As the expected costs of climate change grow, cities are on the frontlines of adapting to sea level rise and more intense storms – and finding ways to pay for it.
CRRC’s version of the optically guided bus, now operating in Zhuzhou, is more like light rail than its predecessors.
CRRC
The autonomous rail rapid transit (ART) system developed in China might make buses sexy, but the technology alone won’t resolve the issues of road space and right of way in Australia.
Flooding in Sydney last week was the latest example of Australian cities’ lack of resilience to a more extreme climate.
Dean Lewins/AAP
Australia’s coastal settlements are highly exposed to the impacts of climate change. Climate-resilient urban landscapes that can cope with large amounts of water need to become the new normal.
Australians have a phobia of sitting in traffic and not finding a car park.
Shutterstock
The arrival of autonomous vehicles would ideally reduce the number of cars on our roads. But this is a pipe dream without a robust public transport system and willingness to share.
Much of the public opposition to the WestConnex project is related to concerns about the impacts on health.
No WestConnex
The health concerns that dominate public submissions to the parliamentary inquiry into WestConnex are a reminder that papering over such issues comes back to haunt governments.
Brisbane’s South Bank parkland isn’t exactly getting out in the wild, but experiences of urban nature are important for building people’s connection to all living things.
Anne Cleary
Moves to connect people with nature for both the conservation and health benefits point to the need for people to experience nature as they find it in the city, rather than only out in natural areas.
You can’t build housing without land, and developers typically control the rate of which it’s released to stop prices falling.
Lukas Coch/AAP
The thing about new housing is you need land to build it on. Developers are able to control its release at a rate that doesn’t put downward pressure on prices.
A Townsville City Deal was signed two years ago and the city is now one of Queensland’s ten leaders on smart city performance.
Lukas Coch/AAP
How smart are our cities now? In Queensland, a study of all 78 local government areas reveals major gaps between the ten leading the way in becoming smart cities and the rest of the state.
A race to dominate the emerging tech-driven mobility sector is happening in cities around the world.
Jakub Kaminski/EPA
To cut emissions within the 12 years or so we have left to avoid disastrous global warming, we will need to change our old transport habits, using a combination of strategies to achieve this.
Loneliness has become a global epidemic, and urban design can be either part of the problem or the solution.
Melbourne School of Design
The cities we build in turn shape our society. So when so many of us feel lonely, we should aim to apply what we know about the social impacts of design to help people connect with each other.
It’s time to stop shifting responsibility onto individuals, and start supporting deprived communities to live healthy lifestyles.
A large majority of Asian Australians who make up an increasing proportion of the population, especially in big cities like Sydney, have experienced racism.
ketrktt/Shutterstock
Asian Australians experience high levels of racism. Almost six in ten Asia-born Australians report having had experiences of discrimination when trying to rent or buy housing.
Transport promises stretching as far as the eye can see: Victorian Labor’s big one is a $A50 billion suburban rail loop.
Penny Stephens/AAP
Whichever party wins, Victoria’s new government will have promised the biggest transport infrastructure project in Australian history. So what are the promises and are they backed by proper assessment?
Tiny Paley Park, surrounded by skyscrapers in New York City, introduced the concept of a ‘pocket park’ in dense urban centers.
Aleksandr Zykov/Flickr
Research shows that access to urban green space makes people and neighborhoods healthier. But parks can’t work their magic if their design ignores the needs of nearby communities.
Households in rural and regional areas are more likely to be insured than those in cities, possibly because rural residents are more attuned to environmental conditions and the risks to property.
Tasmania Police/AAP
The differences between owners and the growing number of renters, and between rural and urban areas, point to explanations other than affordability for the one-in-two Australians who are underinsured.
The Whim app seamlessly connects users to multiple transport modes in Helsinki – public transport, taxis, car rental and car/bicycle sharing.
Aleksandra Suzi/Shutterstock
Apps that seamlessly combine all our travel options could be the most significant transport innovation since the automobile, but early trials show government policy support is vital to make MaaS work.
Children’s travel needs are a big factor in private car use.
Pablo Rogat/Shutterstock
The private car is the default transport option for many families. This reduces physical activity and increases greenhouse gas emissions, with unhealthy results for their children and the environment.
Thomas Stoddard, University of Technology Sydney and Tom Lee, University of Technology Sydney
In the year since the resounding Yes vote in the same-sex marriage survey, the flag has clearly escaped the pole or the street bunting of pride festival times to become ever present in our cities.
The current social housing construction rate – barely 3,000 dwellings a year – does not even keep pace with rising need, let alone make inroads into today’s backlog.
Joel Carrett/AAP
A tenfold increase in building is needed to overcome the current social housing shortfall and cover projected growth in need. But it can be done, and direct public investment is the cheapest way.
Dr Jim O'Connell and therapy dog Maestro spend some time with a client at the medical respite centre in Boston.
Courtesy of Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program
Life on the street is no place to recover from a stay in hospital, but that’s what happens to many people who are homeless. But there’s a proven model to provide care that also cuts healthcare costs.
Most of Kyoto’s narrow streets could become no-car zones.
The city where the Kyoto Protocol was signed resolved some years ago to move away from cars and towards low-emission alternatives for getting around. And it’s making real progress towards that goal.
Most transport resources are being used inefficiently. The Canberra Transport Photo shows the road space required to move 69 people using public transport, bicycles and private motor vehicles.
Cycling Promotion Fund
Blind belief that new technology and disruptive innovation will fix congestion in our cities overlooks the need for strong leadership that supports progressive policy innovation.
Do events like the Global Action Climate Summit raise the profile of politicians like New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio?
AP Photo/Eric Risberg