What Is PLANNING? What Planners Do, How To Deal With Them, and Why I'm On YouTube Instead

[@austinjones8976]

As a non-planner, I think your channel (along with other resources) has helped crystalize a lot of things I thought about my city, and gives me some language to put in my emails to my councilmember or talk with my friends and family about. I feel like I just have a clearer vision and story of how I want my city to look and feel. It's a great service!

[@CityNerd]

That's what I'm looking for! Planners can only do so much. If there are no citizens getting in the ears of staff or electeds (and doing so in a way that doesn't come off super annoying/crazy, haha), then nothing ever happens. People who care make things happen -- and unfortunately the people who care and have the time to get in elected officials' ears are usually retired homeowners who love the status quo, but that's a story for another time maybe?

[@Amtrakker]

@@CityNerd I feel like you could give us a great in depth tutorial on how to (and how not to) talk to public officials.

[@vivalaleta]

Other resources - Not Just Bikes? Strong Towns?

[@austinjones8976]

@@vivalaleta both great, and there's more on youtube for sure but can't emphasize enough how important it is to get involved in local debates. find a local urbanist blog or advocacy group!

[@johanwittens7712]

I think the biggest revelation for most people who come from a non-planning background is that it's not about how a city looks or feels, that's just the result. It's about how a city is designed to work, and designed to work for people first and cars last. The way a city looks or feels follows automatically from that...

[@wyvern5438]

There's nothing like getting back from work, unwinding on the couch, and turning on the tube to get my weekly dose of scathing sarcasm and city planning information!

[@incredulouschordate]

If you like lists about fast food chain revenue and turning lane land use read to you in a monotone voice, be sure to leave a like and maybe even hit subscribe. Ok, time for a viewer count check.

[@CityNerd]

Delivered on time and under budget, every Wednesday. Oh wait, there's no budget

[@incredulouschordate]

@@CityNerd Negative expenses -- impressive!

[@DurantImboden]

I'd say "wry" instead of "scathing," but Mr. Delahanty is enjoyable to watch regardless of your preferred adjective..

[@colormedubious4747]

@@jonathanwking You didn't account for viewers whose homes are solar powered.

[@matthays9497]

My new nightmare: A screen of 16 CityNerds, all ironically criticizing my city at the same time.

[@loganwashere24]

It’s like that scene in matrix 3

[@rossedwardmiller]

Underrated comment

[@RetNemmoc555]

Planning for me was going to endless night meetings, public gripe sessions and working on too many projects at the same time. I burned out on all that, but haven't lost my interest in the subject.

[@CityNerd]

I sympathize with this. The night meetings -- especially the ones in an exurban/rural area 50+ miles away.

[@brianglas7768]

One of the positives about Covid is really rethinking how we gather public input. Too often at those meetings it was the loudest participants providing all of the input. We didn't get a representative sample of public desires.

[@PhillipRPeck]

Not worried about anyone stealing from your notebook of ideas because it's written in alien hieroglyphs.

[@pjkerrigan20]

Lol it looks like he’s writing in Syriac

[@briansmith8898]

Yeah, I thought my handwriting was bad.

[@JHZech]

I'm not going into urban planning but your videos convinced me that there is hope in the US. I like the walkable, transit connected neighborhoods abroad, but I had always lived in a car dependent suburb and thought that was the only possibility, but now I've looked deeper and found walkable pockets and transit around me.

[@CityNerd]

It's out there! Even in otherwise difficult areas, you can find those pockets. Not everyone has to live in an expensive part of a coastal city to live that kind of life -- in fact it would be much better if you could do it in ANY city (or suburb).

[@cavejohnson8665]

You need to rethink. GO INTO URBAN PLANNING. We need you. There are donuts now and then. That and health insurance. You could do worse.

[@angelaburress8586]

Y’all are delusional

[@Adolar]

You’re really selling me on being a KZbinr honestly.

[@CityNerd]

Haha, it wasn't the intention but I can see it. Find your niche, and be prepared to live an extremely modest lifestyle!

[@thekingoffailure9967]

@@CityNerd Fantastic! I already live a painfully modest lifestyle!!

[@sammyrice1182]

@@CityNerd There's a price to paid for money, and a modest lifestyle has other attractions.

[@jfungsf882]

The best part of this video is when (5:36) *Ray throws shade* at OBF & *rightfully* so. So priceless!😂 👍💯

[@ShireseLouie]

I also have a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature but a Masters in Urban Planning and Policy. I am also a misanthrope.

[@zekecaldon5056]

my mom told me that I wouldn’t like being a planner because I would be frustrated. I believe her a lot more now.

[@de-fault_de-fault]

I have an undergrad degree in urban studies, decided to work for a year or so before applying to grad school for planning, and have instead worked at the same place for 16 years, doing lots of things, none of which are planning. Life is funny that way. But since I reverted to commuting by train after a few years of driving, KZbin channels like yours have kept me in touch with that less-used-than-I-once-anticipated part of my brain, which is much appreciated.

[@theblackunicornpress72]

It is wonderful seeing people with English degrees use them across many different fields. So many English students undervalue the actual skills that an English degree develops in pursuit of an "English Career," whatever that is supposed to mean. Expressing complicated ideas in new ways is very, very important and you do a great job of it! Thank you.

[@simoneh4732]

That handwriting though... 😅

[@JailBlazersNoMore]

Just wanted to mention that it's awesome you worked on the SW 4th project. I leave nearby there and I think it's really going to make a big difference in the bike/walkability in the area. I've never been 'excited' for construction near me before but I keep checking for updates about when construction will start on the project.

[@CityNerd]

Yeah, I see SW Broadway got its protected bike lane first, earlier this year? SW 4th, I would always just cruise in one of the traffic lanes because you can coast basically timed with the traffic lights, but that PBL will be highly visible and draw new riders, so I'm excited.

[@viniciusdantas4275]

Hello there! I'm a social scientist from Brazil and I'm currently trying to get into a urban planning post grad program here. Your videos fascinate me, to watch them just makes me think about the similarities and differences between american and brazilian urban issues. It's only a bit sad that, clearly, in both countries there doesn't seem to be as much of a shortage of good willing, interested urbanists who wish to plan better cities, but a structural lack of interest on doing so by major actors. Btw: yes, everything about the sports scenario in the US confuses me.

[@CityNerd]

Sadly I think I failed to include any Brazilian stadiums in my weekly update! I did consider Palmeiras (Allianz?) when the stadium came up that particular week, but I think I ended up going a different direction. Thanks for your encouraging comment!

[@Jack-fw4mw]

I took an Urban Planning course in school on a bit of a lark (I was getting a masters in CS, so databases and coding were very familiar), and learned the very basics of ArcGIS. I really appreciate you sharing your methods and data sources, as that is the inspiration I need to do more with my ArcGIS than mapping and rating where the Breweries are that I like, and how far of a bike ride they are.

[@CityNerd]

Actually that's about the most appropriate use of GIS I can imagine.

[@snk_private]

I am not and won't ever be an urban planner, but as someone who's still in law school, I have more and more felt the need to actively change the world I live in with the means that I am given as a lawyer. As such it is incredibly inspiring to have discovered the urban planning/urbanism/public transportation bubble on YT over the past two years and has substituted, however sad that might be, being in contact with non lawyers at university to give life the meaning I need. While I must admit that I have not been active in my own community (to a certain extent, because it won't be my community for much longer and law school is time consuming in its own right) you and your fellow creators have shown me that this is an area of the law that I will need to eventually specialize in, so that I can do my "part" in bringing forth pragmatic and reasonable solutions in whatever way my professional position might allow me to. This video in particular was one I did not know I needed, but has helped me understand more about your original profession and how I can interact with it. So basically thanks, and keep up the great content Ray; I sincerely need your brand of sarcasm in my life!

[@liamtahaney713]

I feel like being an IRL planner in the US would be incredibly depressing eventually, especially anywhere other than the few "good" cities. nothing but respect for those who do it, of course.

[@gars129]

ive always wondered if being in an economically affected area with this kind of urban planning is even worse?

[@afkaqualls]

it is

[@tonysoviet3692]

It shows too. CityNerd doesn't state this explicitly but getting a city job in Portland is cutthroat. You see graduates from UC Berkeley, USC, NYU, even Harvard apply just to be a planner in Portland and Seattle, Washington. While smaller cities surround Portland like Hermiston are literally scrapping the barrel to find people.

[@WolfSeril107]

When I got into urbanism lots of my friends had the same reaction: "omg you should be a city planner!" Nah man, I've already seen the public hearing episodes of Parks and Rec, I don't need to live it

[@DavidArias2]

Here for the OBF slander 😊

[@jfungsf882]

More like the OBF *Smackdown* 🤪😜

[@tonysoviet3692]

Hi CityNerd, love your content. Personally, I transitioned from being an urban planner to an economic consultant. My major gripe is that urban planning's pedagogy in the US right now handicaps planners. Planners (out of school) do not understand basic economics, fundamental of public finance, or even basic project planning skills. They are too tied up in the "design" aspect, even though most don't have any background in architecture or civil engineering (it's not anecdotal, look at MURP or MCRP intakes across graduate schools, more than 70% are social sciences - excluding economics). These misalignments result in planners constantly being sideswiped by developers, investors, and hate to the guts by engineers. I do not envy an urban planner's job in the US.

[@CityNerd]

I think I mostly agree with this (you're a bit harsher than I would be, haha). Planners don't usually have economics in their background and you probably take one single "urban economics class" requirement in a Masters program (basically Microeconomics 101). Some planners are good at it and think it matters, others are no and no. Probably more of the second camp.

[@derosa1989]

After working "real jobs" during my first career, I went back to school at age 40 and got my MscPL from U of T in 2014 . I also observed that general life skills and basic understanding of the bigger picture stuff is a real challenge for young planning grads. The problem I had in transition to planning jobs was the lack of recognition for my previous work and skills that were very translatable to "planning", so i was pretty much expected to restart at ground zero, when i felt the more senior people i was interacting with (and asking for work) were far less capable than i was. So i went back to my previous field, and never worked as a professional planner.

[@tonysoviet3692]

@@derosa1989 I wholeheartedly agree. "Real" planner jobs would be those with urban development agencies or improvement districts, while the "actual" (as stated in the job description) planner jobs are basically checking zoning regulations and harassing (I purposefully use this word because many planners don't even understand the real reasons for the zoning codes they inherited) civil engineers. City planners rarely design Master Plans, as these are bid out to contractors, thereby nullified 90% of their education.

[@tonysoviet3692]

@@CityNerd Thank you. Your HSR analysis videos are top-notch, and I use them as case studies for cost-benefit analyses!

[@josephfisher426]

@@tonysoviet3692 Well, checking compliance with a zoning regulation that was probably written poorly is what most of the job is; at best the real planning is going to fit in between. Frankly, the people I work with who do the most "real" planning seem to specialize in holding meetings. I assume they also work on the master plan documents, but those are aggregates; it's not as if they keep updating them from scratch.

[@conradbielicki774]

Personally I find your channel so watchable because of your expertise. Being an infotainment youtuber is kind of like being a teacher. The best teachers have a wealth of experience in the field

[@marchomotion]

"Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain!" So nice to hear a little bit about how you approached your career changes!

[@EastWindCommunity1973]

Incredible channel growth, you made a good decision I'd say! Keep it up. Kinda funny that (in the thumbnail anyway) you went from a shiny, smiley poorly lit, and probably ambitious public servant to a serene, sarcastic, sublimely captured KZbinr.

[@haweater1555]

12:33 The video on the world's largest stadiums was eye-opening. I was expecting Soccer stadiums in Latin America or Europe. Yet it was dominated by non-pro college football stadia in USA. And they are used for this function less than a dozen times a year. Shows you how inefficiency and warped priorities exist in US college sports. The highest paid state government employee in the USA is Nick Saban, earning about $10 M a year plus bonuses. His job is to coach the football team at the University of Alabama, consistently one of the poorest of the US states. When you look at the top paid public employee of the other states, over 40 are either football or basketball coaches of a state owned and funded college.

[@matthays9497]

You're right, but I'd separate stadium size and salaries. Football coaches weren't always paid 10x or 100x professors. As for the biggest stadiums...they're often in small towns/cities in states with less to do, and the games are on weekends so travel is easier...so not surprising?

[@danielkelly2210]

Yeah, it comes down to money. College football makes a ton of it. If college libraries were as well-patronized and profitable as college football the head librarians at these schools would probably be as well paid.

[@jslaurie11]

As an architect (urban planning is my main passion) that collaborates a lot with planners I love that your content. I’m able to be more educated on planning and can help assist other planners with street corridors, design, etc. I’ve even shared some of your videos to my students. All I can say is big stuff is happening on the east coast!! Sent a connection on LinkedIn

[@robertlee8805]

Curious on where in the East Coast you're in. I'm in the lower New England states. There's so much things are developing and improving in our part of the state.

[@lucydemotivator590]

I read Geography and Regional Planning(Undergraduate) now doing my National Service and would like to also do my Masters in Planning

[@AlRoderick]

Turning 180° on every video would be a constant swap between two different topics. Can I instead suggest turning 135.507 degrees every time so to maximize the distribution of video topics.

[@janvanhoyk8375]

As a non-planner and fiscal conservative/libertarian, seeing the emotional craziness that these topics bring up amongst american "conservatives" is absolutely hilarious! Have definitely gotten much more involved and interested in these topics thanks to you and other creators in this space. viva la pragmatisma!

[@sinisterdesign]

I'm really curious to hear more about this. What are some examples of this phenomenon in action?

[@Sunpixelvideo]

As a life long republican, I've been starting to question how I vote based on some of these points. What does good infrastructure have to do with politics? Why does my party only care about the rural and suburban/exurbs?

[@FloydBunsen]

@@Sunpixelvideo In political behavior research, it’s been found that people will tend to associate some issues with some parties, such as healthcare with democrats, and tax reduction with republicans. This is called Issue Ownership, and people tend to trust the views of someone talking about the issues their party has ownership over more, even if their information is incomplete or misleading. Moving beyond parties would be helpful, but our electoral system will need to be radically changed if we want that to happen. With the way we’re currently set up, 2 parties will mathematically come out on top, and with them issue ownership becomes more prevalent

[@ripred42]

@@sinisterdesign single family zoning. Many “conservatives” will defend this to the death. However, many of Americas most economically productive and livable places were built pre-zoning. Single family zoning was mostly a creation of FDR and the new deal.

[@aaronb1195]

@@ripred42 I see this among my conservative friends in my neighborhood, city, and state as well. The sad thing is that many left-of-center people in the US oppose smart planning (increased density, upzoning, redevelopment) when it affects them personally. Look at Robert Reich's public statements generally supporting building more housing vs. his more private objections to density increases in Berkeley, for example. While conservatives are more vocal, the iron grip of car-dependence on culture and mindset seems to be bipartisan, in my experience.

[@mr51406]

You’ve got my dream job. Instead I veered off into geography (connected but a bit useless as a degree) and… bartending. So I do live vicariously through your videos and other transit/planning/history geeks who have the credentials and credibility. Thanks again! 🌟

[@Eric_Garrison]

Hey now, my bachelor degree in geography isn’t useless! I wiped up a spill with it once! You could probably use it at the bar :)

[@CityNerd]

Haha, I bartended at one point! Good pay, tough hours

[@mr51406]

Indeed I used my degree to give tourist information (internship at Tourisme Quebec), make nifty maps to all of the dives in Montreal’s “Village,” and as quizmaster for a rather popular pub quiz at my bar. Frankly, no regrets, but…😉

[@mr51406]

@@Eric_Garrison Indeed parchment makes an excellent beer mat material. 😉

[@mcnothing2457]

Thank you for this video Mr. Nerd. I’m currently in school to be a planner because I think that it’s the most I can do with the time I have to help people in their every day lives, so I like to think that, even if being a planner is hard and an uphill battle, if I don’t implement these ideas, then your channel will have been for nothing. So I’ll try to make sure you don’t upload in vain!

[@Lunavii_Cellest]

Recently started studying Urban-design in 's-Hertogenbosch in the Netherlands and its really something I enjoy and see my future in. And you have helped me finding this passion. Thanks

[@andrewdiamond2697]

Great video. Thirty-five years ago, I graduated with a major in Economics and a minor in Urban Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. I've remained fascinated with location theory, transportation/transit, real estate, and the social impact of structural and zoning choices. That said, I've worked in finance and I.T. or in Fortune 500 companies since 1990, so KZbin is part of how I keep connected with my avocation. Thanks for your continued content creation.

[@shrill_2165]

Just started my first year of an M.Sc in spatial planning & sustainable urban mobility transitions. Oh boy, did I ever NOT anticipate how much discourse there was surrounding such fundamental questions as “what is planning” “why plan” and “how to plan”. As I’m still reading through papers from the 50’s-80’s, I appreciate that this video was able to bring me back to the present for a moment

[@CityNerd]

I actually go back to those papers sometimes! It's interesting to trace the way people have thought about all this stuff.

[@kamilb.3643]

I've studied spatial planning as a second faculty, but I dropped it after the first semester. I thought it to be unfortunately rather constraining to public entities which gives a limited number of possibilities, especially if you are not able/willing to move. But I would say, is that even if you are not a professional planner in your city, you could try having a part in its "infrastructural life" as a citizen. Actively contacting local public entities, local councilmen, joining local discussion forums and attending public consultations. Of course, it varies from country to country and from town to town, but speaking from Kraków, I used to do all of this stuff, discussing and proposing small local improvements. Sometimes meeting new people from your neighborhood or institutions could give some nice effects for discussion and idea sharing or maybe even find an opportunity for a job (I even got once encouraged to apply for a position in one of transport institution by one of the officials, but I had to refuse)? Just get involved in your local life - that could be a productive step. Altough be patient. Effects usually come after years in this area.

[@inuendo6365]

Getting chained to the same project for years because higher ups move like molasses is true in environmental management too. You're really making me consider a KZbin career with this video!

[@johnburns8680]

As a planner myself, I very much appreciate this video!

[@krmendozaa]

As a marketer with an AEC background & working with firms that had urban planning/design as part of their practice, I always look forward to your videos! I didn’t care much about the built environment because I’ve always been more interested in food, fashion, beauty, & travel as industries & as a marketing professional. But after living in Australia & moving back to southern CA THEN getting a marketing job at an architecture firm by chance, I like to view all parts of this as part of my passion for social justice. Many marginalized communities aren’t aware of how the built environment directly affects them or don’t have the time/energy to question infrastructure & I want to be able to use my knowledge & background as a non-planner to educate and empower communities of color to advocate for policies & infrastructure that help/benefit everyone. I appreciate your consideration for how systemic barriers/oppression can play a role in how cities are designed (or not designed)/perceived because so many people think it’s the fault of the residents in a community when it usually is not! I’m based in Las Vegas as well & would love to work with you/help you however you may need sometime! Regardless, thanks again for your content/channel.

[@ianperry9598]

I just got a job as a Regional Planner recently and this channel gives me a lot of insight. Our jobs are pretty different, but it helps nonetheless!

[@hgman3920]

I'm a Professional Land Surveyor, and most of my interaction with municipal planners are not positive. It mostly jumping through bureaucratic hoops (i.e. making sure that all of the items on their checklist are punched, even though more than half don't apply to the project at hand) and having them tell me that my clients can't do what they want to do with their property (i.e. if you want to subdivide your land, you'll need to spend $50k + of your own money to add curb and sidewalks to 250 feet of road frontage because the municipal transportation plan requires it). Once upon a time, I thought I'd like a career in planning, but not so much anymore. P.S. I was born and raised in Lincoln, NE and was happily surprised to see Memorial Stadium in your video. When I as growing un in Lincoln in the mid/late 90s, it was a very walkable/bikeable city. not so much any more, since a lot of their new development is car-oriented development typical nation wide over the past few decades

[@dootyminnozezelochi2257]

The parts of Lincoln that were walkable then are still just as (or sometimes more) walkable now, there have just been additional suburban developments tacked on, which while not ideal, doesn't effect the walkability of the urban parts of town. Also, it's nice to see a fellow Nebraskan on here, greetings from my porch in Counciltucky!

[@Amtrakker]

Thanks for sharing some personal background. I work as a front line transportation employee and had visions of moving up the hierarchy. That is until I realized how politicized the industry is, and how unfulfilled I'd end up. Your channel has inspired me to explore other ways of personal expression, free from all the oversight!

[@j.c.7780]

Great video and great sound off at the end about this channel doing a public service. I feel like change might finally be in the air and this channel is a small but important contribution to that. I live in the UK which despite our rail network is a very car-dependent place throughout most of the country and using arguments I've heard from you and other urbanists, I've found a lot of people are receptive to them if you use the right optics/couch them in the right kind of language.

[@nolanfrazelle9992]

Almost pursued civil engineering before software engineering, so you and your channel maintains my love for urban planning and civil engineering. Thank you!

[@jessamineprice5803]

I’m learning a ton from your channel. Admittedly I’m a city nerd who almost wrote a PhD thesis on city planning in 19th century Egypt. Rest assured, if the KZbin market for sarcastic analysis of bad intersections declines, you can have a great future in marketing for the Cheesecake Factory! Next time I’m in the States I’ll laugh every time I see a CF.

[@blindpringles]

I've got a spin-off idea from this. What does a day in the life look like. I'd imigian it's a lot of looking at computers, but what do you actually do? Is there a lot of creative brainstorming? How cooperative is it? how many people are put on a give task normally? I mean, do you just go up to someone and say "hey, make me a nice new tram line"? Is the work isolating?

[@yertlenest]

Not a planner, but I downloaded and watched all of your videos while on a long distance hike this summer. Something about being in the mountains using my last battery life to dream about ideal HSR locations in North America is just :chef’s_kiss: Thanks for making these videos, I really look forward to them

[@NicksDynasty]

I really hope you can influence lawmakers

[@matthewcornfield2150]

That jab at OBF cracked me up

[@myengs6937]

I am grateful for you videos because I have learned a lot and enjoy your sense of humor.

[@pelago_]

Planner from Sydney, Australia here. One of my lecturers used to say that planning is about disadvantaging everyone equally. I’ve been doing it for 11 years now, mostly with local government, and I 100% agree. We try to make good decisions, but every decision will give someone the shits.

[@ErdTirdMans]

5:35 HELL YES. This was the type of cold "shots fired" I needed to see. Alan's video was a great take down, but damn that was a deep wound. Plus, it's presented like a stray bullet so you're hardly wasting your own time on it

[@user-hv9ky8pp4i]

you are one of my favorite creators on KZbin rn-I appreciate your thoughtful lens, thorough analysis, and sarcastic delivery. excited to continue to follow your journey and content!

[@securitron5]

Ray, you rock for giving us this great planning content and also letting us have a little peek under the hood at your philosophy for the channel, the practical part of video creation, and your former life as a planner. Thanks!

[@standardannonymousguy]

Thank you for sticking to your convictions. I agree with your last point, you are making a difference because this is content that is very relevant, and also under talked about. We really see our cities built around us without thinking twice about it. As the public begins to better understand city planning dynamics and concepts (like making cities more walkable/bettering public transit) and why those fundamentals are so important, we can be better informed and make better voting decisions. I thank you for getting those ideas out there into the youtube-sphere. Cheers.

[@sniperer72]

You have definitely inspired me to be more engaged in city wide transportation issues. Thanks for making great videos!

[@thadeogonzalez7920]

your videos without a doubt have gotten so many people to start caring about urban planning, spreading knowledge is KEY to getting people involved and your videos are THE BEST!!!

[@jaytuga]

so true

[@Skzzlemister]

This is the work, my friend! I’m currently trying to get the state and city to lower the speed limit and de-stroad the thruway near my home because of your channel! Great vid as always. 🎉

[@sammyrice1182]

Me too! Even in "urbanist" San Francisco we have high-speed stroads.

[@claas901]

I'm currently studying URP in Germany and my interest towards that field came out of my love for geography. What I really like about your channel is that it covers the field of topics that I feel aren't covered in my courses enough. E.g. I'd really want to learn how transit networks are designed and can be optimized. What I'm really interested in and what might be a video idea for you is to lay out planning processes as they happen in the US because it seems like municipal governments have less power there compared to here

[@camron1456]

Love the videos! Always super informative. For college stadiums, you kind of answered the capacity question with your description. You got a bunch of students living on campus’s in the middle of nowhere possibly don’t even have a car and they need something to do on the weekend with no school. These schools have large fan bases among alumni plus a lot of them (not all) being in states with no professional sports teams or at least not close to the school. I like your method of sub checks. Hopefully one day you’ll be able to fill up Beaver Stadium or even Narendra Modi Stadium!

[@jacob07221]

I just saw this as someone who lives in portland! super excited to see that 4th avenue update! Also currently in school to be a next generation civil engineer with a massive love for transit and "alternative" modes of transit

[@unreliablenarrator6649]

Great talk. I'm a IC floor planner, it's like urban planning on mm to nano scale, full of problems to solve but more creative and absorbing than it sounds when things work. Engineering is a great career: solve problem »» make problem »» solve problem LOL

[@Jack-fw4mw]

for 12:50; The answer is seating requirements. College Stadiums don't require armrests, whereas the NFL requires their stadiums to (a) have arm rests, and therefore (b) be a certain width. College your seats can be bench seating, so you can squeeze a lot more people in.

[@david.vandergoes]

I assumed you were an economics undergrad. You would make a great dismal scientist. That is a compliment.

[@arp12tube]

Thank you for your honesty in this video! I'm getting into the planning profession myself, and I appreciate hearing about the pitfalls you navigated. Hope you continue making KZbin your work - this channel is a gift to the public!

[@TheRampax]

I paused those "collaboration" offers to read them. Deary me, what a time to be alive. Thank you for not selling out, yet.

[@joseSanchez-ej2oh]

👍 favorite channel when it comes to these topics 😬

[@DanielinLaTuna]

Thanks for sharing. I hadn’t realized you transitioned to YouTubing; I wish you much success. The work you’re doing, along with your fellow content makers is important, and contributes to the wellbeing of towns and cities and their residents. A heartfelt “Thank You!”

[@johnshellenberg1383]

This has become one of my fave channels! I live in one of the worst car-centric sprawling cities in the world (Edmonton, Alberta) and I'm a devout cyclist and my days are spent (I'm retired) working to cope with horrendously poor urban planning implementation. I don't blame planners, it's politics here. I love your delivery, the graphics are easily understood and their relative simplicity is great. The low-key (and not-so-low-key) sarcastic digs are amazing, don't ever lose that!

[@bearcubdaycare]

Move to Calgary. Only half kidding. Lots of off street bike paths throughout the city, even near downtown. Lots of cycle commuters. Even good transit. Well, it was that way 1997-2007. (Of course, it's easy to find KZbinrs trashing it compared to a Dutch city, but I suspect it's because it's good enough (for North America) that there are lots of cyclists there, enough to complain about what they'd prefer.)

[@johnshellenberg1383]

@@bearcubdaycare Where infrastructure in Edmonton exists, it's actually really solid. Not well maintained in the winter, sadly, but that could be changed easily. The issue is where there is no infrastructure, there really is NO space at all for bikes. None, zero, zilch. Vast swaths of the west end of the city are like that. I have to really go out of my way to get to many locations in the west, mostly by going into downtown first. That said, council just voted to pursue $170M in bike infrastructure upgrades, so that's promising.

[@garyholt8315]

@@johnshellenberg1383 edmonton is not well maintained in winter, sidewalks, bike lanes, and bus stops get little attn. roads and parking lots are still top priority. we have a long ways to go in that regard.

[@fszocelotl]

Diverting from a politically based job to an activity that frees the intellect of anyone is a difficult choice, on one side, a bureaucratic position means an stable income, yet it also means growth is tricky... Kudos for explaining your day to day dilemma to us mere mortals.

[@sammyrice1182]

That's a dilemma many of us will face: stuck in bureaucratic molasses or following your own path!

[@magiciangob]

As a car-free Portlander living downtown, I really appreciate you going through your list of local accomplishments. It's weird to think your good work has benefited my life directly. I imagine that you must regret many of the compromises forced upon you. The new Trimet Division line being a good example. Probably not the first choice for BRT, but OK, we'll go Division. Then they take away the college destination, then remove the dedicated lanes, and 15 minute frequency is plenty right? That must have been tough to deal with, and now seeing it in action... Well anyway keep up the great work with these videos!

[@cooljonathan]

I wonder if college football stadiums are so much bigger than NFL stadiums because college students can walk to the stadium so they don't need as much parking per seat.

[@gcvrsa]

Excellent video. I really enjoyed this one. All the usual wry humor, and even more of the useful information. I think we’ve all gone through that journey in our lives where we at first thought that “whatever was good for GM was good for the nation”, and it’s only after we have our personal epiphany that we realize how blind we were in our youth. Most people cannot imagine a world without cars, or even a world in which motor vehicle throughput and private land values are not the top or sole priority of our planning agencies. But once you’ve “seen the cat”, so to speak, you can’t un-see it.

[@sammyrice1182]

Exactly! You cannot unsee it.

[@jackreillygillic]

I’m delighted that you enjoy your KZbin work. You deserve to feel proud as your material is outstanding. Please keep up the wonderful work!

[@seanfraser9162]

Sir , I love what you do and how you are doing it. Keep going.

[@T._S.]

I hope one day you do a shame-shoutout to Arlington, Texas. It’s one one of the largest (if not the largest?) cities in the US with no public transit whatsoever. A college town, no less. Years ago my partner dutifully took the brief-lived bus line to classes at our alma mater, until city council decided to kill the service only after a year or two at most, citing low ridership. I think now the city may still be half-heartedly implementing a very limited self-driving car service, which I personally don’t think is worth counting. Growing up in DFW suburbs, the first time I ever took a public bus was when I moved to Los Angeles.

[@TheTaxGeek]

Just added you to my list of patrons this morning. I've been hooked ever since I clicked on your original "Stroad" video, several months ago. Thanks for sharing your knowledge with your trademark brand of deadpan humor.

[@whattheheckisthisthing]

I see you write your notes in code. Very clever

[@Patrick_from_Youtube]

It is actually awesome to hear more about you personally, you have done amazing work not only in your infrastructure advocacy in the PNW, but in this youtube channel that educates so many. Cars bad. Trains good. Never forgot.

[@stefanschneider3681]

I always enjoy some personal insight into the life and views of people who‘s videos I watch, so thank you for that and keep it up! I am from Switzerland in the center of Europe, a perfect example if you plan on videos about railway projects. My favorite is the most underrated „Durchmesser-Linie“, a tunnel built for over a billion Swiss Franks right under the main station of Zurich, under a nearby river and through the next hill for trains running from east to west. It was built on time, on budget, a little „hurra“ as it was finished and everybody forgot about it 😅!

[@user-od4nw2ti6n]

This video really triggered me into reflection to professional life, and to what extend professionalism would matter under the struhctucal differences. I used to live in a college town in the United States before moving to Japan. When comparing the design and technology of the pedestrian and biking infrastructure, the US has the upper hand: Signals with sensors, HAWK beacon, parking protected bike lanes are all rare or nonexistent in Japan, but undoubtedly Japanese towns are much more walkable. No amount of engineering can fix the policy gap of the zoning law, and a mandate for employers to reimburse transit for commuting. Even though youtuber has worse job stability than uber driver, it could bring more impact that an engineer alone cannot.

[@lucagattoni-celli1377]

One positive voice providing an alternative perspective at a public meeting makes an incredible amount of difference. You will never waste your time, I promise you. People will notice.

[@powelltr123]

As someone who is very frustrated with car culture (mainly because I know how much better quality of life could be without it), I really appreciate your work! People don't know what they don't know and they are also attached to the way they do things. In North America, people often don't have a point of reference beyond what they've lived with all their life, especially if they've never traveled, so raising awareness and providing education about how we can make cities better through mixed use planning, walkability and getting out of cars is really super important for creating better happier communities.

[@bobsykes]

Fascinating! It’s good to see you having more than a modest number of subscribers these day, too.

[@ZackMensinger]

Enjoy all your content, but the personal connection with this one was especially nice!

[@porterc5751]

Impressively illegible handwriting!

[@halleradam]

This is good wisdom for many knowledge workers in other domains too. So many are living under constraints at work that stifle rather than liberate talents. But people gotta get paid to survive.

[@davidpierce3217]

City Nerd, as a follower of your channel and other similar channels, I wish you would do a video on the "whys" instead of just that "whats". By which I mean, I get the feeling the urban planning profession knows what should be done to improve cities, and yet it doesn't seem to happen much in the U.S. Why is that? Is it because I have rose tinted glasses, and actually there is a huge divergence of professional opinions on what should actually be done? Or is it because outside money interests push projects away from what should be done? Or maybe residents are simply unwilling to consider change, and that's why we have the same old thing all the time? Or what exactly? I'm sure in your career you've seen projects that started out with good ideas and ended up with bad pavement. My question is why.

[@markwilson2992]

The code you use in your notebook is genius. Nobody, but nobody could ever decipher it. Great video too.

[@Josukegaming]

I was one of the folks on Twitter asking for this video, thanks a lot for the information and your experience!! It's wild that we got our degrees from the same university (PSU) but you lived here about 10 years before I did. In terms of Portland being a transit mecha... It frankly drives me insane living here knowing what I do about good urban design. Just about anywhere in Europe does it better, ESPECIALLY the Netherlands which is where I'm moving as I cannot stand another day of living in ok at best urbanism

[@sinisterdesign]

I know you meant "transportation Mecca," but I love the image of Portland as a towering humanoid robot who provides really solid transportation

[@danielkelly2210]

@12:40 Regarding US college football, it's "amateur" only in the technical sense. It makes more sense to think of "college ball" as being a kind of minor league and supplier of players to the NFL. If the NCAA ever does allow players to be paid (which seems to be on the table) I think it wouldn't technically be amateur in any sense but professional, with college football players being pro players who happen to be taking a few college courses at the school associated with their team. Outside of the northeast, it seems most people care more about college football than professional football, and the games are consistently highly attended, resulting in the huge stadiums (stadia?).

[@finnthehuman1143]

Long time sub, first time commenter here. I must say @CityNerd, it's surreal seeing my town of Lincoln, NE making the sub-count check. I'll take this opportunity to point out that Lincoln, while still being a stroad dominated suburban american city, has some really nice things in the way of walking and biking around certain parts of town. I can ride my bike from my house on one side of town to my job on the opposite side of town without leaving a trail or neighborhood (though this does take an hour, but hey, it's 15 miles). There's also an excellent, mostly walkable area downtown called the Haymarket which booms on football Saturdays as this is where the Nebraska football fans hang out before/after the games - usually walking to and from the stadium. College football is a religion in Nebraska due to the school's dominance in the 90s. People come from all over the state, and continue to sell out the 85k+ capacity stadium to watch the team lose to middling opponents from inferior conferences (We just fired our coach [one day we will turn it around, I swear]). Parking is fairly scattered, as much of the nearby surface lots are reserved for tailgating. As a result, the throngs of fans park all over a 15-25min (by foot) radius from the stadium. I have some fond memories of making the trek to the stadium with family after making the trip to into Lincoln.

[@petermaxwell3619]

First of all, as somebody else said, getting my weekly dose of skating sarcasm and planning information is just the best. A video idea maybe - have you ever seen plans designed to benefit non-car modes of transportation that you thought were either inappropriate or, maybe, too far ahead of their time (like they might make sense when the city's density triples, but that might take 100 years)? I live in Portland and didn't own a car until we had our daughter, and being car free was great, but even before I owned a car I thought that some of the projects in our neighborhood designed to boost non automobile transportation were a bit ahead of their time. If we get to Boston and New York levels of density that would be awesome, but that seems a long way out. There, I think that's about as unclear as I can make it... Also, I'm a retired consultant, I enjoyed your commentary on the industry :). To me the other part of that is that many people who become consulting salespeople can't turn the professional services sales persona off and become insufferable to be around. Not sure if that's as prevalent in planning consulting, but it certainly was in the stuff I did

[@shadanan]

This is the work. Keep it up. Your videos are an inspiration.

[@far-away-so-close4540]

As a person with an MUP and an M.Arch., I appreciate your channel, and your effort and ability to reach out to a wider audience, outside of the profession. It is a specialization that many people don't even know exists, let alone know what they do. One basic explanation that I give is that Architects are concerned with individual buildings, where planners are concerned with all the stuff in between buildings that connect them (streets, sidewalks, public spaces, and networks of transit and utilities) and the rules that establish how you can build. Historically these were basic rules for safety, fire prevention, access to light and air, etc. but more recently, dealing with accessibility and a human-friendly built environment.

[@brandoncrockett6266]

Thank you for the great insight ray! I’m a environmental sustainability student at OU and am thinking of urban planning school after and feel like a lot of good connections could be made between the two dispiplines!

[@JAKempelly]

I'm very glad you're doing what you're doing

[@paulsenker7664]

Wow. I'm a civil/water resources planning engineer, and this was toooo real. Going to start keeping that notebook.

[@snarkles69]

prattling mary has cooked us up another great dish-thanks. the clock ticking didn't ruin it.

[@thebravesirrobin.]

I absolutely agree that you're doing more to serve the public interest as a urbanist KZbinr than as a practicing planner. Reading in between the lines, it seems like planners in the field have pretty limited freedom to implement good urban design. Instead they have to toe the line of a design decided for them by a public agency or politician. You're amazing at explaining why good urbanism matters, how it improves our quality of life, how it makes our public spaces more productive, and what it looks like. So you're no longer toeing the line of questionable designs. Instead, you're educating the public, making the change you want to see. I think you're awesome for what you do, and it's amazing that you've reinvented your approach to the mission of bettering our cities

[@superandy89]

National treasure right here

[@MultiRanman]

As a budget manager for a big East cost city. I really, really appreciate your perspective and sense of humor. I’m not sure if that says more about you or myself - either way, your advice is spot on.

[@rabbitenjoyer6320]

Amen to your last comments. Your edutainement has empowered viewers like myself to recognize and call out misguided planning conventions when we see them. I can now justify why a place sucks and how it could be made better, which will absolutely lead to better outcomes compared to my old self who had vague notion of "this place sucks." Thanks homie.