When Disaster Planning Is Auto-Centric

Often, people who are safe and far away from a disaster zone will look at the victims on TV and wonder: Why they didn't leave? Yes, sometimes it's bravado, or stubornness, or disbelief (expecting another false alarm), or a desire to protect their belongings. But in the case of New Orleans before Katrina, there was another problem: People were told to evacuate the city, but given no means to get out except their own cars. And a lot of people don't own cars.

Maybe they were poor, or elderly, or disabled, or in some cases not interested in the costs and obligations of owning a motorize vehicles. Some were tourists who didn't happen to rent a car, because they were in an urban area where it was cheaper to take public transportation and cabs. But it appears that the New Orleans disaster evacuation plan simply told them to get out of town. If they didn't have the means or money to do so, they were left behind.

This is what happens when a society becomes so auto-centric that the natural assumption is everyone must own their own private vehicles. Roads out of the city were jammed for hours with all those private cars; but many other residents were forced to suffer the grave dangers of a life-threatening storm in a below-sea-level city because they didn't own an automobile.

In major urban areas, a reasonably high percentage of people don't have cars or immediate access to cars. It seems to me we need to look at that issue as we're doing Homeland Security planning.

Anchorage Investigates Creating Pedestrian-Friendly E Street

"Wider, tree-lined sidewalks edging E Street downtown would wow tourists in the summer and, if they were heated and covered, lure locals in the winter," the Anchorage Daily News reports. "A raised section of E Street blanketed with brick and flanked by benches and good lighting could be shut off to traffic for special festivals." Or, an elevated enclosed walkway could link people on foot from the Alaska Railroad to major downtown attractions.

These are some of the visions for the E Street pedestrian corridor project, a concept that was floated about five years ago by the railroad, the Anchorage Downtown Partnership and business leaders. The idea has gained momentum recently, and believers say it will happen.

Great idea. Anchorage has some very pedestrian-friendly areas, especially its network of trails, but some downtown areas are more suburban than urban feeling when it comes to walker appeal.
Government officials have approved a $495,000 contract with Makers Architecture and Urban Design of Seattle, to develop a pedestrian-friendly corridor, the newspaper reports. Construction might begin in 2006. Some funding of the expected $10 million cost may come via "voter-approved road bonds and state or federal grants," the Daily News says.

Walkable Coolidge Corner

The intersection of two major multi-lane, commuter auto thoroughfares -- in this case Beacon and Harvard streets in Brookline -- would seem an unlikely spot for a pedestrian-friendly retail district to flourish. But that's just what happens in Coolidge Corner, where cars, pedestrians and public transit share space in a place that's reasonably appealing to all.

The streetscape is extremely walker-friendly, with stores sited up at the sidewalk, and amply-wide sidewalks adequately screened from the whizzing traffic nearby (thanks to on-street parking, trees, brick decorative strips and such) . In addition to a fair number of local businesses, Coolidge Corner has some of the same chain stores as Rte. 9 in Framingham. But oh how differently they're designed! Here's how Trader Joe's in Coolidge Corner appears from the street:



This encourages foot traffic in the front, while there's still a parking lot available behind the building.

And, here's the entrance to Walgreen's in Coolidge Corner:



Notice the well-marked crosswalk at the busy intersection -- which plenty of people actually use -- as well as the store sited up at the street.

Have you seen many people walk, not drive, to Trader Joe's or Walgreen's on Rte. 9 recently? I didn't think so. With different siting and design of those and other buildings on Rte. 9, as well as adequate pedestrian crossings and a walker-friendly streetscape, you could have.

What a pity.

It's obvious that planners just assumed nobody really wants to cross most of the retail stretches of Rtes. 9 and 30 -- there are no clearly marked crosswalks and few pedestrian crossing signals (and the ones that exist are a joke; you have to sprint across the street to make it in time). Contrast this with the pedestrian crossings on Beacon and Harvard streets -- pedestrian signals even tell you how much time is left for you to make your way across the traffic.

A Mall Done Right: Cambridgeside Galleria

Malls aren't by definition bad for a neighborhood's walkability and sense of place. It's just that most malls are poorly implemented -- stand-alone, sterile environments surrounded by a sea of asphalt. If you want to see how a mall integrates well into its surroundings, head to east Cambridge (near the Lechmere green line and Kendall Square red line T stops) and check out the CambridgeSide Galleria.

It's not the only local mall I've seen that's simply a big city block you can walk to; the failed Lafayette Place in downtown Boston, for one, offered that as well (that "never worked as a retail mall, perhaps because of its uninviting design and lack of windows," the Boston Business Journal once observed). The Galleria in Cambridge features big windows fronting to the street, making it look from some street angles like a block of stores designed to attract passers-by.

But what makes it special is its location along the Charles. There's a lovely walking area on one side of the mall, with an outdoor seating area adjacent to the food court. How many malls encourage you to buy your food, walk outside, sit at a table and watch the passers-by, with river cruise boats and a sizable fountain as backdrop? It's an exceedingly appealing and pleasant walking environment, with human-scaled nearby access to offices - all with large windows fronting the walkways, which is a major plus for walker appeal -- and residences.

As the mall's Web site boasts, MIT is within walking distance , the Museum of Science and Boston Duck Tours are housed across the street and Charles River Boat Company tours depart daily from outside the mall. A visit to the mall, they say, "can combine great shopping, delicious dining with a wonderful Boston touring experience all in one day." They clearly aim to be integrated into the community, not only with words and location, but design and siting.

It's not only possible and safe to walk there from the surrounding neighborhood; it's attractive and appealing, both going there & back and walking around it. Which is a lot more than you can say about the Natick Mall. Why?

Walkable, Bike-able Communities Help Cut Obesity Rates

Obesity in America "is exacerbated by the lack of significant policies addressing community design issues -- such as sidewalks and suburban sprawl ," according to a report released this week by Trust for America's Health:

Communities and government must stress smarter community design, including requiring the evaluation of the health impact of new building efforts and updating existing development and encouraging design that promotes and integrates space for physical activity, such as recreational space, sidewalks, public transportation, and safe staircases, and the inclusion of food shopping venues in new development.

Oregon was the only state where obesity rates didn't rise over the past year, according to the report.

The Associated Press notes that "what makes Oregon different is its emphasis on urban design, which encourages outdoor activities like biking to work, the study's authors said." Ten percent of Portland, Ore's resident bicycle to work, thanks to a network of bike paths throughout the city.

"The solution to obesity is not that everyone should run a marathon," Michael Earls, co-author of the study, told AP. "It's the little things that begin to make a dent in the problem, like taking the stairs instead of the elevator or riding your bike to work."

If a city or town is built in such a way that it forces residents to drive long distances, instead of walking or cycling, then physical activity becomes something that has to be planned rather than an activity which can be woven into the fabric of everyday life, he said.

Obesity expert Tom Farley, the author of "Prescription for a Healthy Nation," said research in the field has moved away from the notion of personal responsibility to the idea of creating environments that foster healthy living.

Thanks to Tim Lee for the link.