Chuck Marohn on the Past, Present and Future of Transportation

The Strong Towns founder and leader of a new way to think about how we're building our future talked roads vs streets, fighting for better congestion and a terrible, no good way to spend $9.5 million.

Strong Towns is a site I aspire to emulate. Its founder, Charles Marohn—“Chuck” to friends and colleagues—and his team have consistently written thoughtful essays on how local governments can build stronger communities for people, how decision-makers can make sounder fiscal choices for communities, and how every resident already has the tools to advocate for a brighter future.

We got into the nuance of language—how we say things has great or even greater impact than what we’re saying. We talked congestion tied to economic growth as a good sign of building a strong community. And we talked tossing Federal money into a black hole project that provided a “solution” to a loosely defined “problem” in his current residence, Brainerd, MN.

Since the site’s inception in 2008, Chuck and his growing team have published articles and a book(!), given talks and lectures across the country, and built up course materials to put the Strong Towns brand in to practical use. He’s grown an incredible follo…