Houston and the fallacy of “roads first” transport policy
Over the last 50 or 60 years, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, and a number of other countries have pursued a “roads first” approach to transport policy. There have been significant public investments in (generally un-tolled) roads, and relatively few investments in competing transport modes.…
18 Comments Sunday reading 31 January 2016
We are now living in the anthropocene – the period in which humans have begun to shape the earth’s geology, ecosystems, and climate. Vox’s Brad Plumer recently compiled a set of images that vividly illustrate humanity’s transformative effect: “15 before-and-after images that show how we’re transforming the planet“.…
Aging gracefully?
This month, my grandma moved into a retirement community. In some respects, it’s a significant change for her. After 95 years living in standalone houses, she will be moving into a small, sunny apartment. To do that, she’s had to downsize significantly – donating furniture, giving away belongings, and simply leaving some things behind.…
Book review: William Fischel, Zoning Rules! (2 of 2)
Over the holidays, I read William Fischel’s new book, Zoning Rules! It’s an important text for anybody seeking to understand why zoning (and urban planning in general) was invented and proliferated, and how they influence the shape of our cities and societies.…
Bicycles in China
Our Chinese correspondent* has sent us some thoughts about the transport environment in Shanghai:
The biggest surprise of my trip has been the huge number of electric bikes and electric scooters – many powered by lead acid batteries. They are almost completely quiet and hum along the pedestrian-cycle paths on the sides of all the roads. …
Book review: William Fischel, Zoning Rules! (1 of 2)
Over the holidays, I read William Fischel’s new (2015) book on urban planning, Zoning Rules! The Economics of Land Use Regulation. It’s an important, interesting, and – fortunately for me – readable book on the topic. Fischel draws upon three or four decades of research on the topic, as well as his experience as a member of his local zoning board in New Hampshire.…
Sunday reading 17 January 2016
Sunday reading! I wanted to lead off the week with two important articles on migration. But first, here’s an amusing comment about technological progress: Something to consider tonight when you're paying for the taxi home@thegooglecar pic.twitter.com/NLZpcZGW41
— NZ Horse Network (@Nzhorserec) December 31, 2015 Back on topic, Michal Ignatieff wrote a great article in the New York Review of Books on “the refugees and the new war“.…
Building a better city: Policies and perspectives (part 2 of 2)
This is the second and final post discussing some broad ideas for building a better city. The first post discussed the dynamic nature of cities and argued that a focus on appropriate pricing and incentive mechanisms was important to managing urban ills without stifling beneficial change.…
Building a better city: Policies and perspectives (part 1 of 2)
This is the first half of a two-part series of posts. It summarises a few ideas that have been banging around the back of my head for a while – basically, an attempt to answer the question: “What can economics do for cities?”…
Parking must pay its way
Parking, parking, parking! In many places in many cities – even eco-friendly German cities – the price of parking is distorted by minimum parking requirements (MPRs). In these places, local governments regulate an over-supply of parking, which in turn holds down prices.…
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