“Walkable City: How Downtown Can Save America, One Step at a Time” by Jeff Speck (book) and “The General Theory of Walkability” by Jeff Speck (TED Talk):
How do you get people to walk?
1. A reason to walk (balance of uses)
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- Traditional neighborhood design (locate uses close enough to each other to allow walking; non-euclidean zoning; avoid super-sizing facilities – e.g. single vs. multiple ball diamond; avoid car-oriented life)
- Fill in missing/under-represented uses (offices/appointment businesses, retail and services/walk-in businesses, dining, entertainment, housing, schools, recreation, worship, health care, and parking)
- Walkable cities require transit
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2. A safe walk (reality and perception)
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- Parallel parking provides protective barrier for pedestrians/bicyclists
- Wide vehicle lanes increase vehicle speed (narrower vehicle lanes decrease vehicle speed)
- Trees decrease vehicle speed
- Induced demand (increasing infrastructure increases demand, e.g., more vehicle lanes increases number of motorists, more bicycle lanes increases number of bicyclists)
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3. A comfortable walk (space and orientation)
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- Prospect (“open plain” = open street) and refuge (“wooded cover” = awnings, overhangs, and shade trees)
- Fill in missing teeth (develop empty/abandoned lots that interrupt the walk)
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4. An interesting walk (signs of humanity)
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- It only takes 25′ of building to hide unattractive land uses (e.g., parking deck, highway overpass)
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- Physical Design & Walkability
- Green Initiatives
- Cultural Economic Development
- Entrepreneurship
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