Faina

“We assume that car use is an incompressible liquid that must be routed somewhere. But it’s more more like a gas that fills whatever space it is given.”

—Ian Lockwood, Harvard Loeb Fellow, transport planner.

The Study Every Study Ever: Reliable transit, safe active transportation options and fewer cars will improve cities. City: Hmm, can we really trust every study ever done?

Just one more.

‘Car Brain’ Is Making the US Unhealthy and Dangerous. EVs Won’t Fix It. A trio of new books argue that we need to confront the full range of costs that car-based living has imposed on our cities, our health and our society.

Three newly published books argue that cars are destroying society as well as the planet.

Is the world finally ready to rein in the automobile?

My essay, in @bloomberg.com (gift link below)

Fix the bridges first.

The bridges are already here; we just need to restore them so we can start using them again. These are long-term projects, but they move faster when we take them in phases. Phase 1: fix the bridges.

#RailAndTrail #SantaCruz

Paris Pedals to the Top: How the City of Light Became Europe’s Best for Young Cyclists The French capital has officially become Europe’s best city for children to walk, cycle, and move around independently

“In a city once choked with cars and infamous for its traffic snarls, Paris has pulled off a remarkable turnaround…the French capital has officially become Europe’s best city for children to walk, cycle, and move around independently.” Via @momentummag.bsky.social

A victory for FAST leadership.

Latest bit of Montreal 'bikelash' sidesteps the facts to please bike-lane haters The findings of a study about bike lanes vs car infrastructure have been twisted by a Montreal publication in a cheap bit of bikelash.

Here’s a good example of calling out liars lying about better city-building, via @taylornoakes.com in @cultmtl.com:

“What’s particularly annoying about Roberts’ column is that he’s using his position of power to reinforce ignorance. Shame on him for doing so, but especially the Montreal Gazette…”

The Next Big Idea Club’s October 2025 Must-Read Books These titles will be included in our longlist of potential titles for Season 28 of the Next Big Idea Club.

Thank you Next Big Idea Club for including "Life After Cars" on your list of October's Must-Read Books. We're in some great company!

nextbigideaclub.com/magazine/nex...

Cool transit job alert! 🚨

At any moment, there are big projects being completed and new ones just getting started. What’s less visible is everything that happens in between—the planning, engineering, grant applications, and permits that keep progress moving.

Who Doesn’t Have a Car? A new NRDC map shows car-free living and the factors affecting car usage in United States.

Who are non drivers?

@nrdc.org repport finds:

-34 million disabled people
-47 million young people (over 10 who don't own cars)
-5.6 million people who are 75+
-Millions of others who don't own their own vehicle

#WeekWithoutDriving

www.nrdc.org/resources/wh...

Meet the Montreal Mayor Who Declared War on SUVs Oversized vehicles are devouring street parking spaces in the Canadian city. So one borough’s mayor is fighting back with bigger fees for hefty trucks and SUVs.

Can't find parking? Blame larger cars.

"Expanding the average car length from 5 meters (16.4 feet) to 5.5 meters (18 feet) decreases street parking spots by 9.3%... The growing share of larger vehicles has caused many on-street parking spots to effectively disappear."

Rail travel is booming in America More trains mean more riders

Rail travel is booming across the U.S. In just nine months to July, 28.6 million people took a train ride, a 6% increase over the same period last year, says The Economist.

The wait is FINALLY over!

Our new book “Women Changing Cities: Global Stories of Urban Transformation” is NOW AVAILABLE worldwide through RIBA Publishing wherever fine books are sold.

From Paris to Bogota, from Manila to Montreal—when women lead, cities thrive: www.modacitylife.com/women-changi...

I’m glad I’m not the only one who was actually mad they dared ask for money right now. AND thought it was a good idea to have it come from Chuck Schumer?!

Sometimes the best part of the Rail & Trail is just hanging with your friends. Bike over to the brewery, hit your favorite taqueria, roll down to the beach, or just cruise. No parking stress, no sitting in traffic- just easy rides and more time to hang.

#RailAndTrail

Hey #urbanism content creators, do you make short form video? PLEASE comment below, or tag a creator!

We're looking to really improve the urbanism video content on this platform and it all starts with the best list of folks who are putting out content!

Book Talk: If You Want to Win, You've Got to Fight - A Guide to Effective Transportation Advocacy · Zoom · Luma We're excited to host the Bay Area’s own Carter Lavin, for a discussion of his upcoming book If You Want to Win, You've Got to Fight: A Guide to Effective…

Great to see that over 110 people are tuning in next week to talk about how to become more effective #bike #transit and #saferstreet advocates! That's a lot of activists!
luma.com/o7tavt2c

Bringing Rail back 😎 It’s a better experience, it’s an investment in our communities, it’s an essential climate action.

Should We Let Public Transit Die? Urban-rural hostility is fueling a public transportation crisis in US cities. But demands to abandon bus and train riders ignore the economic and social costs of cutting service.

This piece debunks the argument we no longer need transit b/c of AVs or whatever.

Transit isn’t optional. Cities don’t work w/o it. AVs have a role, but they’re cars & take up lots of space. Transit is space-efficient.

We’re working to stabilize/strengthen our transit systems. Let’s get it done.

Paris said au revoir to cars. Air pollution maps reveal a dramatic change. Air pollution fell substantially as the city restricted car traffic and made way for parks and bike lanes.

“Air pollution fell substantially as Paris restricted car traffic and made way for parks, people-streets and bike-lanes.”

Better for the climate, better for health, better for livability & quality of life.

Common sense.

Such a no-brainer, it’s remarkable that more cities HAVEN’T done the same.

The rail connects us to our community, linking jobs, schools, and daily life. For many families in Santa Cruz and Watsonville who don’t own a car, that connection isn’t just convenient, it’s essential.

Back to School in Santa Cruz! Now families can take the Rail Trail. Let’s expand across the Country.

Martinelli’s has recently started using our local rail line to ship cider more safely and efficiently.

It’s a great reminder of how rail can work for Santa Cruz County, reducing truck traffic, cutting emissions, and keeping local businesses moving.

Shoutout to Highway 1 Brewing Company for supporting this year’s Rail & Trail Festival.

If you haven’t checked them out yet, go give Highway 1 Brewing a visit, they’re right on the coast in Davenport with great food, local beer, and an amazing view.

Interesting-looking new article mapping the different strands of transport policy research doi.org/10.1016/j.tr...

We ended our legislative session with big wins for transit:

We allocated billions for regional rail & high speed rail, authorized a Bay Area regional revenue measure to strengthen transit & passed SB 79 to allow more homes near transit.

Transit makes the world better. Let’s improve & protect it.

Breathing fresh air, saying hi to your neighbors, physical activity… The benefits of not driving are endless!

What are your favorites? Let us know — and don’t forget to sign up for #WeekWithoutDriving on September 29–October 5, 2025!

🌟 Join the national movement: buff.ly/CGrb9I2

If car commercials were honest, they'd look like this.

NEW: @bradlander.bsky.social joins us to talk political courage, from defending bike lanes early in his career to his efforts to rein in reckless drivers to his cross endorsement of @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social. We are thrilled to welcome Brad to The War on Cars!

podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/p...

Who are streets for? 81% of street space in Toronto is inequitably dedicated to motor vehicles. How can this be fairly re-designed?

check out our recent project mapping street space allocation in Toronto

we find that more than 80% of transportation infrastructure in Toronto is designed for cars, far more than how people actually travel

w/ @lanrickbennett.bsky.social & Mia Wang

schoolofcities.github.io/who-are-stre...