What they cover
Not Just Bikes (Jason Slaughter) produces video essays on urban design, cycling infrastructure, and transit-oriented development, primarily comparing North American and Dutch approaches to city building. Topics cover protected bike lanes, mixed-use zoning, public transit design, traffic calming, and the economics of walkable neighborhoods. The channel has become one of the most influential voices in the urban planning discourse on YouTube.
Why they matter
Not Just Bikes has shifted public conversation about urban planning in North America. By showing what well-designed cities actually look like (using the Netherlands as a primary example), the channel makes car-dependent suburban design look like the aberration it is. The channel's economic arguments are particularly effective: walkable neighborhoods generate more tax revenue per acre, require less infrastructure maintenance, and reduce household transportation costs. This economic framing reaches audiences that environmental arguments alone do not.
How to engage
Subscribe to YouTube. The Strong Towns collaboration episodes connect urban planning to municipal fiscal health. Share videos with local planners and city council members.
Start here
Watch 'Stroads are Ugly, Expensive, and Dangerous (and they're everywhere)' which explains why the hybrid street-road design dominant in North America is the worst possible configuration for safety, economics, and livability.