Everything that's wrong with our transportation system, and how to begin fixing it.
"Confessions of a Recovering Engineer: Transportation for a Strong Town," coming Sept. 8, is written for regular citizens, but it's the book every engineer and city official who deserves their position will read in the coming months.
“What needs to be clear to everyone is this: engineers and transportation planners serve society, not the other way around.”
Charles Marohn, engineer and author of "Confessions of a Recovering Engineer"
To request an advance reader copy, email lauren@strongtowns.org.
Taxes are going up and roads are getting wider, but it still takes hours to navigate congestion. Despite advocacy for better walking and cycling infrastructure, engineers claim they can't help. Speed limits are being reduced, but drivers are hurdling by at dangerous speeds.
Our transportation system is costing more and providing us with less. "Confessions of a Recovering Engineer" explains why, how the engineering profession caused all this, and what we must do to fix it.
Written by Charles Marohn (a "recovering engineer") for professional and enthusiast audiences, this book demands accountability and urges a new, bottom-up approach for a transportation system that builds wealth and prosperity for the people who use it.
Topics include:
- Understanding the inherent biases in the engineering profession.
- How roads are designed to forgive driver error at the risk of bystanders.
- Transportation financing.
- Public transit.
- Marohn's personal confession.
Marohn will tour the United States and Canada through the end of the year and into 2022 to help prepare citizens, engineers and city officials across North America to work together and rebuild our transportation system. Stops are already scheduled for Texas, Minnesota, Louisiana, Massachusetts and more. Find tour dates here.
Advance reader copies of "Confessions of a Recovering Engineer: Transportation for a Strong Town" are now available for members of the media and transportation-oriented organizations. For access, contact Lauren Fisher at lauren@strongtowns.org.
Strong Towns is a national movement that helps local leaders identify the cause of decline in our cities and take action to build a stronger, financially resilient future. Strong Towns is reshaping the conversation about development in North America with its advocacy for bottom-up, incremental action.