We're hiring! CSG is looking for candidates passionate about sustainable, equitable, transit-connected communities to join our team in two open positions. Learn more and apply today at smartergrowth.net/jobs.

Attending a great conference: VA Chapter of the American Planning Association in Danville, Va, a historic city working on revitalization. Inspired by our urban planners & their commitment to more walkable, vibrant communities! @abigailspanberger.com @virginiamercury.com @vpm.org @wvtf.bsky.social

🚲🚨Bike adventure alert! Last weekend, @cmkisicki.bsky.social hopped on her bike + Metro to Kenilworth Gardens for the Lotus and Water Lily Festival🪷 The park is one of DC’s many gems accessible by transit + trail, and it was full of life during the festival. What’s your latest DC bike adventure?

Not a single-family home, not an apartment tower, but something in between. Let’s talk about Missing Middle Housing! What is it and why is it missing? Watch the video and stick around to learn more!

ACTION ALERT: This office campus can become a transit-oriented community Line. However, as the project faces strong opposition (and even a lawsuit) from neighbors, it needs your help to move forward. Take 5 min to email the Montgomery County Planning Board and speak up for new homes near Metro.

I testified for @betterdcregion.bsky.social today @wmata.com board mtg, urging VA/MD/DC to step up & approve dedicated funding to support rail modernization, bus network transformation, & dedicated bus lanes.

If you live, work, or visit NoVA, speak up for better transit, walking and biking, and more homes near transit and destinations. The Northern Virginia Transportation Authority wants your input by August 9 for its next regional plan. Take the survey and see our recommended responses: bit.ly/4wVdv75

ACTION ALERT: Help win better transit & walkable places in NoVA - Take the survey by Aug. 9! - Coalition For Smarter Growth

If you live, work, or visit Northern Virginia, please take a moment to speak up for better transit, walking and biking, and more homes near transit and destinations. The Northern Virginia Transportati...

smartergrowth.net

My piece about a local homeless shelter w/no transit, sidewalks or bike infrastructure to it, just roads! ggwash.org/view/104112/... @usa.streetsblog.org @thewaroncars.bsky.social @segbydesign.bsky.social @biketalk.bsky.social @stewartcsg.bsky.social @theurbanist.org @brooklynspoke.bsky.social

Woodbridge is building a new homeless shelter. Just don’t try to walk there

People experiencing homelessness often walk and use public transit to get around. But in suburbs built around the car, that fact has somehow become invisible. So invisible that a county can break grou...

ggwash.org

Webinar: How innovative zoning can make DC a more livable and equitable city? Join us July 15 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. EDT to learn from leading national experts how a design-based approach to zoning can increase housing and support the evolution of neighborhoods. RSVP for Zoom link: bit.ly/4vkTTb8

🤖🚗 Robotaxis are coming to DC. On Monday, July 13, the DC Council is holding a hearing on Bill 26-0684 to regulate AV fleets. CSG supports the bill’s features to discourage excess traffic, support transit, help travelers with disabilities, and ensure transparency by AV companies. 👇

I’m coming out of semi-retirement to write about a year of WMATA’s Better Bus for the 51st State - tell them what you think! docs.google.com/forms/d/1fda...

We want to hear about your bus experiences

In June 2025, WMATA overhauled the Metrobus network — renaming routes, eliminating stops, and re-routing lines in an effort to make the system faster and more reliable. A month in, we asked readers li...

docs.google.com

Accessory Living Units (ALUs), also known as backyard cottages, are one of the most cost-effective forms of housing. Yet, Fairfax County's current ALU rules are far too restrictive to be effective. Let's make ALUs a real tool to help address our housing shortage: bit.ly/4wFewQB

Make accessory dwellings a real housing solution for Fairfax County! - Coalition For Smarter Growth

Fairfax County's current rules are far too restrictive to be effective – this is a chance to revise these standards and make ALUs a real tool to help address our housing shortage.

smartergrowth.net

POV: Taking Metro to the ⚾ game so we don’t have to worry about traffic or parking. Earlier this week, the CSG and SGA teams caught an evening game at Nats Park! The Nats may have lost, but for us, winning was about the transit we took along the way 🚇

Kudos to Metro GM Randy Clarke @wmatagm.bsky.social & former GM Paul Wiedefeld & the WMATA employees & WMATA Board for Metro’s turnaround. Be sure to join us @betterdcregion.bsky.social as we campaign for the additional funding our Metrorail, Metrobus, & local transit deserve! & Thank you @51st.news

The 51st@51st.news · last mo.

NEW: Metro is ... cool now? After years of tragedy and chaos, D.C.'s long-suffering subway system now sells out its merch. @curiouskurz.bsky.social tracks Metro's recent vibe shift. 51st.news/wmata-metro-...

who up navigating Hostile Pedestrian Infrastructure

Last Saturday, we had a fantastic time exploring Duke Street in Alexandria! We are incredibly grateful to our guest speakers, including @alexandriavagov.bsky.social, BPAC, and YIMBYs of NoVA, who shared their expertise with us. Hope to see you at the next one!

Zack D@mrpresident1776.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Walking with @betterdcregion.bsky.social along Duke St with @byronpeebles.com @buschwacker.bsky.social @sbreehey.bsky.social @elenasor.bsky.social and many more!

Mirroring national trends, pedestrian deaths across the DC metro area have risen significantly over the last decade. Read the full report and see how your community is doing: smartgrowthamerica.org/dangerous-by-design

Even though the total number of pedestrian deaths slightly decreased from 2022 to 2024, they remain near historic highs. @smartgrowthusa.bsky.social's report, Dangerous by Design, breaks down the latest federal data. Most states and metro areas are becoming more dangerous for people walking.

Dangerous by Design - Smart Growth America

smartgrowthamerica.org

In Dangerous by Design, @smartgrowthusa.bsky.social ranks each state and 101 metro areas by pedestrian fatality rates. The report reveals that Maryland has the 16th-highest annual pedestrian fatality rate in the nation, making it one of the deadliest states for people walking.

The 20 deadliest states for pedestrians are concentrated in the Sunbelt, but pedestrian deaths aren’t just an issue in the South: Maryland ranks 16th among the deadliest states for walking, according to @smartgrowthusa.bsky.social's Dangerous by Design 2026.

Coalition for Smarter Growth@betterdcregion.bsky.social · 2mo ago

In Dangerous by Design, @smartgrowthusa.bsky.social ranks each state and 101 metro areas by pedestrian fatality rates. The report reveals that Maryland has the 16th-highest annual pedestrian fatality rate in the nation, making it one of the deadliest states for people walking.

Great to see an airport and city that makes it easy to find the train to downtown! Just arrived in Chicago for a meetup of transit advocates hosted by the great folks @transitcenter.bsky.social Looking forward to strategic discussions and creative ideas for our @betterdcregion.bsky.social team!

It was such an honor to attend the bill signing for the Maryland Transit & Housing Opportunity Act this morning on behalf of @betterdcregion.bsky.social! 😊 This is a big smart growth win that's going to unlock more land for housing + businesses near transit.

Our team is everywhere today! Becca & I are in Norfolk w. housing & conservation leaders to work on housing solutions, Bill in FBG for VA Transit Assoc conf, Elena is @strong_towns conf for urban planning & comms, Sonya @sbreehey.bsky.social is at Fairfax Cty to honor the Active Fairfax plan.

Montgomery County voters will elect a new County Executive + 11 Council members in 2026. CSG and @montgomery4all.bsky.social asked candidates how they would tackle housing, zoning, transit, and community input. Read their responses: www.montgomery4all.org/2026-candida...

2026 Candidate Questionnaire — Montgomery for All

montgomery4all.org

🎉Big win for Marylanders! MD Transit & Housing Opportunity Act (HB894) is officially on its way to Governor Moore’s desk! The bill removes barriers to transit-oriented homes and businesses near Metro, Purple Line, MARC Penn Line, and Baltimore area light rail and subway stations.

“The majority of Americans are open to living car-free even after decades of car-centric planning, a new survey finds…A stunning 18% of car-owning U.S. residents indicated that they were ‘strongly interested’ in living car-free, and another 40% said that they were ‘open’ to it.” @usa.streetsblog.org

Survey: Most Americans Are Open To Ditching Their Cars — Streetsblog USA

Automakers have spent a century and countless trillions of dollars making car-dependent living the American norm. But U.S. resident still aren't sold, a new survey suggests.

usa.streetsblog.org

“Copenhagen reported that 62% of its residents are now commuting to work or school by bike — an increase from 52% in 2015 & 36% in 2012, when the City Council launched a 14-year-plan to improve the quality, safety & comfort of cycling.” #Copenhagen chose. They keep choosing even better every year.

Copenhagen has taken bicycle commuting to a whole new level

Cycling has been a part of that good life in Copenhagen for decades. In recent years, it has enjoyed yet another unfathomable surge in popularity — taken to the next level thanks to constantly improvi...

latimes.com

“Even as the cost of infrastructure for active transportation is being used as a reason for inaction, evidence is accumulating that when the full economic cost is considered, driving costs society more, while cycling and other forms of active transportation save society money.”— @sflkirk.bsky.social

Bike lanes don’t cause congestion, cars do - Halifax Examiner

If our premier and HRM mayor truly want to demonstrate fiscal responsibility they’d build those bike lanes faster, because the cost of car-centric infrastructure is unsustainable.

halifaxexaminer.ca

“In London cyclists now outnumber cars in the City by 2 to 1. Paris, where they now outnumber motorists across the whole city, is catching up with Europe’s traditional bike capitals, Amsterdam & Copenhagen…In Copenhagen, bikes account for almost half of commuter trips to work/school.” @economist.com

Forget EVs. Cycling is revolutionising transport

Pedal power is booming, spinning up a new culture war

economist.com

TY @yonahfreemark.com for your excellent summary of the success of Metro @wmata.com including transit-oriented development. Since 1997 our Coalition for Smarter Growth @betterdcregion.bsky.social has led campaigns for dozens of TOD plans & projects. Kudos for our officials for saying yes to TOD!

Yonah Freemark@yonahfreemark.com · 5mo ago

Happy birthday to the Washington Metro, which opened 50 years ago today with service on 4.6 mi of Red Line between Rhode Is. Ave & Farragut N. System now serves 130 mi. The DC Metro shows that, with good planning & enough investment, the public sector can succeed & build something extraordinary.