Aerial view of Phoenix, AZ by Olga Strachna licensed under Creative Commons.

Arizona to restrict new developments because of water scarcity. Credit downgrades loom over transit agencies nationwide. Transit agencies face challenges with bus electrification.

Arizona sprawl limited by water: Arizona is restricting new development from using groundwater as a water source, likely halting new housing construction projects on the fringe of large cities like Phoenix. The move is based on long-term projections that show a shortage of water over the next 100 years. 80,000 homes already with water certificates will be allowed to move forward, but future development must find new sources of water. (Jacques Billeaud and Suman Naishdham | Associated Press)

US transit systems face credit downgrades: The Bay Area’s BART had its credit rating lowered from AA to A+ by S&P Global Ratings last week, making borrowing more expensive for that transit agency. Other agencies like the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority and the Chicago Transit Authority have been put on notice as outlooks for the public transit sector remain negative. The main factors contributing to the financial troubles of agencies nationwide are the end of federal Covid aid and changing mobility patterns of riders due to remote work. (Skylar Woodhouse | Bloomberg)

Tough road to bus electrification: Many transit agencies are finding it difficult to transition their fleets to zero-emissions vehicles due to logistics and infrastructure issues. To fully convert fleets, discussions need to be had about new bus facilities, which routes work best for testing the fairly new technology, and even the amount of power electricity companies can provide. While there is a push to focus on reducing emissions, transit agencies are cautious about making big investments in electric buses. (Jared Brey | Governing)

Biometrics indicate urban design preferences: New biometric and machine learning tools are allowing researchers and scientists to look into people’s minds who consent with fascinating results. Researchers at Tufts found people do not like looking at cars in their urban environments and appear happier when looking at urban environments without them. It suggests that cities without cars and more natural design elements could elicit more positive physiological responses. (Justin Hollander et al. | Scientific American)

Telework and housing demand: New research surveys teleworkers in Scotland and their housing preferences to see if predictions of suburban shift and a preference for more in-home workspace were valid. Existing teleworkers are content with their current homes, but those who are new teleworkers looking to continue doing so, 20% of respondents, have a high intention to move and find a home with more space for work. (Rainer Schulz, Verity Watson, and Martin Wersing | Journal of Regional Science and Urban Economics)

We’re all bad neighbors now: As definitions of personal space continue to expand, people’s sense of entitlement to space elicits strong reactions to anything intersecting it. Recent upticks in noise complaints and road rage are examples of people having strong negative reactions to anything that invades what they perceive as their personal space. Unfortunately, the idea that personal space must be protected at all costs has also led to violence as people extend their notions of personal space to driveways and subway cars. (Eleanor Cummins | The New Republic)

Quote of the Week

“What we are aiming to do is making sure that in every county in California where there is a survivor of violence that needs violence prevention services – those county health plans are working with the local violence intervention programs so that they’re being reimbursed in a fair, equitable, and strong way that minimizes the bureaucracy.”

Physician Kyle Fischer, policy director for the Health Alliance for Violence Intervention (HAVI) in The Guardian discusses treating gun violence as a public health issue.

This week on the podcast we’re joined by Tufts professor Justin Hollander to talk about his new book The First City on Mars: An Urban Planner’s Guide to Settling the Red Planet.