Architecture & Urban Planning

Sen. Barbara Boxer seems to have achieved the impossible by crafting a transportation bill that is overcoming partisan gridlock in the U.S. Senate. Recently, the Senate voted 85-11 to advance Boxer's transportation bill, MAP-21, to a floor vote that is expected to be scheduled when Congress returns to Washington on Feb. 27. Read the full op-ed

How can we ensure the water that runs off our driveways and parking lots is safe for the environment? 2009 Switzer Fellow Brenda Zollitsch works with municipalities to address pollution that impacts waterways.

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"One of my first thoughts is perhaps (I-75) shouldn't have been built through that area," said Ruth Steiner, an associate professor in urban and regional planning at the University of Florida. Read the full story

“There is a far-reaching impact from freight transportation in these neighborhoods,” said Catalina Garzón of the Pacific Institute. “Toxic diesel pollution is a harmful substance that has been shown to contribute to additional cancer risk in these communities and which has contributed to respiratory conditions like asthma.” Read the full story

We are very excited to be working with a cohort of innovative developers that are breaking the mold and setting a new bar by providing transit passes and carshare memberships for 40 years!

Stuart Cohen co-founded TransForm in 1997 to promote world class transit and walkable, affordable communities. Since then TransForm has united diverse coalitions and developed effective, implementable proposals that advance an environmental, social equity and public health agenda in the Bay Area -- and increasingly throughout California. Stuart spearheaded the successful campaign for the Bay Area’s smart growth visioning process in 1998, the first regional blueprint in California.

How does urban sprawl and highway expansion impact the environment and the quality of life? That question is being addressed by TransForm, a coalition of environmental, social justice and public health groups in the San Francisco Bay Area.