Liveable Communities

This research report is designed to stimulate new understanding and thinking that will lead to better streets for all Americans.

As we grow older, will our community be ready for us? This question is important for all of us, regardless of whether we live in a city, a suburb, a small town, or out in the country. And it is particularly relevant for those persons age 50 and older who are planning for (or have already entered) retirement or who are facing the challenges to independence and quality of life that often accompany aging.

The Alliance for Biking & Walking's Benchmarking Project is an ongoing effort to collect and analyze data on bicycling and walking in all 50 states and at least the 50 largest cities. This is the second biennial Benchmarking Report.

Context Sensitive Street Design (CSSD) is an approach to roadway planning, design and street operation, to meet regional transportation goals while enhancing neighborhoods and considering the adjacent uses of land. CSSD respects traditional street design objectives for safety, efficiency, capacity, and maintenance, while integrating community objectives and values relating to compatibility, livability, sense of place, urban design, cost and environmental impacts.

BTS published data to show that availabilities of sidewalks coincided with increased rates of walking.

10 Principles:

1. Mobility Balance,
2. Street Connectivity,
3. Community Character,
4. Forecasting is not Planning,
5. Transit will not Alleviate Congestion,
6. Active Living,
7. Multimodal Streets,
8. Sustainable Mobility,
9. Empowerment,
10. Monitoring & Reporting

These Urban Street Design Guidelines are intended to ensure that the best aspects of Charlotte's transportation network are re-cretaed as the city and its street network continue to evolve.

This presentation by Mark A. Cole of the Charlotte Department of Transportation lays out the necessity of implementing Complete Streets in Charlotte, as well as the goals of those initiatives.

This policy and technical document lays out a plan for context-sensitive complete streets in the City of Charlotte to improve the safety and neighborhood livability, promote transportation choices, and meet land use objectives consistent with the City's Urban Street Design Guidelines.

The Better Streets and Complete Streets Policies, passed in 2005 and 2006, call for City departments to work together to improve the functioning and aesthetic of our City's streets to meet social, recreational, transportation, and ecological goals. The Better Streets Plan (BSP), currently in draft form, provides a comprehensive set of street design guidelines to meet these goals. Recommendations of this report for improved project planning, design, and approval are intended to assist the City in implementing the BSP guidelines in a consistent and efficient manner.

This design guide provides information on creating narrow, streets in cities, villages, and hamlet centers with buildings close to sidewalks and other pedestrian-friendly features.

Instead of relying on vehicle LOS as the primary performance measure in transportation impact studies, agencies need to consider the tradeoffs between LOS and other important community values and other modes. This paper will present a new paradigm for transportation planning and impact analysis that reflects the inherent tradeoffs associated with vehicle travel, urban development form, and the treatment of other modes. The new paradigm will reflect a fundamental change in our current thresholds based analysis approach and it will demonstrate new analysis methodologies

A team of 12 transportation professionals from the United States with expertise in bicycling and walking visited five countries in Europe to identify and assess effective approaches to improve pedestrian and bicyclist safety and mobility.

Definition of Boulevard—In highly urban areas, boulevards can be "grand boulevards"— streets that help form a city's identity, a formal street designed to beautify and be a primary public space, a promenade. Boulevards can also serve as the urban core's spine, a major commercial corridor served by rail or bus transit having a primary mobility rolecollectors). The report was a joint effort between the Institute of Transportation Engineers and the Congress for the New Urbanism, sponsored by the Federal Highway Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency.

TCRP initiated a research study to identify the following: which factors determine the behavior and motivation of TOD residents, employees and employers in their mode choice; best practices to promote TOD-related transit ridership; and the contextual use of best practices.

Strategies for Metropolitan Atlanta's Transportation and Air Quality aims to develop a framework for reducing auto dependence and vehicle emissions in the Atlanta Metropolitan Area, while maintaining economic vitality . The data analysis from this study shows that in order for Atlanta to achieve their regional goals of clean air, decreased auto dependence, and a high quality of life, a land use plan to focus growth into existing and emerging urban centers was needed.

This article highlights the impact the bicycle industry and bicycle tourism can have on state and local economies, describes the need for bicycle facilities, discusses the cost effectiveness of investments, points out the benefits of bike facilities for business districts and neighborhoods, and identities the cost savings associated with a mode shift from car to bicycle. The evidence demonstrates that investments in bicycle infrastructure make good economic sense as a cost effective way to enhance shopping districts and communities, generate tourism and support business.

This paper explores a methodology for assessing a neighborhood's bikeability based on its mix of infrastructure and destinations – essentially the 20-minute neighborhood for bicycles.

Complete the streets so everyone can use them safely and conveniently—that's the new cry of advocates, planners and elected officials who are behind a movement to fundamentally alter the way roads are planned, designed and built.

Incomplete streets will hamper climate change strategies—The transportation sector is the fastest growing carbon dioxide source in the United States with emission rates rising 2% per year. Projections show that more efficient fuels and 'clean' vehicles won't be enough to offset the projected 59 percent increase in driving between now and 2030. Even with expected improvements in vehicle and fuel economy, carbon emissions from transportation would be 41 percent above today's levels by 2030 if driving is not curbed.

Incomplete streets a problem for older Americans—Even when roads have basic pedestrian facilities, they often do not consider the needs of the growing population of older Americans. The U.S. Census Bureau projects that by 2025, the portion of Americans over 65 will increase from 12% to nearly 20%, totaling 62 million Americans. As people age, many give up driving for safety's sake.

Incomplete streets restrict physical activity—When streets are designed only for cars, they deny people the opportunity to choose more active ways to get around, such as walking and biking. Even where sidewalks exist, large intersections and speeding traffic may make walking unpleasant or even unsafe—discouraging any non-motorized travel. Obesity in America has reached epidemic proportions in recent years. The latest data show that 32% of adults are obese, the number of overweight or obese American children nearly tripled between 1980 and 2004.

Complete Streets create viable, liveable communities—Creating infrastructure for non-motorized transportation and lowering automobile speeds by changing road conditions can improve economic conditions for both business owners and residents. When Valencia Street in San Francisco's Mission District slimmed its traffic lanes to slow down cars and accommodate other users, merchants reported the street changes enhanced the area. Nearly 40 percent of merchants reported increased sales, and 60 percent reported more area residents shopping locally due to reduced travel time and convenience.

Help Prevent Costly Delays and Retrofits Integrating the needs of all users—pedestrians, bicyclists, public transportation riders, motorists, older people, children, and people with disabilities—early in the life of a project minimizes costs associated with including facilities for these travelers. Complete streets policies ensure early multi-modal scoping, saving money by avoiding costly project delays. Without a policy, bicycle, pedestrian, and public transportation accommodations are often debated too late in the design process and are considered a disruption rather than necessary and beneficial project features.

Complete streets foster livable communities — Communities are increasingly embracing smart growth to meet their residents' desire for choices in housing, shopping, recreation, and transportation. Complete streets meet the demand for transportation options, while promoting other community goals. They provide safe and affordable access for everyone, whether traveling to school, work, the doctor, or their favorite restaurant.

Incomplete streets are a constant source of frustration and danger for people with disabilities. A recent study found that blind pedestrians waited three times longer to cross the street, and made many more dangerous crossings than sighted pedestrians. A significant portion of paratransit trips are necessary, not because people are too disabled to use public transit, but because the street network is so poorly designed that they cannot reach the bus stop or train station.

Communities across the country are realizing the 'green' potential of their streets. Making our transportation system more sustainable involves many policies and practices that minimize environmental impact and create streets that are safe for everyone, regardless of age, ability, or mode of transportation. Complete streets are a natural complement to sustainability efforts, ensuring benefits for mobility, community, and the environment. Many elements of street design, construction, and operation can work in favor of achieving both complete streets that work for all travelers and 'green' streets that serve environmental sustainability. Complete Streets are designed and operated so they work for all users.

Communities across the country are realizing the ‘green’ potential of their streets. Making our transportation system more sustainable involves many policies and practices that minimize environmental impact and create streets that are safe for everyone, regardless of age, ability, or mode of transportation. Complete streets are a natural complement to sustainability efforts, ensuring benefits for mobility, community, and the environment. Many elements of streetdesign, construction, and operation can work in favor of achieving both complete streets that work for all travelers and ‘green’ streets that serve environmental sustainability. Complete Streets are designed and operated so they work for all users.

Provide guidance for the design of urban thoroughfares that is consistent with CSS principles

A framework for thoroughfare design:

1. Define context
2. Specify a complete palette of thoroughfare types
3. Define correspondence between context and thoroughfare type
4. Bring network into the process

The objective of this research was to investigate whether a relationship exists between street network characteristics and the choice of transportation modes selected in a neighborhood. In this study, we controlled for factors such as street characteristics, vehicle volumes, activity levels, income levels, proximity to limited access highways and to the downtown area. The results suggest that all three of the fundamental characteristics of a street network — street connectivity, street network density, and street patterns — are statistically significant in affecting the choice to drive, walk, bike, or take transit.

The Complete Streets Act of 2007 will ensure that the transportation plans of California communities meet the needs of all users of the roadway including pedestrians, bicyclists, users of public transit, motorists, children, the elderly, and the disabled. By encouraging good planning for all modes of travel, the AB 1358 will make our roads safer and more convenient places for Californians who choose to walk, ride a bike, or take transit.

This handbook recommends a process for development of street standards, provides important information to help communities consider and decide on the standards, and includes model designs as a starting point.

Regardless of their size, communities can realize three major benefits from better connectivity: shorter trips, a winder variety of travel choices, and more cost-effective public services and infrastructure. Creating more direct connections shortens travel time, which effectively brings people closer to their destinations. With more available connections, community residents can get to schools, shopping centers, and other spots that may have simply been off their radar before—not because these places were too far away, but because they were too far out of the way.

Concerns about livability are shared by every type of community, in inner cities, small towns and rural areas. This booklet explores how people in these communities are working in partnership with transportation agencies on locally-initiated projects and programs to create transportation systems that enhance places. While this booklet emphasizes the direct relationship between community reinvigoration and community-supportive transit facilities, case studies also demonstrate how the sympathetic design of roadways strengthens the connection between the two.

The case studies in this booklet offer a small sample of the ways in which highway projects can be designed with imagination, creativity, and collaboration to preserve and enhance the character and quality of a community without sacrificing transportation mobility and safety. While these few examples illustrate the art of the possible, throughout the country we see a new commitment to collaboration leading to more imaginatively designed facilities that enrich the communities in which they are located.

Incomplete streets a problem for older Americans—Even when roads have basic pedestrian facilities, they often do not consider the needs of the growing population of older Americans. The U.S. Census Bureau projects that by 2025, the portion of American

Every two years, SACOG conducts a programming round to allocate funds to projects based on apportionments of regional Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ), Regional Surface Transportation Program (RSTP), and State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) funds. These funds are programmed through the Air Quality, Bicycle & Pedestrian, Community Design, Transportation Demand Management (TDM) and Regional/Local funding programs.

As people grow older, they often become less willing or able to drive, making it necessary to depend on alternative methods of trans- portation. Unfortunately, the United States is currently ill prepared to provide adequate transportation choices for our rapidly aging population. Alternatives to driving are sparse, particularly in some regions and in rural and small town communities. As the number of older people increases, so too will their mobility needs. How the nation addresses this issue will have significant social and economic ramifications. This report presents new findings based on the National Household Transportation Survey of 2001 and places them in the context of other research on mobility in the aging population.

As this report will show, there still is a long way to go to repair the damage done to communities in the past, even as we begin to shift policies and design philosophy to build streets that are safer for pedestrians and motorists alike. However, there are a growing number of excellent models to build on and thousands of communities eager to move forward.

Conventional suburbs are over built and out of favor. In cities and suburbs alike, walkable neighborhoods linked by train are the future. Here's how a new nertwork of privately funded alliances can make the future come to pass more quickly and cheaply- and help reingorate housing and the economy.

This research helps confirm what had been intuitively obvious: in the four metropolitan areas studied, transit-oriented development (TOD) housing produced considerably less traffic than what is generated by conventional development.