BrentToderian

BrentToderian, 4 months ago to vancouver

It’s estimated that one Skytrain transit line in #MetroVancouver replaces between 20 & 26 lanes of freeway vehicle traffic. And then consider the amount of PARKING it replaces, how much pollution & GHG emissions it replaces, how much public cost it replaces.

Mobility in cities is about space.

#CityMakingMath #Vancouver

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BrentToderian, 4 months ago to random

“Now #OpenStreets have entered their real-estate amenity era, where they are placed on par with parks & subway stops.”

Urban living needs good amenities to work. One of the easiest amenities to create is a place for people that used to be space for cars. https://t.co/r6AsJbdsTT

BrentToderian, 4 months ago to random

LAST NIGHT Victoria BC City Council voted 7-2 to approve the Roundhouse At Bayview Place. Almost 2000 new homes, including rental and 215 below-market homes. 40% of land area as neighbourhood-defining public places (not just the left-over spaces!), including a central gathering space framed by the historic roundhouse buildings given new life as local retail. All right next to downtown. 3 long nights of public hearing. Thank you to City Council. I was proud to advise this transformative project.

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BrentToderian, 4 months ago to random

What percent of Twitter/X ads are now flagrant and actionable lies about random famous people meant to draw people into clicking on what is actually a trick to get them to buy cryptocurrency?

A high percent, it seems.

Quite the business model, Elon.

BrentToderian, 4 months ago to random

WATCH: Over 600 attended in person, but if you missed my public presentation last week in Mississauga Ontario, and the lively discussion and Q&A afterward with CAO Shari Lichterman, the City of Mississauga has it online now for you to take your time with.

The purpose is to start a NEW CIVIC CONVERSATION!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVVdmRGZ0hM

BrentToderian, 4 months ago to random

“I’m not saying you can’t drive a car: what I’m questioning is having someone subsidise my decision to drive and park.”

Parking is being managed in cities “like a badly-run charity,” & that money comes from somewhere.

From Australia, relevant everywhere.
https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/like-badly-run-charities-how-councils-get-car-parking-so-wrong-20240117-p5exwu.html

BrentToderian, 4 months ago to random

REGISTER TODAY, and note change to BIGGER venue! Mississauga Ontario, I’ll be back in town January 17th & will do A FREE PUBLIC TALK/EVENING to discuss Mississauga’s urban future and the many big challenges cities are facing. Thread below is from my last trip. Please help spread the word!
https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/an-evening-with-brent-toderian-tickets-782321373287

BrentToderian, 4 months ago to random

READ: “We’re in a housing crisis, a climate crisis, a public equity crisis, a public-health crisis (fuelled by car-dependent sprawl & inactivity by design), & a public-finance crisis (with big tax increases and brutal per-capita suburban infrastructure costs).”

My op-ed today in Victoria BC.

https://www.timescolonist.com/opinion/comment-roundhouse-project-offers-what-victoria-needs-8087606

BrentToderian, 5 months ago to random

IMPORTANT: “A new cost-benefit study in New Zealand finds that investments in cycling & walking facilities outweigh the costs of building them by 10 to 1. The research found that the most important economic benefits were health gains from use of active transport.”

It costs public money to NOT do it.

https://ebikes-international.com/new-study-in-new-zealand-says-cycling-walking-investments-are-10-times-more-effective/

BrentToderian, 5 months ago to random

A new 5 yr Belgian study shows the BIG impact of increasing vehicle weight on road deaths & injuries. When a person on a bike or walking is hit by a pick-up, the risk of serious injury increases by 90% compared to a car. The risk of death goes up by 200%.
https://www.vias.be/fr/newsroom/des-voitures-plus-lourdes-plus-hautes-et-plus-puissantes-pour-une-securite-routiere-a-deux-vitesses-/

BrentToderian, 5 months ago to random

READ:

• 12% reduction in rush hour cars
• 40% fewer cars on main bike routes
• 25% more people on bikes
• 28% more public transit use
• 18% better city centre air quality

The Belgian city of #Ghent’s circulation plan is worth studying.

cc @filipwatteeuw
https://www.transportenvironment.org/discover/how-belgian-city-cutting-rush-hour-traffic/

BrentToderian, 5 months ago to random

READ: “25 simple #NewYears resolutions you can make to improve your city!” Revisit my @FastCompany article — the resolutions feel just as relevant in 2024 (maybe MORE). I’d probably add a few tho…What would you add? #HappyNewYear #Resolutions #NewYearsEve
https://www.fastcompany.com/90287193/25-simple-resolutions-you-can-make-to-improve-your-city-in-2019

BrentToderian, 5 months ago to random

IMPORTANT: This ranks a bunch of ways we get around cities, using average carbon emissions by transport type in grams per pkm. It breaks emissions down by operation, manufacture etc.

Feet and bikes win. Lots of ways beat electric cars, and everything beats gas cars.

HT @Copenhenken

BrentToderian, 5 months ago to random

Does your city REALLY want to attract & keep families living in your downtown & urban places? Then your city needs to get real about what it will really take.

These are the 3 KEYS, in THIS ORDER:

1. ensure family-sized homes (2-3 bedrooms)
2. build local daycare, schools & supports
3. design places & streets for kids

BrentToderian, 5 months ago to random

WATCH how a simple idea can add a lot of life to a people-place. A big, internally-lit wooden box with a lot of holes and a bunch of coloured water bottles becomes a giant lite-brite, drawing a big crowd here in central Coquitlam in Metro Vancouver. Had to drag our kids away!

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BrentToderian, 5 months ago to random

Mark your calendars, Mississauga Ontario! January 17th I’ll be back in town working the city’s excellent leadership team on important & challenging things, PLUS A FREE PUBLIC EVENING to discuss the city’s future and the many big challenges our cities are facing. REGISTER NOW!
https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/an-evening-with-brent-toderian-tickets-782321373287

BrentToderian, 5 months ago to random

How a small Spanish city rejected cars.

“Decades ago, when many other European cities were building more road capacity, Vitoria-Gasteiz took a very different path.”

Including a largely car-free city centre, 180km of bike paths, & an epic 30km green ring.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/dec/20/vitoria-gasteiz-spanish-city-rejected-cars

BrentToderian, 5 months ago to random

“A startling statistic emerged in Paris last month: during the morning and evening rush hours, on representative main thoroughfares crisscrossing the French capital, there are now more bicycles than cars – almost half as many again, in fact.” #Paris
https://t.co/iuR1CQ0PqD

BrentToderian, 5 months ago to random

NEW: “A North American city planner contracted by European cities — that’s curious.”

My interview with France-based @Lettre_du_cadre and writer @MarjolaineKoch covering a lot of ground on better European & North American city-building. Article starts in the screen shots. Print edition comes out in January!
https://www.lettreducadre.fr/article/brent-toderian-la-plupart-des-villes-europeennes-pensent-que-la-densite-est-mauvaise-pour-l-environnement-en-realite-c-est-l-inverse.54419

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BrentToderian, 5 months ago to random

LISTEN: What can cities around the world learn from Reykjavík, Iceland? I’m back with @GreenJ on Australian National broadcaster ABC Radio & his great show “Blueprint For Living” discussing cities, cars, competitions, BRT, complete communities, and my really interesting work in Reykjavík!
https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/blueprintforliving/blueprint-urban-planning-in-reykjavik/103199382

BrentToderian, 5 months ago to random

Posts about urban biking in #Dutch cities are routinely replied to with something like “well, they have the big advantage of being relatively flat.”

The Dutch also have the big advantage of not constantly making excuses about why they can’t make clearly smarter decisions.

BrentToderian, 5 months ago to random

“In Finland, the number of homeless people has fallen sharply. Those affected receive a small apartment & counselling with no preconditions. 4 out of 5 people affected make their way back into a stable life. And all this is CHEAPER than accepting homelessness.” https://t.co/EH3reri9lz

BrentToderian, 5 months ago to random

There are many versions of this image out there. The good ones illustrate why “better cars” will never be more than part of the answer, and actually help “lock in” the #CarDependency that’s the real problem. They also show why status-quo interests want to focus on the vehicles.

BrentToderian, 5 months ago to random

“Compared to self-driving cars, and just about any other mobility mode, e-bikes have flourished…If 2023’s trendline continues, the humble e-bike, not the flashy self-driving car, will be poised to reconfigure American transportation.” — @DavidZipper in @FastCompany
https://www.fastcompany.com/90994141/why-2023-was-the-year-of-the-e-bike-and-not-the-self-driving-car

BrentToderian, 5 months ago to random

NEW: In a groundbreaking bid to transform itself into a more sustainable metropolis, Paris is set to roll out its ambitious 2024-2030 Climate Plan, including an overarching plan to prioritize cycling infrastructure, introducing 180km of additional cycling paths and 130k bike parking spaces by 2026.
https://momentummag.com/paris-puts-people-and-bicycles-at-the-heart-of-ambitious-new-climate-plan/