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2004 Smart Growth Summit "Setting the Standard" Friday, November 19th from 8:00AM - 4:00PM |
Transportation
Background
Since the 1950's, transportation design has focused on the comfort of the car at the expense of human beings. Concurrently, development practices have divided daily needs into isolated residential, commercial and industrial areas. As destinations become father flung, people spend more and more time alone in cars, and public transportation is rendered impractical.
This lack of real transportation options robs senior citizens, young people and others who do not drive of independence. The expensive need for personal transportation increases the already overwhelming burden on the poor, while dangerous streets and distant destinations contribute to epidemic obesity in adults and children.
Traffic reform is long overdue. Old solutions call for ever wider speedways constructed in futile attempts to outpace the congestion blocking our daily needs. Physical activities like walking and bicycling continure to become more and more dangerous. The Tri-State Transportation Campaign recently found that Long Island boasts the deadliest roads in New York State .
Embraced as an attractive alternative for many cities around the nation, transit-oriented development (TOD) offers “Smart” solutions to this growing list of serious problems. TODs are compact, walkable, mixed-use developments that are centered on transit opportunities.
Principles of Transit-Oriented Development
• Develop for a Mix of Uses and Incomes. Transit corridors offering a variety of housing, retail, work and recreational opportunities are naturally suited to a range of upscale, market-rate, and assisted living residents seeking an enhanced sense of community, independence, and convenience. Mixed-use design also absorbs trips, reducing typical peak-demand patterns and yielding a more constant flow of ridership.
• Utilize Compact Development. High to medium density development surrounding transit stations maximizes the accessibility, and therefore use, of mass transit.
• Orient for the Pedestrian. TOD's should be walkable, whereby riders can easily walk to a variety of destinations. Streetscaping and open spaces should cater to the pedestrian.
• Design Effective Parking. Excessive parking inhibits pedestrians, while too little constrains development. Keys to maximizing functionality include reserving lands near platforms for appropriate development, sharing parking between uses where patrons will utilize it at different times and enhancing parking structures with shops, eateries and homes.
• Take Advantage of Focal Points. Open spaces, plazas, or retail areas should be located near transit stations, maximizing their function as community gathering places.
• Consider the Regional Context. TOD's should reflect the character of the surrounding area.
• Institute Public- Private Partnerships. Stakeholders should establish mutual goals and share in the risk, cost, and reward of transit oriented development. For example, the public sector can ease entitlement processes and contribute land and infrastructure costs while private developers possess contacts, financial resources and real estate knowledge.
• Buses. To shake its stigma as an unattractive mode of transportation, buses must be clean, attractive, and fast. Service must be regular and reliable. Stops should be attractive, comfortable, and convenient.
• Seek Corporate Investment. Corporations play a key role in stimulating development around transit. If corporations find that an effective transit system will benefit them by attracting talented employees, they will invest in transit access and make it a priority.
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Vision
Long Island |