Every day, The Overhead Wire collects news about cities and sends the links to their email list. At the end of the week they take some of the most popular stories and post them to Greater Greater Washington, a group blog similar to Streets.mn that focuses on urban issues in the D.C. region. They are national and international links, sometimes entertaining or absurd but often useful.
60 years of high-speed rail in Japan: Japan’s first high-speed rail line began service 60 years ago between Tokyo and Osaka, just before the start of the Olympics. The line turned a seven-hour journey into four, heralding a new era in travel. Since then, the Shinkansen, which means “new trunk line,” has stretched to 1,800 miles and is seen as an efficient example of transportation that other countries have copied around the world. (Justin McCurry | The Guardian)
A new quick-build roundabout system: A new roundabout installation in Ashland, Nebraska, by the Nebraska Department of Transportation (DOT) has won an award for innovation. The project was made using a modular system of recycled plastic planks bolted into the existing concrete, which cost only a fraction ($1 million) of the $4 million to $5 million of a traditional concrete roundabout. Without the need to reconstruct an entire intersection, the new system could cut roundabout construction timelines from several months to just weeks. (Ben Thorpe | Equipment World)
StoryMap visualizes transit-oriented density: A new StoryMap from the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy in Cambridge, Massachusetts, allows people to visualize neighborhood density at 15 dwelling units per acre and above, which is the standard for the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority’s recent MBTA Communities Law. The law requires zoning changes to allow greater density near transit, but many communities have pushed back. To calm fears, the StoryMap shows what 15 units actually looks like in the Boston area. (Jon Gorey | Lincoln Institute of Land Policy)
Maps show hazards and migration: As the population of the United States shifts, much of the new growth has come in places that are prone to wildfires, flooding and extreme heat. Development has been primarily outside of urban cores, demanding more out of infrastructure and services while putting more people in the path of natural disasters. That negates improvements in building codes and resilience measures. (Mira Rojanasakul and Nadja Popovich | New York Times)
The problem with long freight trains: The long freight train, defined as a train that stretches over 1.5 miles, is causing delays for Amtrak and safety issues such as derailments, crashes and blocked crossings. Deregulation and consolidation are part of the problem: Only six Class I railroads remain now, compared with 63 in 1976. Congress recently identified solutions, but reforms have been hard to enact. (Pat Garofalo | Boondoggle)
This week on the Talking Headways podcast we’re joined by Mike Christensen, executive director of the Utah Rail Passengers Association and a tireless advocate for intercity passenger rail.
Quote of the Week
“I never, ever considered the idea that Asheville would be wiped out. It was our backup plan to move there, so the irony is stark and scary, and it’s hard for me to emotionally process. I’ve been working in the climate movement for 20 years and feel like I’m now living in a movie I imagined in my head when I started. Nowhere is safe now.”
— Climate campaigner Anna Jane Joyner in The Guardian discussing Hurricane Helene’s destruction in Asheville, North Carolina