The Strong Towns Podcast

For years, the dominant explanation for America’s infrastructure problems has been that we haven’t invested enough. Yet federal spending on transportation is at historic highs, and frustration with the results continues to grow.

This report offers a different interpretation.

The Interstate Highway System achieved its original goal. The challenges we face today are not the result of failure, but of a system that continued long after its purpose was fulfilled. Understanding what comes after it is the work in front of us.

 

Find the report here: https://www.strongtowns.org/missionac...

Chuck Marohn (Substack)

Why 95% of planners get it wrong, how monetary policy killed Main Street, and why Chuck Marohn is optimistic about Gen Z. This wide-ranging conversation, first featured on the Yeoman podcast with Geoff Graham, explores the difference between Jane Jacobs's humble incrementalism and Robert Moses's technocratic master plans—and which approach is winning in 300+ communities.

 
Additional Show Notes

Chuck Marohn (Substack)

Geoff's Podcast https://yeomanpodcast.com/

In this year’s State of Strong Towns address, Chuck Marohn reflects on where the movement stands at the start of 2026 — what’s changed, what’s growing, and how the work ahead remains grounded in humility, restraint, and bottom-up action.

Additional Show Notes

‍Watch on YouTube.

Read the 2025 Annual Report.

Chuck Marohn (Substack)

 

This podcast is made possible by Strong Towns members. Thank you!

Chuck Marohn reflects on what it means to say, “I am a Minnesotan,” in the current political moment.

‍A major highway project is pitched as a safety upgrade — but at what cost to the community? Today, Chuck is joined by Matt Steele, a fellow Brainerd-area resident and longtime Strong Towns member. They unpack a highway interchange that's been proposed in nearby Baxter and the long-term trade-offs that shape strong (or fragile) places.

Additional Show Notes

Read more about this project: "Six Roundabouts to Nowhere" by Charles Marohn

Chuck Marohn (Substack)

 

This podcast is made possible by Strong Towns members. Click here to learn more about membership.