Building a mosque in the US gives rise to opposition. Sometimes, opponents overtly depict Muslims as foreigners threatening American values. In other cases, new mosques are stalled for years or stopped altogether because of concerns about parking: Local officials and residents demand that mosques build more spaces, conduct additional costly parking studies, or attend further public hearings about parking.
Mosques are far from the only type of proposed development to face parking-related opposition. Our study isolated the role of religious prejudice by analyzing the opposition faced by 107 newly constructed American mosques, comparing each one to a nearby church built around the same time. We also examined public records of city council hearings and invited representatives from a sample of the mosques to tell us about
their experiences, whether or how parking came up, and the impacts of parking-related opposition.
California is transitioning heavy-duty freight trucks from diesel to battery-electric vehicles to help meet its climate and air quality goals. Unlike passenger vehicles, electric trucks require much larger batteries and high-powered chargers, creating concentrated demands on the electric grid. At the same time, freight carriers operate under strict schedules that leave little flexibility in when and how long trucks can charge. As freight electrification expands, coordinating truck operations, charging infrastructure, and grid planning will become increasingly important.
Earthquakes pose a persistent and significant threat to the movement of people, goods, and services. While agencies have made progress on emergency response, planning for recovery (how quickly transportation systems can be restored after a major event) remains limited. A key challenge is that earthquake modeling and transportation system modeling have remained largely separate efforts, making it difficult for agencies to anticipate disruptions, prioritize investments, and coordinate recovery across jurisdictions.
California has set a target of achieving 100% zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) sales by 2035. While the state has made substantial progress, with ZEVs accounting for roughly 25% of new vehicle sales in 2025, adoption remains uneven across communities. Disadvantaged communities (DACs), which face disproportionate exposure to air pollution, continue to lag in ZEV uptake. Most DAC-related policy efforts to date have focused on demand-side interventions, such as consumer purchase incentives, rather than supply-side approaches that increase vehicle availability. Because more than half of ZEV sales in California occur through franchised dealerships, they are a critical gateway through which consumers access these vehicles and may represent an important leverage point for increasing adoption.
California’s climate policies are accelerating the transition to zero-emission vehicles, but the construction sector faces a major barrier: access to reliable power at job sites. While electric excavators and loaders are entering the market, many construction sites—often temporary and in remote or constrained locations—lack the electrical infrastructure needed to support them. Grid connections are often too costly and take too long to install for construction projects, and existing grid infrastructure was not designed to handle the power demand of heavy machinery. Without practical charging solutions, electrifying the construction sector may lag behind state goals. Meanwhile, construction equipment is contributing 1% to 2% of California’s total greenhouse gas emissions.To better understand these challenges, we reviewed existing research, assessed available charging technologies, and spoke with utilities and energy providers across California. We focused on identifying key barriers and practical pathways to support construction electrification.
The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated hybrid and remote work and online shopping. These changes caused a sharp decline in activity and transit use in downtowns across California, particularly in transit-oriented downtowns that account for a large share of statewide ridership. This decline has major implications for climate commitments, equity, and the economy. Public officials and business leaders are pursuing a range of strategies to revitalize downtowns and support transit recovery. However, transit ridership has still not returned to pre-pandemic levels.
In Walkable City, Jeff Speck says that induced demand is the thing that everyone in city planning understands but doesn’t talk about. It may be more accurate to categorize induced demand as the thing that everyone in city planning talks about but doesn’t understand. The issue is muddied by inconsistent definitions of relevant terminology.
Fare-free transit programs are increasingly used to increase ridership and reduce household transportation costs, especially for lower-income households. In California, where fewer than ten percent of school trips are made on school buses and many students travel long distances to reach school, transit costs and access can pose real barriers to education and after-school opportunities. At the same time, fare-free programs require substantial and ongoing public investment, raising important questions about whether eliminating fares alone is enough to meaningfully change student travel behavior.
The COVID-19 pandemic catalyzed a massive and abrupt shift in work arrangements across the United States, with telecommuting (or working from home) becoming a dominant mode for a substantial portion of the workforce. This shift not only disrupted traditional employment structures but also significantly altered daily activity schedules and travel behavior. As policymakers and planners seek strategies to manage travel demand, mitigate congestion, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, understanding the long-term implications of telecommuting on travel patterns is essential. The pandemic offers a unique opportunity to study these changes at scale and across diverse geographic and demographic groups.
Public transit systems in California sit at a financial crossroads. Ridership has recovered slowly and unevenly since the pandemic, with commuter-focused transit services to and from downtowns continuing to struggle the most. While other sources of transit funding such as sales taxes have recovered, fare revenues have not. As one-time federal relief funding is spent down, some transit agencies in California and across the U.S. sit at the edge of a fiscal cliff. To better understand the scale of this challenge and how agencies are responding, researchers at the UC Institute of Transportation Studies analyzed financial data from transit agencies, examined federal databases, and conducted surveys and interviews with agency staff. This work provides a clearer picture of current conditions and the strategies agencies are considering to stabilize their budgets.
