Friday, December 31, 2010

The Phantom Bike

Olli Erkkila presents the forkless cruiser, enjoy!

Walkability - The Hot Topic


For those following urban design literature or nonmotorized transportation research, these results may not be shocking. However, new research by Shannon Rogers entitled Examining Walkability and Social Capital as Indicators of Quality of Life at the Municipal and Neighborhood Scales, shines light on the correlation. Rogers, a Ph.D. Candidate at University of New Hampshire, summarizes her findings by stating “that neighborhoods that are more walkable had higher levels of social capital such as trust among neighbors and participation in community events.” Rogers does admit the study does not “prove” a correlation and may be biased – acknowledging that "people who enjoy walking may choose to live in more walkable neighborhoods."

Walkability has become one of the prominent issues in planning, design and transportation. A popular metric used to measure walkability is Walkscore.com which also examines transportation access and provides neighborhood amenities. Walkscore.com recently published their Top 10 Most Walkable Cities list including: San Francisco, New York, Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, Seattle, Washington D.C., Long Beach California, Los Angles and Portland Oregon.

However, do not be fooled by the metrics. The street network, clustering of amenities and access to transit are great but not safe. A recent San Francisco Chronicle piece titled S.F. streets particularly mean for pedestrians states “more than 800 people are hit by cars in San Francisco each year, making it one of the most dangerous cities in the state - and possibly the country - for pedestrians.” If that number appears high to you, consider San Francisco’s small population and relatively high percentage of pedestrians. The Financial District and Tenderloin neighborhood fair the worst. The city is attempting a pilot project to lower speed limits to 15 miles per hour in targeted areas.

Thursday, December 30, 2010

Visions for 2011 – Hello Village, and Bye Bye Vibrant

How will 2011 differ from years past? Jenny Sullivan at Builderonline.com predicts a village revival with small eco-green cottages. Surprisingly, homes are still being built, more modest in number and size. Sullivan claims that trends are changing as “America continues its search for a new normal.” Sensibility is a new theme along with natural interior finishes. Walking is “in” and AIA chief economist Kermit Baker reports that smaller scale infill will help create “light urbanism.” Multigenerational housing is also being incorporated into the mix as families are blending to economize. An increase in accessory units is also slated for 2011.

Aside from design, what else will 2011 have in store for us? Kaid Benfield at NRDC contemplates the outcome of transportation reform – “the collapse of the Democratic Congress, along with public backlash against federal spending, have dealt a serious blow to the once-promising prospects for reform.” He wonders if highspeed rail proceed and asks, “Are outer ‘burbs really done?” Will the ‘burbs rebound? And lastly, Benfield vows to never use the word “vibrant” in a post again. We’ll be watching, stay tuned, and Happy New year.

"The Best Day of My Life"

A neighborhood in Bristol closes streets for after school play, according to one youngster "(this was) the best day of my life!"

Playing Out from Paul Gilbert on Vimeo.

Monday, December 20, 2010

The Vision for SAFETEA TWO


Earlier this month, the house passed another extension to SAFETEA-LU, the transportation reauthorization act. Many have supported the extension including the experts at Brookings and Transportation for America. However, many are yearning for more long-term reliability. Reauthorizing every few years does not grant the financial clout necessary to take on long-term projects; many stagnate or are never started.

Robert Puentes, Director of the Metropolitan Policy Program at the Brookings Institute, proposes a new Transportation Law entitled SAFETEA TWO. D.C.Streetsblog summarizes his proposal as:

Model a new evaluation system for project proposals on TIGER, basing awards on merit and performance metrics. Add more transparency and specificity to the process. Make TIGER and the High Speed Rail program permanent.

Start transitioning from the gas tax to a more direct user fee system, like a Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) fee. Support “aggressive research” and development, especially to address concerns about privacy and administering a mileage fee. These issues will take time to iron out, and the next two years are a perfect time to do that work.

Invest in a strategic framework for multimodal freight movement.

Establish a national policy for road pricing, including “standard tolling, variable pricing, high occupancy toll lanes, cordon and area-wide schemes.” Remove “archaic” restrictions on interstate tolling and utilitze state-of-the-art toll collection technologies.

Help those that help themselves.” Offer federal incentives to encourage local self-financing, as when voters approve tax increases to pay for transit improvements.

Strengthen coordination among financing tools like TIFIA and private activity bonds to ease the process for applicants and embrace more complex and ambitious projects. A unified infrastructure financing system could also set the stage for the transition to a National Infrastructure Bank.

Expand the use of Public-Private Partnerships with a governmental office designed, not to make decisions about PPP projects, but to provide quality control and technical advice.

Work on reducing construction delays by instituting rewards for on-time project delivery and forgoing unnecessary environmental reviews (but keeping the necessary ones).

Allow greater use of federal funds for rail maintenance to address concerns like those expressed by anti-rail politicians in Ohio and Wisconsin about state financial burdens.

Cut some “legacy” programs, like the half-billion-dollar Appalachian Development Highway System Program, that are redundant with other federal agencies.

These steps are geared towards the current economic times. After the launch of SAFETEA TWO, Puentes suggests a six year reauthorization when the dust settles. Even without a long term reauthorization now, realignment must occur for projects to move forward with more fluidity and confidence.

Sunday, December 19, 2010

LEED ND - Great System, Room for Improvement

Many have waited years for the release of the USGBC’s LEED ND rating system. The LEED ND system “was designed as a market transformation tool” and is the most holistic LEED system released to date by requiring “the neighborhood… to be situated in a place that makes sense from a transportation standpoint.” Some have even claimed that this is the USGBC’s attempt to “set (the) first national standard for neighborhood design.”

There are many positives for the rating system and building sustainable neighborhoods. Village Homes in Davis, California is often used as a case study for “bottom line savings associated with green communities” (Baker 2007). The community was built in the 1970s and homes now “command $10 to $25 more per square foot than those of surrounding subdivisions.”

However, there is room for improvement. USGBC fees impact certain projects, potentially causing some projects to forgo results for documentation. Another criticisms stems from how credits are weighted in the system. Looking specifically at the LEED ND system, few technical issues arise. Lastly, long-term metrics should be incorporated into the system also focusing on the issues of causation and mode choice.

First, let’s examine the USGBC fee structure. For instance, if the goal is to provide sustainable low-income housing, how do the USGBC fees play into the financing? Are projects paying for documentation and not results? Do the fees stifle smaller projects with more restrictive budgets? And, if the goal were to produce the most sustainable projects, would it not seem more critical to invest the money to further the project than to receive a credential?

Another large criticism against the LEED rating systems is how credits are weighted. For example, the LEED ND environmental categories are approximately evenly weighted. But the Smart Location and Linkages category is by far the most important in shaping change from a land use perspective. Even factoring in the few points available for Regional Priority does not weigh heavily enough on overall environmental priority. The Bicycle Network credit and the Minimize Site Disturbance During Construction credit both receive one point, even though the network might be easier to implement, it may be far more important than other credits with higher ratings.

The rating system has been through many revision processes and vetted through USGBC, CNU, and NRDC. During the revision process many changes were made to the SLLc3 for locations with reduced automobile dependence by increasing levels of transit service. Overall, the threshold was raised and the credit requires that the transit must be in place, not planned for the future. Other revisions updated the Walkable Streets Prerequisite to limit garages in the front of homes, “only 20% of street frontages may be occupied by garages.”

Additionally, the SLL prerequisite for location is “the most important single standard.” Under option 3, the prerequisite requires development to locate “on a site with existing and/or planned transit service such that at least 50% of (the) dwelling units and nonresidential building entrances are within a ¼ mile walk distance of bus and/or streetcar stops, or within ½ mile walk distance of bus rapid transit stops, light or heavy rail stations, and/or ferry terminals.” With the latest revisions, development may achieve this prerequisite by locating near “planned transit as if they have actual, existing transit service” even for bus routes which are less certain. The prerequisite should be stronger, requiring development around existing transportation nodes. There is similar criticism for the NPDC3 Mixed Use credit allowing planned land uses to count towards compliance, where uses should already exist.

The recent revisions also weakened other credits such as the Wetlands and Water Body prerequisite. The required buffer dropped from 100 feet to only 50 feet. There are many credits aiming to protect or restore wetlands. Understandably, their aim is to protect these fragile areas, what happens if a project does not even have areas defined as wetlands? There are four credits with four points that are not applicable for these projects. Is LEED ND encouraging development near wetlands, in order for developers to avoid disturbance and obtain a credit? Would it not be best to just develop on lands not containing wetlands?

The potency of other credits was also diminished. The Agricultural Land prerequisite was minimized with the new standard requiring “mitigation, but only for the lowest-density projects" and exempting projects served by transit or planned transit. In NPDC9 Civic and Open Spaces, parks do not receive any specific credit. Certain credits should be required, like historic preservation and rightfully so, it is often argued that older buildings are more energy efficient and their character adds to the charm of the neighborhood.

Overall, credit achievement should be based on existing conditions to strengthen infill development and accurately reflect the sustainable design goals inherent in LEED ND rating system. The rating system has many achievements, but the credits are “disproportionate to their effect on environmental performance” where location should outweigh design. Lastly, allowing projects to achieve an extra point for having a LEED Accredited professional seems like an act of self-promotion. Smaller projects may not be able to afford such expertise and should not be disadvantaged for such reasons.

The LEED ND rating system is also lacking long-term metrics to measure future usage. Will projects maintain their low income housing balance? Will transit infrastructure and bicycle lanes be maintained? The LEED ND credential should not be a box that is simply checked at the end of the project, when the project’s life begins at occupancy. Follow up measurements should be developed to ensure that projects continue to operate with LEED ND’s design intent.

Lastly, the rating system provides many opportunities to create vibrant spaces to entice pedestrians and use of alternative transportation. However, the system does not factor in the element of choice. If LEED ND projects are encouraged to infill or located near existing neighborhoods, what is the existing mode share for that area? Do people that enjoy walking, choose to live in certain neighborhoods? How does this effect the design considerations set by LEED ND? Would these projects attract people that already have a predisposition to alternative transportation?

Similarly, are people moving to LEED ND communities that already use alternative transportation? Are we simply moving people to newer walkable communities, or are LEED ND projects helping reduce vehicle miles traveled? How do the vehicle miles traveled in a LEED ND community compare to the neighboring communities?

Implementing a LEED ND project helps continue the walkable street pattern. People “walk more if they move to a neighborhood with a more attractive appearance;” however, “changes in the built environment are important, but apparently no more so than other variables, including attitudes and preferences.” LEED ND should attempt to measure attitudinal elements as factors of project success.

Friday, December 17, 2010

Fair Weather Cyclist? No More!

The temperatures have dropped here on the East Coast and so have the cyclists, or not? A collection of articles were published recently, providing tips and some cleaver ways to ride through winter. Cover the essentials, ears, face, fingers and toes. In this article, they recommend a balaclava for the face or facemask. Buy a good pair of water and wind resistant gloves, if it is terribly cold where you live – you may want a pair of lobster gloves to keep the fingers together for warmth. Wool socks are fantastic and booties work wonderfully if you ride clipless. Check out this “how to” article showing a quick way to make snow tires with zip ties. Enjoy, ride safe, stay warm!

Monday, December 13, 2010

Simply Refined – New Goals for Smart Growth by Kaid Benfield


Taken from Smart Growth Principles for the 21st Century by Kaid Benfield with the NRDC.

1.Foster neighborhoods hospitable to residents with a range of incomes, ages and abilities.
2.Enhance, create and maintain communities that encourage healthy living.
3.Provide walkable access to shops, amenities, and services, including good schools, healthy food, and parks.
4.Accommodate and provide a variety of convenient, safe, affordable and efficient transportation choices.
5.Respect nature, integrating natural areas and systems into regional planning and neighborhood design.
6.Identify, respect and enhance the strengths and character of existing communities.
7.Keep regional footprints small and discernible, limiting the encroachment of new development onto natural and rural land.
8.When constructing new development, use land efficiently, with design appropriate to the context.
9.Encourage collaboration in planning and development that leads to predictable, fair decisions that benefit all stakeholders.
10.Take advantage of resource-efficient design, development and management practices.

BWM Releases 97.5% Recyclable Train Car

The Siemens Inspiro system uses light-weight aluminum cars to increase recyclability and efficiency. The new train cars were designed for Poland’s new light rail system and aims for a 2012 installation. Siemens, BWM and Poland collaborated on the design. The design is cutting edge and will help divert wastes from a landfill. However, recycled materials were not used in making the cars. The next logical step would use recycled materials to build the trains, and really close the loop. Enjoy the video,

Friday, December 10, 2010

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

For Fixed Gear Fans