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December 3, 2004
CoolTown mobility review
Here's a summary of how the CoolTown entries on mobility may fit together, which includes transportation:
There are millions of people who would live in a city with only pedestrians and no cars. It'd have lots of piazzas and paseos with subways in the larger cities.
While not a reality for most cities, they ought to take a long hard look at bus rapid transit (BRT) and streetcars instead of light rail and buses. BRT and streetcars are much more efficient, cost-effective, quiet - and cooler. Hmm, a BRT streetcar is probably the most efficient of all, but it hasn't quite been invented yet.
Cars still rule most of our cities, so hide the parking from pedestrian areas, use stacked parking systems in garages and car sharing instead of parking lots.
Bookmark this article - it'll be updated in the months ahead.
Posted by Neil | Link to Article
December 2, 2004
BRT: Boldly going where no car or train has gone before
The mass customization economy has recently produced a new vehicle that travels freely and speedily on dedicated pathways like trains, yet can navigate through traffic like a car to get you more specifically to your destination. Not only that, it signals traffic lights up ahead to turn green as it approaches.
The 21st century version of bus rapid transit (BRT) began running June 30th, 2004. Yes that's a bus you're looking at... and yes it's in Vegas, but that's the luxury of having more tax revenue than most municipalities dream of - to provide prototypes for the have-nots to take advantage of down the road. Why didn't it come sooner? The technology didn't exist, such as sensors that automate the bus on the dedicated lanes and when approaching stations, as well as synchronize the traffic lights ahead for non-stop travel.
Watching the video of this new hybrid-electric form of mobility makes one wish all the buses in town were this quiet, and this cool.
Posted by Neil | Link to Article
December 1, 2004
Streetcar revival
While the next generation of mass customized, personalized mass transit won't arrive for decades, we're going back to the future for the closest thing today - the streetcar.
Boston, Portland, Seattle, Tampa, San Francisco, Charlotte, Tucson and New Orleans are just a few of the many cities that revived streetcars. Denver, Washington DC, Minneapolis, Philadelphia and Boulder are considering it. Why? Because they're efficient, small, quiet, air-conditioned and best situated to pass the golden 5-minute rule of waiting for transit. By the way, is it any coincidence that the aforementioned cities are also among the most popular, prosperous and cool?
Why did the streetcars disappear in the first place when they were so popular in the early 20th century? Rent a copy of Who Framed Roger Rabbit? - or read how GM bought out the streetcar systems under subsidiary names, dismantled them, burned them in celebratory funeral pyres and established the Greyhound bus system.
Posted by Neil | Link to Article
November 30, 2004
Personalized mass transit?
Transportation really hasn't changed much in the last 100 years - we still have trains and cars. You still have to wait for trains longer than you want to and they don't go exactly where you want them to, when you want them to. Cars are increasingly inefficient as traffic congestion grows, among the myriad other problems they cause.
Personalized Rapid Transit (pictured) may be the next big thing in mobility, though perhaps not for another fifty years. Check out the video - it's fun to watch, but the music needs to go, seriously. The vehicles are referred to as taxis since you don't have to wait - the cars are waiting for you, thereby passing the all important mass transit 5-minute rule. You just jump in, tell it where to go, and off it zips. Because they're either above ground or below ground (ideal) there's no traffic congestion, and best of all it makes ground-level streets safer and potentially much more pedestrian-oriented.
Posted by Neil | Link to Article
November 29, 2004
Charrette lays out vision for Detroit
The first ever beta community that allowed future tenants to design a new urban village in Detroit took place last week Tuesday. Here's a report by the charrette coordinator, Matthew Clayson:
"Everything went great, even better than planned. More than 40 people attended and the group proved to be a nice cross section of people from the city and surburbs. All in all, everyone stated the need for piazzas, pedestrian friendly plazas, green space and urbanity. Parking issues were a challange, as many recognized the need for parking, but did not want to "overrun" the area with parking ramps. Mixed use was a common theme.
Posted by Neil | Link to Article
