Background

The British Home Zone Program developed from the Dutch “woonerf” concept. Key design features include level carriageways and shared surfaces. Alongside other landscaping and traffic calming measures, these serve to slow down vehicles, open up road space and create a place suitable for social uses in which the driver feels like a guest. Like the woonerf, Home Zones incorporate both formal and informal space for children’s play and social activities. In 1999 the British Government funded a pilot program in nine communities in England and Wales, which led to a £30 million Home Zone Challenge program and funding for 59 additional schemes in 2001.

Most streets designated as Home Zones have been existing streets that have been retrofitted. Physical design varies widely: “Designs tend to lie somewhere along a continuum from – at one end – a woonerf-style treatment involving level carriageways, shared surfaces and widespread use of visual and physical elements that break up drivers’ sight lines, to – at the other – conventional traffic calming, though with higher quality materials and greater use of soft landscaping than is usual in the UK (Gill 2006).” Overall, final designs are heavily influenced by and responsive to community input, which is seen as crucial for gaining local support.

The UK Department for Transport’s website (2005a) gives the following definition of a home zone: Home Zones are residential streets in which the road space is shared between drivers of motor vehicles and other road users, with the wider needs of residents (including people who walk and cycle, and children) in mind. The aim is to change the way that streets are used and to improve quality of life, by making them places for people, not just for traffic.

The Morice Town Home Zone, Plymouth, UK

Morice Town is an area within the City of Plymouth that was selected as one of nine pilot sites for the UK Home Zones program in 1999. Before this, Morice Town had received little physical investment during the 50 years since it was rebuilt in the aftermath of WWII bombing. A small residential community with a population just over 4,000 people, Morice Town consists of a primary school in the center with predominantly young families living in the surrounding flats and terraced houses (approximately 450 households).

The Morice Town Home Zone was designed and implemented with significant community input over a three-year period, and consists of 12 streets on a grid pattern. The single most important objective was to create an area where residents felt safe. That meant tackling the problem of traffic and speed, as well as introducing “friendly” features, such as designated parking spaces and attractive street furniture. The architects proposed a shared space for both pedestrians and vehicles on the same level. Speed limits in Morice Town are 5 mph, although most Home Zone schemes have a speed limit of 10 mph.

Funding for the project came mostly from government resources, both at the local and national level. Those involved in the project estimated that the cost of implementing a Home Zone design was about five times more than a standard traffic calming scheme, but argue that the extra cost is justified given the regeneration of the area and the improved quality of life for residents.

The UK Department for Transport has issued guidelines for Home Zone design that emphasize the following key principles:

1. Designing for people: Vehicles must be accommodated within the Home Zone as an integral part of daily life, but they must share the space with cyclists and people on foot. Motorists should feel that they are a ‘guest’ in the street.
2. Gateways: It is important that a strong gateway feature clearly identifies to users that they are entering (or leaving) a different environment. These features distinguish the boundary of the Home Zone and should set the tone and character for the rest of the area.
3. Movement: One of the main criteria for the development of a Home Zone is the creation of an environment where pedestrians and vehicles use shared space at comparable speed. This means tighter clear vehicle paths and the introduction of constraints to easy and direct vehicular passage are needed. The Home Zone should be embedded in a wider 20 mph zone so that the reduction of vehicular speeds is achieved gradually rather than in one step. Redefine the streetscape away from the conventional straight lines of carriageway and footway to incorporate a single shared surface between property boundaries, even blurring the distinction between private and public space. This approach has succeeded in creating areas where a.ctivities other than movement can be undertaken safely while still allowing vehicles access. However, consideration must still be given to defining the vehicle path. Different surface textures and colors have been used to influence driver perceptions. The preferred choice has been horizontal shifts in vehicle paths, rather than frequent vertical deflections. This has been achieved using a variety of features.
4. Delineation: While the overall concept is for pedestrians and vehicles to share the space, in some cases definition of space is still necessary. Using colored or textured paving or bollards to create more defensible space are two strategies to increase delineation where necessary.



5. Accommodating play: One of the key objectives of Home Zones is to increase the opportunity for children to play in the streets. This can be achieved through the introduction of both formal and informal play spaces. Formal play spaces have been developed as segregated areas with play equipment sited where it is well overlooked and caters to a range of ages. Involving children and young people throughout the design process has been particularly important in achieving acceptable schemes – from the perspective of both children and adults. Even without formal play spaces, the creation of a less formal street can encourage play and outdoor activities where it would otherwise have been unacceptable. Informal play is often the answer and just providing a safe space within the street may be all that is needed. Children will use their imagination to transform features of the environment. Large concrete balls in the street, designed to demarcate the vehicle path, can become anything in a child’s eyes.
6. Parking: Improve parking adjacent to houses (in-curtilage parking) or by creating structural (echelon) parking blocks along the street with a reduced and variable running width. In some schemes, on-street parking provision has actually been increased by providing more formalized parking arrangements. The best approach is a flexible one, identifying areas where people are able to park without causing an obstruction, even to the emergency services. Areas where parking is not acceptable should be readily identified by their restricted width.
7. Lighting: The level and quality of lighting in a Home Zone is important as it can increase feelings of safety and security. Lighting columns can have both a positive and negative impact within a Home Zone. They can mark routes but can also strengthen linearity of the street. Factors such as style, height and spacing of columns and color spectrum of the lighting will be important in determining both the day and night time appearance of the Home Zone.

While overall evaluations of the Morice Town Home Zone have been mixed, workshops conducted in the area after implementation of the Home Zone noted the positive effect for children; namely, the increase in play area and the decrease in traffic speeds of 10-15 mph.

Adapted from: Department for Transportation (2005) Home Zones: Challenging the Future of Our Streets.

A major challenge in implementing Home Zones schemes is the cost required. As a result, Sustrans, a mass-transit advocacy organization in the UK has created a program called DIY Streets that focuses on less capital-intensive traffic-calming designs. Interventions are often not permanent, are driving-psychology oriented and focus broadly on traffic calming rather than on creating child-friendly environments.

Lessons Learned
Potential Benefits:

• Use the UK Department for Transportation design guidelines for Home Zones for direction on design approaches.
• Solicit community input, particularly from children.

Potential Issues:

• Different communities will have different tolerances for more pedestrian-oriented design, so gauging where a community falls in this regard is critical.
• Dealing with the potential loss of parking is a concern.
• Community questions and anxiety around the safety of shared streets, particularly for children, is an issue.
• Bias against children, such as the perception that children “loitering” on the street is a public safety concern, may be an issue.
• Cost is a concern.
• Home Zones are most appropriate on residential streets and in the context of a larger traffic calming scheme for an entire neighborhood or community.
• Selling this concept to communities may be challenging. Tolerance for shared streets may grow in the future.

Sources

Department for Transportation (2005) “Home Zones: Challenging the Future of Our Streets”, London DfT.

Gill,Tim (2006) “Lessons from London Play’s Home Zones project Report”

The UK Department for Transport (http://www.dft.gov.uk/)

Sustrans “What is DIY Streets?” (http://www.sustrans.org.uk/what-we-do/liveable-neighbourhoods/diy-streets)

Photo Sources

MIG, Inc.

Historic urban cores in various towns and cities in United States and across the world have traditionally used the five senses to create memorable experiences. In the first half of the twentieth century, places could be recognized very easily by smells resulting from patterns of activities along streets. Newer developments in cities such as Las Vegas are building on this great tradition.

In Europe and older cities and towns in United States, bakeries were typically located in the town centers. Baking created streets with lingering smells of sweet dough and jams, followed by the excited clamor of families returning home to feast. Washday involved smells of heat, detergent and moisture, followed by the smell of ironing – all intensified when such work was performed by larger groups of women sharing facilities and equipment.

Smell is powerful. Research indicates that smell stimulates emotional or motivational arousal, whereas visual experience is more likely to involve thought and cognition. Odors affect us on a physical, psychological and social level (Classen 1994). Designers and planners have the opportunity to create memorable and revealing urban experiences for people through thinking about their projects through non-visual terms, conditions and outcomes. As an example of multi-sensorial city wayfinding, Madurai challenges designers to comprehend the city in an emotional and visceral way – not a rational, information and consumer-based understanding typical of western cities.

Madurai, India

Background

The sacred city of Madurai is located in the southern Indian peninsula and is a major religious site for Hindu celebration. The city is organized around a central temple complex. All roads lead to religious sites of one kind or another. Up to 25,000 people a day, mostly religious tourists, pass through the temple complex on a given day.

The city’s rhythm, culture and commerce are reflective of the ever-present religious functions in the city that spill out onto the streets. Temple incense, oils, coconuts, camphor, flowers for offerings and other scented religious elements are readily available for purchase from street vendors at open air stalls. Temple ceremonies are multi-sensorial experiences. They include “a plethora of sense impressions as one enters the temple: the images of the deities, the smell of the incense, the touch of the priest, the sound of the temple bells and finally the taste of the Prasad( Drahos 2011).”

During regular days, the City is bustling with activity. All the major commercial streets are shared roadways with multiple modes of travel that include vehicles, bicycles, auto rickshaws, and pedestrians. The specific design of the retail stalls, especially with regards to the engagement of the wares with the street edge, the hawking of the wares, the use of colors and unconventional use of shop signs create a unique multisensory experience. The intensity of outdoor use and the accompanying sensorial experience increases as on moves towards the city core. The streets immediately adjacent and leading to the temple are imbued with scents of flowers, incense and other materials such as sandalwood. Similarly, paving materials and patterns change and are discernible to people wearing shoes or barefoot. The paths inside and immediately next to the temple complex are made up of cobbled stones. Finally, the set of three gateways elements (gopurams) and the 153-foot high gopuram on the sanctum sanctorum provide residents and visitors with a strong set of visual markers that help orient oneself in any part of the city.

During religious festivals held throughout the year, the city becomes charged with the smells and sounds of celebration. During the Chithirai Festival in particular, the entire city is a place for the religious experience, with the sounds, smells, and visual celebration enveloping the city. Madurai becomes navigable and known to people through overlapping pungent scents and the sound of marching drummers and temple bells.

As a wayfinding inspiration, we can extrapolate Madurai’s experience to make sensory-enabling design concepts that can potentially be applied to cities here in United States.

Lessons Learned
Potential Benefits:

• Brings a fresh, vibrant understanding of the city to people.
• Can be a boon to merchants without access to technology or traditional forms of advertising to attract customers. For example, food markets found across the developing world rely on smells to lure people in and make their location known. Street buskers and musicians can set up where sound travels well to attract more onlookers.
• Provides a sensualized experience of place – a nice compliment to information-centric wayfinding (signage) and mobile device technology that depends on the internet.

Potential Issues:

• Lack of support: There is cultural resistance, administrative barriers or misunderstanding regarding the use of non-traditional wayfinding approaches.
• Environmental factors: Environmental factors (wind, temperature, ambient noise, cleanliness, etc.) can impact the effectiveness of multi-sensorial wayfinding more than it does traditional or electronic wayfinding.

New York City, New York

Background

Jason Logan in an Op-Art piece in the New York Times (August 29, 2009) explored and documented the intended and unintended olfactory experiences of New York in summer. Titled the “Scents of the City,” Logan talks about how “New York secretes its fullest range of smells in the summer; disgusting or enticing, delicate or overpowering, they are liberated by the heat. So one sweltering weekend, I set out to navigate the city by nose. As my nostrils led me from Manhattan’s northernmost end to its southern tip, some prosaic scents recurred (cigarette butts, suntan lotion, fried foods); some were singular and sublime (a delicate trail of flowers mingling with Indian curry around 34th Street); while others proved revoltingly unique (the garbage outside a nail salon). Some smells reminded me of other places, and some will forever remind me of New York.”

Lessons Learned
Potential Benefits:

• Uses smells that are unique to a particular node, street, neighborhood or city itself.
• Provides an opportunity to involve the adjoining businesses.
• Creates a multisensory experience.

Potential Issues:

• Undesirable smells: Undesirable smells can be part of the sensorial experience.
• Unintentional smells: A number of the sensorial experiences are unintentional and unprogrammed.
• Variability: Smells described in this case study are affected by seasonal and environmental factors (wind, temperature, ambient noise, cleanliness, etc.), which can impact the effectiveness of multisensory wayfinding.

Background

There is no consensus regarding the proper aesthetics of street wayfinding. However, most people do agree that streets cluttered with an overabundance of wayfinding elements pose potential safety risks to distracted drivers and pedestrians – and obscure the legibility of the street itself.

The Naked Streets model advocated by Hans Monderman, which uses the deliberate removal of pedestrian-oriented safety and navigation features, such as traffic lights, railings, curbs and road markings, encourages communication between drivers and pedestrians that did not exist before. Sharing previously segregated space “exploit[s] the natural skills of humans to negotiate movement, resolve conflict and engage not only with each other but with their context. Shared space might look chaotic, but people are using their brains and intuition, not acting as mere automatons in response to signals from on high (May 2009).” Places that have used Naked Streets (also known as Living Streets) design concepts to address problematic street intersections have seen positive safety outcomes while also enjoying benefits of an uncluttered streetscape.

One example is the roundabout at Laweiplein, Drachten in the Netherlands. Here, approaching drivers perceive the unsignaled roundabout as utterly ambiguous, which causes them to slow their speed. The intersection serves 20,000 cars each day. Before the 2003 redesign, the intersection was signal-controlled with distinct zones for pedestrians and drivers. The redesign removed the signals and replaced them with a roundabout. Texturized pavement was installed where the sidewalk merges with roadway. Illuminated fountains at the four corners articulate and soften the intersection’s edges (Garrick 2006). Results of the intervention are positive with a 20% reduction in accident rates and shorter cross-city commute times. This suggests that shared streets are not just for low-volume local streets.

Benefits extend beyond measureable safety improvements. Laweiplein’s surrounding commercial and theater district has also experienced revitalization since the completed intersection improvements (May 2009).

Lessons Learned
Potential Benefits:

• Demands that drivers, cyclists and pedestrians think, evaluate and act on real-time feedback they are receiving from other road users, resulting in safer, slower drive speeds.
• Produces measureable reductions in traffic altercations and personal injuries.

Potential Issues:

• Applicability: The shared streets approach with no signals or signage cannot be applied to any intersection. It hinges on several dependent factors, such as traffic volumes, intersection geometry, topography and the prevailing mix of users (drivers, pedestrians, cyclists) (Vanderbilt 2011).
• Social norms: Shared streets interventions may work better where social norms do not overly privilege the individual nor reward litigious behavior.
• Safety: There is no more assurance of safety with shared streets than there is with conventional intersection design. There will always be some that break the rules.
• Accident liability: When accidents do happen, it may be more difficult to determine the party at fault.

Background

The wayfinding systems used by Portland (Portland Central City Pedestrian Wayfinding Signage Project) and Philadelphia (Walk!Philadelphia) use similar aesthetics for static signage to connect districts and highlight transportation features.

In Downtown Portland, the wayfinding system connects people to shopping districts, public plazas, waterfronts, museums, landmarks and gateways. The system links people to high-quality transit options, such as MAX Light Rail, city streetcar and bus service. Color-coded signs and map elements create a destination hierarchy and simplify understanding of the city’s layout. The wayfinding elements in Portland include free-standing, ground-mounted signage that use a combination of location identifying text (e.g., Downtown, Pearl District, Goose Hollow, etc.), directional signs and maps that help pedestrians navigate between major regional destinations, parks, historic sites, neighborhood attractions, and transit stops. A list of simple icons and the vibrant color palette make map reading effortless. Portable versions of walking maps are available and distributed by downtown businesses. In the future, it is conceivable that smart phone apps will reduce the need for printed maps.

The Walk!Philadephia wayfinding system also organizes navigation around the presence of distinctive city districts, such as the Convention Center, Rittenhouse Square District and the Historic District (Old City). Signage emphasizes the ease of walking in the city. Color-coded ”heads up” disk-maps include comfortable 10-minute walking radii that highlight nearby destinations. Route choice is reinforced with simple directional arrows. The Walk!Philadelphia project also developed simple two-color branded logos for its five downtown districts, which highlight the iconic features you encounter while walking through the city.

Any static wayfinding system experiences awkward growing pains as the city continually develops and matures around it.

Major downtown transit renovations and construction of Portland’s Green light rail line between 2007-2010 rendered directions on many of the signs inaccurate. Commentary on citizen transit blogs also describe a variety of signage inaccuracies ranging from arrows pointing the wrong way to suggested routes which might be the shortest but not the most enjoyable or interesting for visitors.

Lessons Learned
Potential Benefits:

• Makes it inviting and easy for visitors to hop on and off transit downtown.
• Makes destinations easy to locate through the use of simplified graphic design, bright colors, clear typeface choice and regularly spaced placement of signs along streets.
• Provides opportunities to fund upkeep through a sponsorship program that allows any businesses, public agency, non-profit organization or professional service provider to choose what signs they want to sponsor and makes their name visible to hundreds (thousands) of people per day (Portland).

Potential Issues:

• Multiple sign systems: The Center City District of Philadelphia had to develop a parallel signage system for visitors entering the city by vehicle, named Direction Philadelphia. Direction Philadelphia signs use fewer colors than Walk!Philadelphia signs, but they are similar enough that pedestrians may think they are the same thing or be thrown off slightly.
• Inaccurate signage: Ongoing Downtown Portland transit construction changed the locations of bus pick up areas and light rail lines were not updated on signage until construction was finished; signs were inaccurate for three years
• Graphic design: Simplified cardinal graphic conventions on both signage systems mean directional arrows sometimes don’t correctly point to destinations or travel routes.

Background

The Historic Columbia River Highway runs through downtown Troutdale in Oregon. It is an approximately 0.3 mile long and 50-foot wide boulevard, which consists of a 12-foot wide travel lane, an on-street parking lane, and a striped bike lane in each direction. The sidewalk on the north side is 8 feet to 9 feet wide while the one on the south side is approximately 4 feet at the narrow points. Crosswalks are in place at most intersections along this section.

It is a very popular route for weekend cyclists heading to the Columbia River Scenic Gorge. Traffic volumes are not excessive outside of peak hours. The street cross section with parking, wide sidewalks and zero setback storefront affords an improved retail draw for the area (Valencia 2011).

Troutdale's historic, five-block main street was in serious decline by the late 1980s. But a series of changes reversed the trend in the 1990s. The City attracted the Columbia Gorge Factory Stores, immediately adjacent to the downtown area along Interstate-84. The mall brings thousands of shoppers to this eastern gateway to the Portland region, setting up a larger market for the main street.

The creation of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area established Troutdale as the de-facto gateway to the Gorge from the Portland metropolitan area since the city abuts the scenic area’s western edge. The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) bolstered the new scenic area designation with a major restoration of the Columbia River Highway to its former glory, attracting more visitors through downtown Troutdale en route to destinations in the Gorge like Crown Point and Multnomah Falls.

The project initially focused on the north side of the Columbia River Highway, a move that might have seemed ill-advised since most of the original storefronts were on the south side of the street. Yet, this strategy resulted in a ‘complete” main street, and is making the vacant parcels on the south frontage much more attractive as development continues.

A number of the new structures also include mini-plaza areas in their entry designs that expand the pedestrian area where it is needed most. The project also retains the historic street lamps that have decorated this section of the Columbia River Highway since it was constructed in the early 1900s. On-street parking was preserved on both sides of the street - a significant accomplishment in a state DOT-owned facility. The project also includes Mayor's Park, with a small plaza, seating and drinking fountains. Though modest, it serves as an important public gathering space in Troutdale.

Another piece to the puzzle was the acquisition of a former county poor farm, located just west of the downtown, by an eccentric brewpub chain operated by Mike and John McMenamin. Together the brothers converted the farm into McMenamin's Edgefield Estate, a sprawling campus with hotel, brewpub and winery that is now listed in the National Historic Register.

The City of Troutdale partnered with private developers to aggressively rebuild the missing half of storefronts along the north side of Columbia River Highway. In a unique public-private partnership, a row of nearly two dozen new storefronts has been constructed since 1995 on land originally owned by Union Pacific Railroad.

Adopted from: Green Streets

In 2010, the 68-foot steel Centennial Arch was built as a welcoming gate to the downtown area. It is designed to withstand winds up to 110 mph and 3 inches of ice. Built-in lighting illuminates the two metal support sculptures at night. While the project cost approximately $363,000, the city and community expect this inviting arch will bring more tourists and economic boom to the community (Wells 2010).

Lessons Learned
Potential Benefits:

• Preserves neighborhood identity.
• Provides cycle lanes and access.
• Increases green space by providing mini-plazas and parks.
• Provides access to Interstate 84 and Columbia River Gorge.
• Creates an interesting small downtown area with some unique shops.

Potential Issues:

• Narrow sidewalk: The new striped bikeways on both sides of the street came at the price of relatively narrow sidewalks. The innovative mini-plaza design on several newer buildings increases pedestrian space. However, the sidewalk still feels cramped.
• Lack of adequate pedestrian crossings: Markings at all intersections and curb extensions at some intersections would be major improvements, as well as a controlled intersection at Buxton Avenue, where vehicles routinely fail to yield to pedestrians when making turning movements.
• Wind issues: Cold wind blasts out of Columbia River Gorge most of the year.
• Visual access: Most people miss the downtown shops due to the huge Factory Outlet complex by Interstate 84.

Background

Cheong Gye Cheon is a dramatic transformation of a site with more than a 5 mile long concrete roadway with an elevated highway into a vibrant public recreation open space running that serves the old central business district area of Seoul. More than a century ago, the Cheong Gye Cheon (CGC) was called Gaecheon or "open stream" and served as a major water resource for its neighborhoods. During the 1950s and 60s, the urbanization of the city and increasing industrial development polluted the stream and it was covered with concrete roads. Soon, an elevated highway was built to meet the increasing high transportation demand for the heavily industrialized city center. In the 1980s, the impacts of the highway and effect to the economic decline of the central areas became clearly recognized. People began to be concerned about air pollution from the highway, health risks from unsanitary conditions and a decreasing stability of the aging infrastructure. A group of academics and environmentalists developed a community-based master plan for demolishing the 10-lane highway and restoring the stream. In 2002, Seoul Metropolitan Government established an organization to move the project forward.

By 2003, the freeway had been completely disassembled. The restored CGC stream and the linear park were opened to the public in October 2005. The greening of central Seoul created a great amount of public amenities, but this resulted in a significant loss in road capacity. To relieve possible traffic congestion impacts, the Seoul Metropolitan Government improved the public transit system. The city opened 40 miles of dedicated rapid-bus lanes along major arterials. In 2004, the city reconfigured bus routes to feed more effectively into the city’s subway system (Kang and Cervero 2009). As a result, the daily traffic volume of the CGC area, which was about 168,556 in 2001, had decreased. In 2006, the bus and subway ridership of the inner city had increased by 11% and 13.7% respectively (Park 2007).

Project Description

• The project took about 27 months to construct and cost about $346 million. It involved the demolition of 3.4 miles of elevated structures which helped in the formation of a new 3.5 mile long watercourse and river bed. The construction of 22 new bridges dramatically improved the overall multi-modal mobility across the corridor. Overall, over 3.6 miles of the corridor has been landscaped. The landscape design concept took into account the creation of three different sectors, each with its own cultural theme: The upstream section represented history and tradition, the midstream represented culture and modernity and the downstream section represented nature and future. The average project cost per sector was estimated to be about £60 million. Landscaping focused on providing a balance between improving urban ecology and public access. The northern side of the river provides seating and strolling areas for people, while the southern side is designed for plants and wildlife. Small squares, public art works and waterfront decks are located at regular intervals along the river.

Adopted from: Shin and Lee 2006



While the restoration of CGC increased the amount of green space and provided east-west walk paths in the central city, the reduction of the road width and the elimination of the highway greatly improved north-south connections for pedestrians. Moreover the improved public transit systems made trips to central business district destinations easier and faster. A total of 22 vehicle and pedestrian bridges were built across the restored river at the locations of all existing intersections and crossings. This included the restoration of the old Gwang-Tong bridge that had been buried under the highway structure for four decades. The dimensions of bridges vary from 65 feet to 380 feet long and from 85 feet to 193.5 feet wide.

Prior to the highway demolition, many small shopkeepers and merchants who had stores alongside the highway opposed the project out of fear of losing business. Through a intensive negotiation process, the Seoul Metropolitan Government was able to proceed with the plan by financially compensating merchants and relocating a number of shops to a newly constructed market center. As demolition was carried out in a densely populated and trafficked area, it was vital to keep dust and noise to a minimum as well as minimize disruption to traffic. Structures were cut to maximum sizes to reduce the number of transport movements, and they traveled mostly at night. After opening the park, to encourage community participation, a wall of hope program was developed. The participants wrote their wishes on a 100 mm by 100 mm ceramic tile, which was then permanently bonded to one of the embankment walls. More than 20,000 people took part.



The original width of the stream was kept and the bed was lowered to prepare for potential floods. The outer parts of the previous road deck were also retained to carry a new two-lane side road and to allow space for flood flows underneath. A new sloping embankment wall was then built alongside. The final river cross-section varies from 65 feet wide upstream to 380 feet downstream. Low-level terraces have been built along both sides of the river to provide people and wildlife easy access to the water.

One of the most controversial issues was supplying a sufficient amount of water to the restored CGC. It was finally decided to provide a daily supply of 1,006,370 bbl, which would maintain an average depth of 1.3 feet and average current velocity of 0.25 m/s. The water supply consists of 838,640 bbl from the Han River and 167,730 bbl of groundwater infiltration. In addition, the design had to take into account the risk of wastewater and polluted rainwater runoff overflowing into the river during storms because the Cheong Gye Cheon area has a combined sewage system. Large sewers have thus been built alongside the river to provide additional retention for stormwater and to protect its newly established ecological system.

Lessons Learned
Potential Benefits:



• Reduces urban heat island effect (Noh 2006).
• Increases open space and recreational opportunities in the civic center area.
• Enhances tourism in the central business district. In the first three months following its restoration, a quarter of all Koreans—about 10 million people—visited the river.
• Enhances the pedestrian experience: While the design created a wide variety of pedestrian amenities including sidewalks and nighttime lighting, the edges of the revitalized green corridor has attracted new pedestrian friendly uses, especially in buildings adjacent to the river which have become restaurants and cafés, providing food and seating for pedestrians.
• Increases wildlife habitat in the urban area.The number and range of birds, insects and fish now living in and around the river are on the rise.
• Enhances economic vitality.The land values around the green space have increased, and large-scale reconstruction and redevelopment projects are now being undertaken along the whole corridor.
• Recycles the demolished structures. The total weight of the demolished structures was 907,000 tons, including 79,000 tons of concrete, 82,000 tons of asphalt concrete and 35,000 tons of steel. Around 96% (839,000 tons) of concrete and asphalt concrete was recycled, mostly as sub-base material for road construction. All reinforcing steel was sent to mills for recycling (Shin and Lee 2006).

Potential Issues:

• Traffic congestion concerns: There were strong community concerns about traffic congestion caused by reduction in highway capacity. The traffic congestion issue was dealt with by introducing a new multi-modal transportation policy and with a strong focus on public transport.
• Construction delay: During the rainy season, the river flooded within 30 minutes. This caused many constraints to riverbed work and led to construction delay.
• Economic loss to businesses during construction work: Due to the extent and length of construction time, there was some economic loss to existing businesses during construction. To minimize the construction impacts, the City provided a stability fund to facilitate relocation. To enable this, the project team held around 4,000 meetings with residents, either individually or in groups.

Sources

Kang, C. and Cervero, R, 2009. “From Elevated Freeway to Urban Greenway: Land Value Impacts of the CGC Project in Seoul, Korea.” Urban Studies 46(13) 2771-1794

Noh, S., 2006. “Cheonggyecheon Restoration In Seoul” Presentation at Minato Water Meeting, Tokyo, Japan

Park, K., 2007. National Archives & Records Services (http://contents.archives.go.kr/next/content/listSubjectDescription.do?id=006448&pageFlag=A)

Shin, J. and Lee, I., November 2006. “Cheong Gye Cheon restoration in Seoul, Korea,” Civil Engineering 159 Pages 162–170 Paper 14775

Photo Sources

MIG, Inc.

Background

Octavia Boulevard lies on Octavia Street between Fell and Market Streets in San Francisco, where the touchdown ramp of the elevated Central Freeway starts. The four blocks of Octavia Street became a boulevard in 2005, and include four central lanes of one-way, high-speed traffic. Local access side lanes are separated from through traffic by landscaped medians that buffer cyclists, pedestrians and residents from traffic. The surrounding neighborhood of Hayes Valley, blighted by the freeway since the 1950s, has been revitalized and has become livelier as housing fills in a strip along the boulevard's east side left vacant by the freeway's demolition.

The freeway removal had long been discussed, but it was spurred by the irreparable damage of portions during the Loma Prieta earthquake of 1989. In November 1998, San Francisco voters approved Proposition B, a measure that authorized Caltrans to replace the Central Freeway with an elevated structure to Market Street and a ground-level boulevard from Market along Octavia Street to Fell Street. The Central Freeway Replacement Project, a joint project between the City, Caltrans and the San Francisco County Transportation Authority, began in March 2003 with the demolition of the existing Central Freeway structure.

Despite the concerns about traffic congestion with the freeway removal, the boulevard distributes traffic smoothly and evenly throughout the immediate neighborhood while maintaining links to the major San Francisco traffic arterials served by the old elevated freeway, including Fell and Oak Streets, serving the city's western neighborhoods,and Franklin and Gough Streets, serving northern neighborhoods and the Golden Gate Bridge. The demolition of the existing freeway structure and the construction of its replacement touchdown ramp were undertaken by Caltrans at a cost of $26 million. At the boulevard’s northern end where it meets the retail strip of Hayes Street, a new 16,500 square foot park, Patricia’s Green, was built as part of the project. Parcels freed up by the freeway demolition are being redeveloped into nearly 1,000 units of housing. The corridor, which used to carry 93,000 vehicles per day before elimination of the eastbound lanes, now serves 45,000 vehicles per day with some of the remaining traffic displaced onto alternate routes.

Adopted from: Seattle Department of Transportation 2008

Two urban planners—Allan Jacobs and Elizabeth Macdonald—initiated the idea of a livable boulevard in American cities. The “Great Street” book, a culmination of their study, concludes that boulevards can be pleasant, functional and, contrary to their reputation in America, not dangerous at all (Ward, 2005).

The new Octavia Boulevard is visually appealing and pedestrian-friendly, thanks to generous landscaping, side lanes for local traffic and parking, special considerations for details like views from side streets, and pedestrian amenities, such as special light fixtures, paving pattern and art. The new park, Patricia’s Green and tree-lined pedestrian walkways add more green space, functioning as a linear park in the neighborhood.

Before the destruction of the Central Freeway, condominium prices in the Hayes Valley neighborhood were 66% of San Francisco average prices. However, after the demolition and subsequent replacement with the new Octavia Boulevard, prices grew to 91% of city average. Beyond this, the most dramatic increases were seen in the areas nearest to the new boulevard. Furthermore, residents noted a significant change in the nature of the commercial establishments in the area. Where it had been previously populated by liquor stores and mechanic shops, soon the area was teeming with trendy restaurants and high-end boutiques.

Adopted from: Congress for the New Urbanism

The streetscape design has created new pedestrian and bicycle facilities without dramatically impacting automobile traffic. In February 2007, the San Francisco Department of Parking and Traffic published an evaluation of boulevard operations and its impacts on the surrounding area. Despite the reduced capacity of Octavia Boulevard, traffic along detour routes in the adjacent South of Market district returned in the months after its opening to pre-freeway closure levels. Of the half-dozen points observed, three experienced decreases in traffic, while none experienced increases greater than 10%. This, along with the reduction in traffic on Fell and Oak streets, would seem to indicate a significant reduction in discretionary trips and overall traffic in the corridor. A 1996 survey conducted six weeks after closure of the freeway’s eastbound lanes found that just 2.8% of former freeway drivers no longer made their trips and just 2.2% of trips had been shifted to transit. However, nearly 20% of respondents said that they had made fewer trips since the freeway’s closure.

Because the new boulevard did not open for several years after the freeway closure, it was initially perceived as a significant addition of capacity for drivers. During the initial weeks after the boulevard opened, the city increased the number of traffic control officers in the area, and it made a number of adjustments to signal timings until the new system reached equilibrium.

Adopted from: Seattle Department of Transportation 2008

Lessons Learned
Potential Benefits:

• Improves safety: Provides a safer environment for pedestrians with more sidewalks and medians, residential access lanes, and less crime. The at grade street design also helps create more eyes on the street and improves the overall sense of safety.
• Increases real estate value and spurs residential and commercial development.
• Increases pedestrian amenities, such as parks, green space and street furniture.
• Decreases traffic volume and, thus, air pollution and noise in the neighborhood.
• Generates revenue from sales of excess freeway right-of-way space to fund construction of public amenities such as Hayes Green.

Potential Issues:

• Some backups and spillover: Peak-hour congestion on Octavia Boulevard has sometimes resulted both in backups on Oak Street and spillover onto the parallel neighborhood streets—Page Street and Haight Street.
• Transit delay: Buses on Page Street, which cross the boulevard, can be delayed during the morning peak.
• Safety issues: Injury accidents have increased at a rate consistent with increases in traffic--the approximate reported collision rate of the intersection (average daily traffic of 45,000 on Octavia Boulevard and 5,500 on Page Street) is 0.06 collisions per million vehicles entering the intersection (Olea 2007).
• Illegal right turns: Where Market Street meets the boulevard and Central Freeway, motorists regularly make illegal right turns onto the freeway and sometimes collide with bicyclists—colored pavement in the bicycle lane is under consideration.
• Long crosswalks: Pedestrians found that the crossing signal time is too short to get across the wide street right-of-way (approximately 109 feet) (SFCTA).
• Implementing initial design concept: Several original design features were not incorporated in the final configuration.
• At 18’-6” the side lanes are wider than was intended, and their asphalt pavement is not the textured, traffic calming surface that was recommended.
• Side lanes are controlled not just by stop signs, but also by flashing red lights; yet the 2007 evaluation found a fair amount of noncompliance, confusion and risk among drivers.
• More traffic calming features:
  • Traffic volume in the side lanes: While the side lanes were designed to serve as access routes for local residents and businesses, traffic queued along the southbound side lane at the boulevard’s northern end, resulting in a requirement that drivers turn right.
  • Traffic speed: The side roads are signed for a speed limit of 15 MPH, but according to a one-day speed survey taken in 2006, 85 percent of motorists traveled at speeds of 27 MPH or lower on the northbound side roads.
  • Speed humps: In 2009, speed humps were added to the northbound side road segments, resulting in 85% of traffic speeds dropping to 22 MPH and traffic volumes dropping by almost half (Olea 2007).

Adopted from: Seattle Department of Transportation 2008

Background

The traffic circle at the intersection of two local streets in the Southside neighborhood of Berkeley, Carleton Street and Ellsworth Street, not only calms traffic but grows edible plants. Both Carleton Street (60-foot right-of-way with a 33-foot wide travelled roadway) and Ellsworth Street (60-foot right-of-way with a 38-foot wide travelled roadway) are two-way residential streets with curbside parking lanes. The traffic circle is lushly planted, even though there is a 24-inch sanitary sewer cover in the middle of the circle.

In the circle, edible plants and flowers are growing, such as kale and lavender. Considering that each traffic circle costs between $8,000 and $10,000 (including the cost of digging the hole, building the curb and raising the sewer catch basin), utilizing the multi-use garden on the circle is beneficial for residents and the city (Jones 2006).

There is high demand for traffic circles from neighbors in Berkeley, despite the fact that neighbors are responsible for planting and maintenance. Local residents living immediately around the circle regularly maintain the traffic circle. This includes weeding, pruning, and watering the plants. The plants are manually watered either by hand or brought through a pipe from an adjoining nearby house. While maintained by a few, all residents are welcome to use the fresh produce grown in the circle.

Lessons Learned
Potential Benefits:

• Brings the community together.
• Slows the traffic and strengthens the pedestrian-friendly character of the neighborhood.
• Enhances the visual attraction of the neighborhoods.
• Utilizes an underused space to grow edible plants and flowers.

Potential Issues:

• Damage by cars: Cars may damage the traffic circle gardens by running over the curb.
• Vegetation height: Tall plantings may obstruct cyclists’ and motorists’ views.
• Vandalism: Plants may be harvested by others or vandalized (Jones 2006).
• Maintenance: The edible landscape is currently very well maintained by immediate neighbors who are long terms residents of the neighborhood. However, other traffic circles in less well established neighborhoods may need to explore long term maintenance plans.
• Lack of guidance: The City of Berkeley lacks manuals or directions for planting or maintaining edible landscaping in the traffic circles.

Background

The Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) has been using the land along the Arbutus Corridor for over 100 years. After the rail operation ceased in 2002, the CPR tried to redevelop the corridor for commercial and residential use. However, this plan was stopped because of a strong public support for corridor preservation for future commuter rail use and/or recreational uses. In 2006 the City adopted an Official Development Plan bylaw to designate the corridor as a public thoroughfare for transportation.

There are currently two community gardens located along the Arbutus Corridor. The Maple Street Community Garden is located on the north side of 6th Avenue between Maple Street and Cypress Street. The Cypress Community Garden is located between Cypress Street and Burrard Street. Each garden sits on a one-block long city property. There is an approximately 32-foot wide two-way road, including parking lanes in each direction, on the south side of the gardens. A walking path along the old railway runs along the north side of the gardens. At the corner of Maple Street and 6th Avenue, the Vancouver Compost Demonstration Garden teaches the public about backyard and worm composting, water conservation (e.g., rain barrels, drip irrigation, permeable surfaces), safe pest control and natural lawn care.

The Maple Street Community Garden consists of 75 plots, which are 3 feet by 12 feet or 4 feet by 5 feet. The plots cost $45 and $55 for the first year depending on size, $25 for the second year, and $10 for all years thereafter (Green Living Enterprises). This is an organic garden and no pesticides or chemicals are used. The combination of hot, rainy summers and good soil in the Maple Street Community Garden has produce an excellent array of fresh vegetables, such as tomatoes, peppers, corn, sweet potatoes, melons, pumpkins and potatoes. The fourteen community gardeners at the site come from all ages and walks of life, and everybody is eager to share the fruits and vegetables (Creces 2010).

The Cypress Street Community Garden consists of 73 plots which are open to Vancouver residents only. Each plot is approximately 3 feet by 12 feet with an annual membership fee of $30. This fee pays for metered water, maintenance of fences and the water system, tools, association membership(s) and other related expenses. There are water taps and hoses for each section of the garden. Members have access to garden tools on a first-come, first-served system. This is also an organic garden with no chemical fertilizers or pesticides permitted. Compost and organic fertilizers only are used to amend the soil.

Two garden clean-up parties and section work parties are held each season to maintain the common areas of the garden. Members are expected to participate in three garden clean-up parties (two general, one section) each year. In addition, community garden members should be prepared to volunteer some extra time to the garden, such as taking minutes at meetings, doing additional garden maintenance or improvements, and working on special projects.

There is growing demand for plots. The plots in the Cypress Community Garden are all registered this year (Cypress Community Garden). The members are seeking additional public green spaces to increase the number of plots and community gardens in the neighborhood (City Farmer TV 2007).

Adopted from: Cypress Community Garden

Lessons Learned
Potential Benefits:

• Utilizes the abandoned railway right-of-way.
• Provides better food access to the community.
• Increases livability and vitality of the street and the surrounding neighborhood.
• Provides wheelchair access to the community garden. In the Maple Street Community Garden, there are three raised planting beds and ramp access to the garden for wheelchair users.
• Demonstrates how edible landscaping can be applied to other residual public rights-of-way, such as infrastructure corridors, wide sidewalks, etc.

Potential Issues:

• Demand: It is difficult to meet demand for community gardens. The overall popularity of the Arbutus Corridor Community Gardens and increasing number of new multi-family housing in the neighborhood are leading to additional demand (Wintonyk 2011).
• Real estate value: The increasingly high value of city real estate threatens the survival of the community gardens. However, being part of the street environment and public right-of-way has minimized the danger of redevelopment (Wintonyk 2011).
• Planting restrictions: Some plant types must be restricted due to problems with disease or invasiveness.

Background

Tucson is located in the Sonoran Desert where it receives an average of 12 inches of rainwater per year. The City’s effort to promote water conservation and efficient use of water resources have resulted in Tucson’s average per capita residential water consumption being generally less than 112 gallons per day. That’s far below average rates in other parts of Arizona and in the western United States (City of Tucson).

Graywater can be a good source of irrigation water. In 2007, the state provided a tax credit of up to $1,000 for homeowners who install graywater systems (Feldman 2011). In 2008, Mayor and Council voted to require all new residences to be built with graywater capabilities. Beginning in June 2010, all new single family homes and duplexes were required to include plumbing for future graywater distribution. The city also provides manuals and guidelines to educate the public and to help install graywater facilities.

Brad Lancaster, a founder of the Desert Harvester, creatively found a way of harvesting rainwater—by cutting out a part of a curb and creating a water-catching basin around native plants. When he and his brother bought a house in the neighborhood in the 1990s, there were no trees or vegetation gardens. This also caused runoff on the street when it rained. With the neighbors’ and the city’s participation, now the street is filled with vegetation and large shade trees.

A water-catching basin, which can store street runoff and water street trees, is an effective way to conserve water. In addition, curb cutting allows more street runoff to be harvested in the basins or sidewalk strip. This is also a way to prevent storm water runoff pollution into waterways. In the desert area like Tucson, if a proper basin is provided, native plants, such as, Mesquite, Acacia, and Ironwood trees, can grow and produce edible flowers and seeds without additional watering.

Ideally, the diameter of the basin should be 1.5 to 3 times wider than the diameter of the mature canopy of the tree planted within it, because the roots uptake the majority of the harvested moisture beyond the drip line of their canopy. If there is not enough room to make a wide basin, a small basin or a number of small basins spread out around the plant is recommended. A building roof is a great source of additional runoff that can be harvested within the basin.

Increasing the number of rain gardens is another way to conserve water. In the Dunbar/Spring neighborhood, the residents petitioned the City of Tucson to build a traffic circle to slow down vehicles and capture more rainwater. Now there are several traffic circles in the neighborhood, which become a common space through special care of the community. In particular, there are traffic circles at every intersection on 9th Avenue in the Dunbar/Spring neighborhood between Speedway Boulevard and 6th Street. Each traffic circle is taken care of by the residents living at the corner, growing various edible plants with street runoff. Sometimes traffic circles also become a social gathering place. At University Boulevard and 9th Avenue, a community event was held to create an intersection mural.

Adopted from: Desert Harvesters

Lessons Learned
Potential Benefits:

• Conserves water by reusing street runoff as a source of irrigation water.
• Prevents storm water runoff pollution into waterways.
• Saves money on water bills for households.
• Grows native plants without additional watering when a proper water-catching basin is installed.
• Provides a better access to food for residents in the desert area by enabling them to grow edible plants.

Potential Issues:

• Neighborhood buy-in: Community participation is important to maintain the plants on the street.
• City support: Cutting curb and installing traffic circles require the city’s permission. Regulations should also be provided to encourage the planting of native species.
• Food-producing plants: Graywater surface irrigatation or street runoff should not be used to irrigate any plants that produce food, except for citrus and nut trees.
• Detergent use: When graywater is used for plant irrigation, care must be taken with detergent use (e.g., low sodium, no boron, no chlorine, low alkalinity).
• Basins: Basins should be installed before planting trees and should be an appropriate size and depth.
• Sensitive plants: Graywater should not be used on plants that are salt sensitive or need acidic soils.