WHAT DOES A WALKABLE STREET LOOK LIKE?

Asbury Park is in planning and development to create “people oriented” streets (this post is for the few business owners on Main Street who worry that fast-moving cars are better for business than slower speeds, and improved bikability and walkability) because “…not only because they’re safer or because they enable people to get around affordably without a car. It’s also — and chiefly — because they are more economically productive.”

“A WORD OF CAUTION

If there’s one thing you should take away from this discussion of walkable streets, it’s the necessity of narrowing many of our roadways (items 1 and 2 on our checklists). The other features mentioned above — on-street parking, sufficient sidewalks etc. — are all fairly meaningless if you don’t have narrow streets. It can actually be harmful to invest in these sorts of features if you don’t also narrow the streets around them, because you’re sending the mixed message to people that a) they should walk there, but b) it won’t actually be safe for them to do so because cars will be driving too fast. Not to mention it’s a waste of municipal funding to build a beautiful new sidewalk that no one is actually going to use because it’s dangerous and unpleasant.”

WHY DOES IT MATTER?

So why does building people-oriented streets instead of only car-oriented streets matter? It’s not only because they’re safer or because they enable people to get around affordably without a car. It’s also — and chiefly — because they are more economically productive. They encourage local business activity, produce more tax value per acre and offer a better return on infrastructure investment. Learn more about why walkable streets are more economically productive.”

Read more…

https://www.strongtowns.org/journal/2018/1/19/what-does-a-walkable-street-look-like

 

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