Creating Healthy, Walkable Places: Community Design Matters

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Creating Healthy, Walkable Places Community
Design Matters

• Integrating Public Health Into Community Design
• June 13, 2006
• Paul Zykofsky, B.Arch, MUP, AICP, Assoc. AIA
• Local Government Commission

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Local Government Commission

• Nonprofit membership organization based in
  Sacramento, CA of local government officials
  elected and staff
• Founded in 1979 to work on solar energy
• During 1980s expanded to work on environmental
  issues pollution prevention, waste management,
  hazardous waste
• 1991 Started working on land use issues

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The Ahwahnee Principles, 1991

• Response to our members concerns over sprawling,
  poorly planned development in their communities
• Assembled with assistance from leading architects
  and planners working on innovative solutions

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The Ahwahnee Principles, 1991

• Planning complete and integrated communities with
  mix of uses
• Different uses should be in walking distance of
  one another
• Within walking distance of transit stops
• Should contain a diversity of housing types
• Should have a center focus

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Implementation Strategy

• Plans should be developed through an open process
  and participants in the process should be
  provided visual models of all planning proposals.

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Factors that Influence Active Living

• Land Use Mix
• Network Connectivity
• Street Design
• Site Design
• Density
• Beliefs/Perceptions
• Crime
• Safety

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Land Use Mix Summary of the Literature

• Residents of mixed-use communities have more
  opportunities to walk and use transit
• For trips less than one mile (75 of trips),
  mixed-use communities generate up to 4-times as
  many walk trips.

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Land Use Mix Example
Town Center, Brea, CA
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Alternative Patterns of Development
Traditional
Conventional
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Housing over retail shops Sacramento, CA
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Housing over coffee shop Davis, CA
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Housing over retail Baldwin Park, Orlando, FL
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Housing next to retail Salinas, CA
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Housing over retail Sacramento, CA
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Street Networks Summary of the Literature

• Poor network connectivity reduces pedestrian
  mobility and trips
• As the number of intersections and blocks
  increase the number of walk trips increase
• As the number of cul-de-sacs and loops increase
  the number of walk trips decrease

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Conventional Pattern of Development
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Trip Assignment Conventional
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Traditional Pattern of Development
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Trip Assignment Traditional
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Traditional vs. Conventional
Central Business Districts at the same scale
Great Streets, Allen Jacobs
Great Streets, Allen Jacobs
Savannah, Georgia
Irvine, California
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Traditional vs. Conventional
Neighborhoods at the same scale
Great Streets, Allen Jacobs
Great Streets, Allen Jacobs
Portland, Oregon
Walnut Creek, California
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California Population Growth and Transportation
1970-2000
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Network and Capacity
2
2
4
2
Same Total Lanes
6
6
2

• More Capacity
• VMT
• Turns
• Clearance Time
• Signal Phase

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4
Source Walter Kulash, P.E., Glatting Jackson
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Incremental Efficiency
800 600 400 200
Capacity of Additional Through Lane (VPH)
Source Walter Kulash, P.E., Glatting Jackson,
from ITE Journal, January 2003.
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Street Design Summary of the Literature

• Perceptual qualities of the street influence
  pedestrian use
• Good pedestrian environments
• maintain visual and sensory attention
• streets are calm, narrow, and complex

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Principles of Healthy Streets

• Streets designed for people, not just cars
• Friendly to cars, pedestrians and cyclists

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Principles of Healthy Streets

• Streets designed so drivers feel comfortable at
  slow speeds
• 15-25 mph on neighborhood streets
• 25-35 mph on avenues and boulevards

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Healthy Streets Need Good Sidewalks

• We impact the freedom of all residents
  especially children and seniors when we fail to
  provide good sidewalks

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Healthy Streets Need Good Sidewalks

• Detached from curb
• At least 5 feet wide
• Planting strip helps shade street and sidewalk

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Healthy Neighborhoods Need Good Street Crossings
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Pedestrians will walk up to 150 feet out of
their way to cross
300 feet
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Curb Extensions
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Curb Extensions Example
Venice, FL
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Retrofitting Existing Streets

• Traffic Calming has emerged in the last few years
  to address problems with existing streets
• Streets that are unsafe, especially for
  pedestrians and bicyclists
• Streets that are too wide
• Streets with too much cut-through traffic
• Streets that are difficult to cross

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Stop signs versus traffic calming
Traffic Calming
40 mph 30 mph 20 mph 10 mph 0 mph
Stop Stop Stop Stop
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Site Design Summary of the Literature

• Design features that promote walk/bike trips
• Appropriate levels of residential density, land
  use mix, and street connectivity
• Short building setbacks
• Neighborhood parks and greenspace

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Site Design Example
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Principle Treat Streets as Public Amenities
Johnson City, Tennessee Existing Conditions
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Principle Treat Streets as Public Amenities
Johnson City, Tennessee Computer Simulation
Remove wall, Buildings face street
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Principle Treat Streets as Public Amenities
Johnson City, Tennessee Computer Simulation
Remove wall, Buildings face street, Add trees,
Pedestrian crossings, Remove overhead wires
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Principle Treat Streets as Public Amenities
Johnson City, Tennessee Computer Simulation
Remove wall, Buildings face street, Add trees,
Pedestrian crossings, Remove overhead wires, Add
vegetation and picket fence
Developed by Steve Price, Urban Advantage in
association w/ Dover Kohl Partners Glatting
Jackson
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Compact Development Summary of the Literature

• Appropriate residential and employment density
  (7 units and 100 employees per acre) are
  associated with increased walk, bike, and transit
  trips

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Compact vs. Low Density Development
San Diego County Projected land consumption by
2020 under Smart Growth, transit-oriented scenario
San Diego Association of Governments
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Compact vs. Low Density Development
San Diego County Projected land consumption by
2020 under existing policies
San Diego Association of Governments
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Land Use Pattern Affects Travel Higher Density
can reduce Vehicle Trips
Significant reduction as we go from 3-4
units/acre to over 20 units/acre
Vehicle Trips
Walking Trips
Source John Holtzclaw, PhD, Sierra Club
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Land Use Pattern Affects Travel Density to
Support Transit

• For Light Rail Service
• 18-25 units/acre in urban area
• For Bus Service
• 7 units/ acre (every 30 minutes)

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Land Use Pattern Affects Travel Density to
Support Retail

• For a 10,000 sq.ft. Convenience Store
• 7 units/acre
• For a 25,000 sq.ft. Small Supermarket
• 18 units/acre

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Regional traffic arterial
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Regional traffic arterial
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Regional traffic arterial
Photo Simulation by Steve Price, Urban Advantage
(www.urban-advantage.com)
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Message is getting out
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For more information

• Local Government Commission
• Center for Livable Communities
• Web www.lgc.org
• Phone [phone]
• Healthy Transportation Network
• Web www.healthytransportation.net
• Active Living Leadership
• Web www.activelivingleadership.org
• 6th Annual New Partners for Smart Growth
  Conference, Los Angeles, CA
• February 8-10, 2007 www.newpartners.org