for the creativity of such much less the air-time. As it turns out, it is sponsored by a partnership led by Denver the Regional Council of Governments.
The campaign is clearly playing to the moral suasion argument—a strategy I have suggested that, in the past, has had very little success in the past in triggering behavioral change. I guess we can keep trying. Maybe more “edgy awareness” will help.
Top planning books of 2012…including the Bikeway Design Guide?
Planetizen just announced its 11th annual list of the ten best books in urban planning, design and development published for 2012. The list selected by Planetizen’s editorial staff covers a range of urgent topics. A couple of reactions:
-Popular press and journalistic authors dominate (not academics and researchers). This is to be expected, but I did not recognize a single academic. I suppose our writing style (or our findings?) really are boring.
…but, speaking of boring:
-Of the ten books listed, the 329 page Urban Bikeway Design Guide by the National Association of City Transportation Officials is one of them. Seriously? A technical manual as a “best of”? Apparently, the editorial staff is stacked w insomniacs. It is great to see a bike reference among the list. And, it is a really useful guide, don’t get me wrong. But still.
Mixite and Development of the Hippodrome de Montreal area
I am currently in Montreal as part of a forum of experts invited by the mayor’s office to help the city determine the strongest development potential for a 100+ acre development project (the old horseracing track).
Sure, it exciting to pretend like one is going to Europe for 2 days. But one of the best things I acquired on this trip is the use of a new word from my Francophone colleagues: mixite. Wikipedia tells me, “The diversity in general, refers to the presence or the context of individuals of both genders in a group or a concept. The word specializes in specific contexts: 1. The diversity , training and education together boys and girls in mixed groups. 2. In sociology , we talk about social mix , heterogeneous nature of society .”
…and, based on its use these past two days, I am guessing it can also mean the co-mingling of different items (e.g., people of different socio economic class, different ideas, or even different travel modes). I like it.