Urban Studies and Planning Commons^™

Walking Is A Right (Civil And Human), Robert Bullard

Robert D Bullard

PowerPoint opening keynote presented at the National Walking Summit in Washington, DC last month. Here is link to the Summit. http://walkingsummit.org/keynote-speakers . Some of themes include - walking as a right, "outdoor apartheid," "walking while black," and connecting nature walks and health (walking is good for the mind, body, spirit and soul) run through the talk.

Civil Liberties And The Regulation Of Public Space: The Case Of Sidewalks In Las Vegas, Evelyn Blumenburg, Renia Ehrenfeucht

Renia Ehrenfeucht

Conflicts over the nature of and rights associated with public space have a long history and have prompted numerous regulatory responses. Perhaps nowhere in the USA has the regulation of public space been as far-reaching as in Las Vegas, Nevada, where the financial stakes associated with sidewalks are enormous. This study examines how local officials mediate among varied and competing uses of the sidewalk. In defining the function of the sidewalks narrowly, and passively deferring questions of civil liberties, local officials have effectively controlled almost all aspects of public behavior. In recent years, cities have invested in major commercial revitalization …

"Thou Shalt Not Put A Stumbling Block Before The Blind": The Americans With Disabilities Act And Public Transit For The Disabled, Michael E Lewyn

Michael E Lewyn

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ordered local governments to make bus and train systems more accessible to the disabled. The ADA imposed costly requirements upon local public transit systems but did not give local governments funds with which to satisfy this mandate. By reducing the funds available to transit systems, the ADA has sometimes forced cutbacks in transit service for everyone (including, ironically, the disabled to the extent that disabled people were able to use public transit before the ADA's enactment). Thus, the ADA has occasionally been counterproductive.

The root cause of the ADA's inadequacy is that the ADA …