Posts tagged Richmond
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Is Richmond’s bus rapid transit a priority at red lights? There are mixed signals.
The Pulse bus rapid transit line is the face of modern transit in Richmond. Planners praise it, and riders flock to it. One problem with it, however, is its transit signal prioritization (TSP) system, which some say isn’t delivering on promises to speed buses through red lights. Keep reading…
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Hopewell, VA’s complete streets overhaul shows small towns can be urbanist too
The successes and setbacks of creating safer streetscapes in big cities dominate our imagination, but many corners of small town America are quietly undergoing a complete streets transformation as well. The compact street grids of smaller cities like Hopewell, Virginia that developed before the advent of the automobile represent low-hanging fruit in the fight for safer, healthier, and more sustainable communities. Keep reading…
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Why removing one Confederate monument in Richmond is not just about racism—but safety
Public calls for Confederate statues to be removed from Richmond’s streetscape are not a new occurrence in Virginia’s capital; however, the focus of Northside residents’ most recent campaign to move one monument is not racism—but safety. Keep reading…
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Is a North-South Pulse BRT the future of transit in Richmond?
Despite many headwinds, public transportation in Richmond has seldom been so well poised for growth, and bus rapid transit could be a big part of that. Keep reading…
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Richmond used to be a transit leader. Is it ready to be one again?
Today, in Richmond, “transit” means the bus. One might think that the city which debuted the world’s first electric streetcar may have bucked the trend against transit after World War II and preserved its historic transportation system. Instead, Richmond burned them, and local transit hasn’t really rebounced since then. Keep reading…
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Central Virginia is planning a 41-mile trail from Ashland to Petersburg
When the Virginia Capital Trail was first proposed back in 1999, critics derided the idea of the 51.7-mile multi-use path as overly-ambitious and too expensive. Today, the east-west trail connecting Virginia’s first capital of Jamestown with the modern seat of government, Richmond, faces concerns about overcrowding, and there’s now a sibling trail in the pipeline. Keep reading…
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This 22-mile biking and walking trail could improve health south of Richmond
Health outcomes in Virginia’s Gateway Region, the southern half of the Richmond-Petersburg metropolitan area, lag behind those of the rest of the state. One organization hopes to help address this by finally completing a 22-mile multimodal path called the Appomattox River Trail (ART), which will give residents a safe place to walk and bicycle. Keep reading…
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How COVID-19 could be reshaping growth patterns in NoVA and the “rest of Virginia”
Early on in the pandemic there were a wave of articles predicting the death of downtowns and a return to rural life. Beyond the sightings of moving trucks in Manhattan, little other proof materialized. COVID-19’s effect on where and how we live going forward remains largely unknown, but in the seven months since the pandemic began the evidence that urbanism may hold the answers to a brighter future has only gotten stronger. Keep reading…
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Comprehensive regional rail from Baltimore through to Richmond by 2045? A new coalition thinks it’s possible.
A coalition of business groups, legislators, transit agencies, and other groups recently launched the Capital Region Rail Vision Project. The initiative will bring interested parties together to map out the path to an efficient, interconnected rail system connecting the entire region before 2045. Keep reading…
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National links: Plans for high-speed rail move forward in two southern states
High-speed rail plans move along in two states this week. A company in the Netherlands rents bikes by the month, and fixes flats. Some towns want streaming companies to pay taxes, and more in this week’s National links. Keep reading…