Automobilism
Beyond The Motor City
Blueprint America: Beyond the Motor City examines how Detroit, a symbol of America’s diminishing status in the world, may come to represent the future of transportation and progress in America. Watch it here. Read more >
GDP Growth and China's Empty City
Recently some members of the Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals had a list-serve discussion about the common practice of using Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth as an indicator of a community's success. Using GDP as a measure is a very narrow lense through wich to look in evaluating quality of life and a group of peoples' level of happiness.
From a land use and transportation perspective, using GDP alone as a success indicator may encourage auto-oriented planning and design because automobilism leads to a lot of economic activity through car crashes, repairs, hostpital bills, insurance claims, lawyer fees, etcetera. What would it mean to the GDP if we had fewer trips taken by car, fewer crashes, fewer injuries, fewer fatalities, etcetera?
This video news report takes a look at China, where an entire new city was recently built as part of the effort to keep national GDP growing at a rate of 8% annually. This city currently stands empty and at least for the moment makes a very good case for broadening our econonomic measures beyond the narrow GDP measure.
MN's Road to Recovery
From MN2020:
Creaky old timber bridges are being replaced. Rough roads are getting new pavement. Deteriorating regional airport runways are being rehabbed. Twin Cities transit riders will hop on new diesel-sipping hybrid buses. Suburban drivers will ply new interchanges and a freeway extension. And a rusting Minnesota icon, Duluth's Aerial Lift Bridge, is receiving the final phase of a once-in-a-lifetime paint job.
It's all thanks to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the $787 billion federal economic stimulus package enacted to counter a recession that has obliterated 5.4 million U.S. jobs in past year, 99,7000 of them in Minnesota.
While the plan will support worthwhile efforts from education, health care and unemployment benefits to clean water, housing and senior nutrition, the earliest and most visible impacts in Minnesota are on the roads, bridges, transit services and other transportation assets that put our economy on the move.
How Free Is Your Parking?
There is no such thing as a free lunch, and there is no such thing as free parking. Providing parking requires land, and land requires revenue to pay for its rent. Basic economic theory would have developers providing parking up to the point where revenue raised by last the car park equals the value of the next best land use alternative.
Minimum Parking Requirements (MPRs), by definition, force developers to provide parking above this economically efficient level, which raises development costs, subsidizes private automobile transport over other modes such as walking, cycling and public transport, and provides incentives to develop at low densities, encouraging sprawl.
Happiness is the smell of fresh air
The New York Times has a story today about how more Americans are asking themselves, “do I need a car at all?” instead of assuming that a vehicle is simply a necessary part of their lives.
The headline asks, “is happiness still that new car smell?” Even if we have to get behind the wheel once in a while, I think we can agree that – NO, happiness isn’t the smell of a car, it’s the smell of fresh air.
It begs another question, which is when are cars truly necessary?
Sometimes it surprises people how much you can do on a bike or with your own two feet. So I thought it would be fun to ask everyone about something you’ve done on your bike or without a car that you used to think required a car.
I’ll go first. Read more >
Removing Roadway: Cheonggyecheon stream
Seoul city reclaims a natural stream, originaly in the middle of the city that had been covered over by a freeway during the early part of South Korea's economic rebirth. Makes you think what is possible with reclaiming roadway for open space.
One-Way v. Two-Way Streets in Minneapolis
The coming conversion of Hennepin Avenue and 1st Avenues from one-way to a two-way streets has sparked some conversation latelty. It might seem like a complicated issue: why is the city doing this project? Here are some resources about the pros and cons of each kind of street, and why the coming conversion might be a good idea for Minneapolis street life... Read more >
NTSB tells workers to hang up cells
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), responsible for investigating the nation's most high-profile transportation accidents, is prohibiting its employees from using any wireless device behind the wheel while on duty. The restriction applies whether the device is hands-free or not.
More information on this topic at Mike on Traffic, including information on how the US Department of Transportation withheld compelling data on the safety risks associated with driving while talking on cell phones Read more >
Is parking the problem?
Running a community development corporation I am always engaged in the conversation of what makes and maintains a vibrant commercial corridor. The conversation usual stops and starts with parking. Merchants always say that the lack of parking is the problem. I am usually arguing that the lack of a good streetscape, a safe and clean sidewalk, and window display are the bigger culprits. I am of the mind, if I can't see into the store, I won't be entering your store. The folks over at Commercial District Advisor have this great post that gets right to the matter. Read more >
Complete Streets funding short $50 billion for next 20 years!
A recent front page article in the Star Tribune cited the head of MN-Dot warning that state transportation funding will face a $50 billion (yes, with a "B") dollar shortfall over the next 20 years. That is an huge amount of money in a state that with a total budget of about $15 billion dollars per year, and that typically spends about $1 billion dollars annually in road construction and maintenance.
But where does this number come from? It comes from a plan suggests a quixotic goal for the state: a transportation system where there are no traffic jams, where all cars are freely flowing at 50 mph almost all of the time. But is that really even possible? Read more >
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