This report offers a nine-step framework that can be used by cities at all stages of developing electric bus transit. It aims to fill in knowledge gaps and provide actionable guidance to help cities and bus operators overcome the most common and debilitating barriers to electric bus adoption. Key actions are identified for various stakeholders under different development stages.
This working paper describes the decline in access to jobs, services and people that many cities are facing due to the confluence of two trends: rapid urbanization and motorization. In analyzing two cities in the global south – Mexico City and Johannesburg – we found that up to half of urbanites experience restricted access, leading to high travel burdens and/or exclusion from opportunities. This paper highlights three key action areas for cities to improve access: rethinking the role of streets and who they serve, shifting to integrated transport systems, and tempering the demand for private vehicle use.
Looking at four studies of scooter safety, it's clear that one factor outside riders' control needs to be studied more: road design.
World Resources Institute is celebrating urban transformation at its Courage to Lead Dinner on April 10 at The Shed, the new arts and culture venue at Hudson Yards in New York City. Renowned real estate developer and philanthropist Stephen M. Ross will announce the first-ever winner of the WRI Ross Prize for Cities, chosen from among 200 projects transforming cities around the globe.
Durban's Warwick Junction was once a dangerous marketplace slated for demolition. Today, nearly half a million shoppers pass through its colorful stalls every day, thanks to a collaborative effort from street vendors, local authorities and a non-profit.
This case study tells the story of the Via RecreActiva, a ciclovía event that closes more than 60km of streets in Guadalajara, Mexico every Sunday for public recreation and entertainment. The paper explains the benefits that can come to a city that invests in car-free space and how these investments can spark broader change towards a safer and more equitable city.
Air pollution is bad for your health—most people know that. But did you know it's also responsible for lower crop yields, reduced solar energy generation and changes in rainfall?
Many cities have set renewable energy goals. Some are achieving them through innovative ways, such as legislation, banding together to pool their buying power, partnering with utilities and community solar programs.
This technical note provides the methodology behind the State Overview online resource, part of the American Cities Climate Challenge: Renewables Accelerator website, which encapsulates webpages for 50 states and DC, displaying regulatory and market information as well as procurement option-specific state policies.
105 cities with populations over 1 million should begin to switch their vehicles, stoves, and furnaces to electric-powered alternatives.
The benefits to zero-carbon cities—clean air, green jobs, energy savings, reduced climate impact—are immense. Here's a manifesto for achieving them.
New WRI research shows that cities in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia are expanding outward rather than vertically. As these places grow in population, continuing their unwieldy expansion outward could push them into economic, environmental and social crises.
This thematic paper in the World Resources Report, “Towards a More Equal City,” produced in collaboration with Yale University, analyzes data on urban expansion by measuring both the outward growth and upward growth in 499 global cities. It examines the challenge of rapid outward expansion for cities in the global South and highlights strategies cities can take to manage urban growth in a way that ensures more equal and productive cities.
Residents in Surat, India are dealing with frequent flooding, heavy monsoon rains and extreme heat. But they’re also learning to adapt to these extremes.
Bike shares, electric scooters, ride-hailing services and other "micromobility" options are exploding. But governments can’t afford to sit back and be spectators – they need to ensure that this mobility revolution benefits everyone.
Can urban planning and design make cities more resilient? Join WRI’s Robin King and University of Oxford’s Cathy Baldwin as they answer this question, which they addressed in their new book, Social Sustainability, Climate Resilience and Community-Based Urban Development: What About the People?
This paper provides questions and answers to some of the important concerns city officials have as it relates to bike sharing, especially as a new generation emerges including dockless and electric bikes, scooters, and increased private sector involvement. It seeks to unpack some of the challenges cities are currently facing, including concerns over regulation, public space management, safety and proper infrastructure, and service reliability, among others.
Like many other big, developing cities, South Africa's largest city struggles with spatial inequality, where good jobs and affordable housing are mismatched. To bridge the gap, they've turned to a new planning paradigm called transit-oriented development.
This case study in the World Resources Report, Towards a More Equal City, examines transformative urban change in Johannesburg, South Africa, through transit-oriented development (TOD). The Corridors of Freedom program aims to help reduce spatial inequality in the city by extending bus rapid transit to many new areas and spur new or improved infrastructure for non-motorized transport, social facilities and public infrastructure.