A 'different world' awaits transit on the other side of coronavirus

Public transit experts led an open-ended webinar on how to recalibrate societal perceptions of transit, noting the pandemic is an opportunity for the industry to prove its true value.

By Kristin Musulin • April 13, 2020

City culture hangs in the balance as small businesses struggle to survive

Efforts to sustain small businesses amid the current economic slowdown aren't just about saving jobs. They're about protecting a city's spirit.

By Jason Plautz • April 13, 2020

San Francisco tackles digital divide with Wi-Fi SuperSpots

Up to 25 SuperSpots will be installed throughout the city in high-demand places like public housing sites for the 29% of students without internet access. 

By Cailin Crowe • April 9, 2020

Federal agencies launch $9M Civic Innovation Challenge

The National Science Foundation partnered with the U.S. Departments of Energy and Homeland Security for the research competition, which aims to address community-identified mobility and resiliency challenges.

By Kristin Musulin • April 9, 2020

Cities play 'matchmaker' to connect residents, services amid pandemic

During a Cities of Service webinar, experts discussed how cities like Seattle and St. Paul, MN are leveraging community organizations to better mitigate COVID-19.

By Cailin Crowe • April 8, 2020

Higher air pollution linked to coronavirus deaths: study

Harvard University research is the first to make an explicit connection between air pollution and COVID-19 deaths in the United States.

By Chris Teale • April 8, 2020

Ann Arbor, MI City Council adopts $1B climate plan

Staff revised the A2Zero plan to better reflect the long-term costs of action or inaction, and to take into account how strategies may evolve as technology and climate changes.

By Chris Teale • Updated June 4, 2020

7 recommendations to tackle COVID-19 in cities: JHU

Johns Hopkins University, a leader in COVID-19 data collection and transparency, detailed a "metropolitan strategy" for cities to follow to slow the transmission of the novel coronavirus.

By Cailin Crowe • April 6, 2020

Post-coronavirus economic recovery requires EV adoption

The next federal stimulus bill should include three objectives to create a healthier economy: more access to EV charging stations, electrification incentives and support of grid-level demand.

By Christopher George & Jan Maceczek • April 6, 2020

Cybersecurity risks spike as COVID-19 forces city staff to go remote

Before the pandemic, the likelihood and scale of cyberattacks on local governments had been intensifying. Now, with most city employees on distributed devices at home, vulnerabilities are sky high.

By Chris Teale • April 6, 2020

Baltimore ends aerial surveillance program

The city's spending board unanimously decided to end the six-month pilot program that captured on-the-ground footage in an attempt to reduce crime.

By Cailin Crowe • Updated Feb. 5, 2021

New York legalizes e-bikes, scooters following years of debate

The state legislature approved the policy on Thursday as part of the new fiscal year budget bill, allowing residents to safely get around without "fear of ridiculous fines [and] penalties," Sen. Jessica Ramos said.

By Chris Teale • April 3, 2020

Cities tap TikTok to squash Gen Z's COVID-19 misconceptions

Some local governments are threading critical information into entertaining videos to capture the attention of young social media users.

By Kristin Musulin • April 2, 2020

Former NOLA mayor: Cities are 'out of sync' in COVID-19 response

During a Wednesday webinar, former New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu warned of a "very dark couple of months" ahead but said cities can, and will, recover.

By Chris Teale • April 2, 2020

Counting homeless groups is difficult. COVID-19 will make it 'immeasurably worse.'

The outbreak of COVID-19 is predicted to disproportionately affect people experiencing homelessness and could keep those groups away from service areas, where much of the census count is conducted.

By Cailin Crowe • April 1, 2020

Only 4% of mid-sized cities have fully digitized services: report

CityGrows analyzed key services in 822 U.S. communities to find only eight have fully digitized their services. The data suggests challenges ahead as COVID-19 forces more government services online.

By Kristin Musulin • April 1, 2020

How coronavirus is disrupting the 2020 census count

The U.S. Census Bureau has adjusted its operational schedule, but is still pushing forward with the count. "The current situation underscores the need for census data," one official said.

By Chris Teale • March 31, 2020

NACTO resource hub tracks COVID-19's impact on transportation

The association partnered with Bloomberg Philanthropies to offer real-time information on the transportation strategies cities are deploying to adapt to coronavirus.

By Chris Teale • March 31, 2020

Cities' shortage of COVID-19 supplies reaches 'crisis proportions'

A survey from the U.S. Conference of Mayors found 92% of cities don't have enough face masks for first responders or an adequate supply of test kits.

By Cailin Crowe • March 30, 2020

Transit gets $25B in federal stimulus package

President Trump signed the $2 trillion CARES Act Friday, pledging to help agencies make up for lost revenue and fund daily operations amid the coronavirus.

By Chris Teale • March 30, 2020

Cities face 'long road' to economic recovery after coronavirus

Infection rates must lower through social distancing and other policies before city leaders think about returning to normalcy, speakers said on a Thursday webinar.

By Chris Teale • March 27, 2020

5 cities most vulnerable to COVID-19: report

New research from Clever Real Estate ranked 107 cities based on financial, social, economic and health vulnerabilities to COVID-19. 

By Cailin Crowe • March 27, 2020

Cities have passed hundreds of coronavirus policies — and Americans are showing support

NLC co-launched a tracker detailing hundreds of local policy actions to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. A subsequent survey showed more Americans support these efforts than federal-level actions.

By Kristin Musulin • March 26, 2020

Uber sues LADOT over data-sharing requirements

The company said the Mobility Data Specification violates state and federal laws and is a form of surveillance that gathers personal details. LADOT has not yet responded.

By Chris Teale • March 26, 2020

Cities 'woefully unprepared' for coronavirus response: report

Investments in urban resilience and new tech will be key as cities work to recover from COVID-19 while grappling with climate threats and other risks, according to ABI Research. 

By Chris Teale • March 25, 2020