https://www.americancityandcounty.com/wp-content/themes/acc_child/assets/images/logo/footer-logo.png
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Hybrid Work
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcast
    • Latest videos
    • Product Guides
  • Resources & Events
    • Back
    • Resources
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • IWCE 2022
    • How to Contribute
    • Municipal Cost Index – Archive
    • Equipment Watch Page
    • American City & County Awards
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Statement
    • Terms of Service
American City and County
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Hybrid Work
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcasts
    • Latest videos
    • Product Guides
  • Resources/Events
    • Back
    • Webinars
    • White Papers/eBooks
    • IWCE Expo
    • Calendar of Events
    • How to Contribute
    • American City & County Awards
    • Municipal Cost Index
    • Equipment Watch Page
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Stament
    • Terms of Service
  • newsletter
  • Administration
  • Economy & Finance
  • Procurement
  • Public Safety
  • Public Works & Utilities
  • Smart Cities & Technology
  • Magazine
acc.com

Public Works & Utilities


Cities design for pedestrian safety

Cities design for pedestrian safety

Many urban centers are revitalizing their downtown corridors, revamping commercial and entertainment areas and constructing new developments. To handle
  • Written by Deanna Hart
  • 1st August 2007

Many urban centers are revitalizing their downtown corridors, revamping commercial and entertainment areas and constructing new developments. To handle the increase of vehicle and pedestrian traffic in core areas, cities are introducing street designs that are safer for pedestrians.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, cities were centered on Main Streets, creating dense communities with shops, restaurants and other services in a central location. As cars became popular, street designs changed. “The idea took over [to specialize], so the street was [used] only for moving traffic, and things that get in the way of traffic, like pedestrians, [were kept separate],” says John Norquist, president and CEO of the San Francisco-based Congress for New Urbanism.

Now, as mixed-use developments, retail centers and businesses are moving back to city centers, residents are demanding safer street designs. In 2004, Denver identified areas throughout the city that needed denser redevelopment and improvements for pedestrians. Officials determined that the “areas of change,” detailed in the city’s Pedestrian Master Plan, were not effectively serving the city’s pedestrians and they often lacked sidewalks on one side of a street. “A lot of times, those were areas that were under-utilized, and one symptom of that was that they had poor pedestrian connections through them,” says Denver Development and Planning Supervisor Jason Longsdorf.

Longsdorf says 10 percent of the city does not have sidewalks. To address the issue, Denver now requires developers to construct sidewalks in new or reconstructed areas. Also, Denver is testing mid-block crossings, speed messaging signs and countdown timers, which inform pedestrians of the amount of time they have to cross a street. In areas with heavy traffic, the city plans to replace double left-turn lanes with medians, which Longsdorf says will provide a refuge for pedestrians as they cross the street. “That makes a big difference for pedestrians and vehicles as far as where to know to look for each other,” he says.

Vibrating signals that emit a “chirping” sound also are being used at several city intersections. “So, it’s actually useful for the deaf and blind,” Longsdorf says. In addition, over the last 15 years, the city has been constructing curb ramps that comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. To date, 700 ramps have been installed, and about 5,000 remain to be built.

In 2003, Bellevue, Wash., officials developed the city’s Great Streets program, which called for additional landscaping, accommodations for transit service and more signs throughout the growing city. “As the city matured and developed further, there became clearly a lot of desire to walk,” says Mike Ingram, a senior planner with the city’s Transportation Department. “In fact, we want people [to walk] because we can’t accommodate all the travel in cars on the street with the kind of development intensity that we’re getting now.”

Bellevue is known for its 600-foot-long superblocks, which are defined by wide, often five-lane intersections and were constructed to facilitate vehicle transportation. The Great Streets project calls for signalized mid-block crossings, which allow pedestrians to cross streets between intersections.

As cities nationwide continue to grow, the ease with which pedestrians navigate busy streets will be monitored. In Bellevue, the rate and amount of development will determine how often streets will be evaluated for pedestrian conditions. “[We want to] carry forth [our] vision of downtown and make it more of a pedestrian-friendly place,” Ingram says.

Tags: Public Works & Utilities

Most Recent


  • last-mile
    How green last-mile infrastructure benefits your community
    Overseeing transportation is one of the most important jobs of municipal leaders as it underpins a wide range of aspects within a municipality, including its economy, community connectedness and the health of the local environment. One of the most deceptively challenging elements of effectively overseeing transportation is the development of last-mile transit infrastructure. That is, […]
  • metal buildings
    Metal buildings: Their versatility and durability suit them for public sector infrastructure
    Some cities and counties are looking at one structure type to help them meet their infrastructure needs, says Phil Skellorn, senior structural engineer at Buro Happold, an engineering and consulting services firm. “Some public owners are looking at metal buildings as an economical option.” Skellorn says metal buildings can offer advantages if the off-the-shelf product […]
  • parking
    The future of parking in the 15-minute city
    At first glance, the 15-minute city spells the end for the parking industry. Designed specifically to cut emissions from private car usage, the city planning model calls for decentralized neighborhoods where residents can live, learn, shop and work without needing to drive. The 15-minute city would enable people to get anywhere they need to go […]
  • Railway safety
    Local leaders, NLC gather on Capital Hill to advocate for railway safety legislation
    Following approval last week of the bipartisan Railway Safety Act by the Senate Commerce Committee—with an added amendment commissioning the National Academy of Sciences to study frequently blocked railway crossings—local leaders continued their push for its full Congressional approval Wednesday at an advocacy briefing on Capitol Hill hosted by the National League of Cities (NLC).  […]

Leave a comment Cancel reply

-or-

Log in with your American City and County account

Alternatively, post a comment by completing the form below:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Content

  • How local governments can get ahead of the infrastructure wave: Strategies to mitigate risk
  • Prioritizing rapid restore leads to stronger ransomware attack recovery
  • Ultrafast electric vehicle charging will propel local governments into the future
  • The Colonial Pipeline attack: What it means for critical infrastructure, and why businesses need to have a plan in place

White papers


5 reasons why Plan Examiners need Objective Trapeze

30th May 2023

7 Permitting & Licensing Fails Slowing Community Growth

24th May 2023

The Secret Ingredient to Local Government Employee Retention

23rd May 2023
view all

Webinars


How to Centralize and Build a Grants Management Process at your Organization

24th May 2023

Making Permitting Easier: What We’ve Learned Helping America’s Largest Cities Improve Their Permitting Process

16th May 2023

Digital Property Tax Collection: Tales from the Trenches of Modernization

16th May 2023
view all

PODCAST


Young Leaders Episode 4 – Cyril Jefferson – City Councilman, High Point, North Carolina

13th October 2020

Young Leaders Episode 3 – Shannon Hardin – City Council President, Columbus, Ohio

27th July 2020

Young Leaders Episode 2 – Christian Williams – Development Services Planner, Goodyear, Ariz.

1st July 2020
view all

GALLERIES


Gallery: Annual index ranks America’s top performing cities; most are in the West

30th May 2023

Gallery: Top 10 American cities for seasonal and summer jobs

25th May 2023

Gallery: 10 of America’s most affordable cities

9th May 2023
view all

Twitter


AmerCityCounty

Digital government comes with massive benefits — and new considerations, from accessibility to security to customer… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

31st May 2023
AmerCityCounty

5 reasons why Plan Examiners need Objective Trapeze dlvr.it/Sptl5z

30th May 2023
AmerCityCounty

Navigating crises with confidence: Five ways strategic plans support crisis response dlvr.it/SptVKN

30th May 2023
AmerCityCounty

Gallery: Annual index ranks America’s top performing cities; most are in the West dlvr.it/SpszdK

30th May 2023
AmerCityCounty

2022 Crown Communities Award winner: Miami-Dade County Clerk of Courts’ jury selection system dlvr.it/SphCBk

26th May 2023
AmerCityCounty

Gallery: Top 10 American cities for seasonal and summer jobs dlvr.it/SpdFWy

25th May 2023
AmerCityCounty

How to leverage digital tools to drive innovation in government dlvr.it/Spcktb

25th May 2023
AmerCityCounty

With many cities facing a fiscal cliff as ARPA funding ends, debt ceiling debate continues on Capitol Hill dlvr.it/SpZLph

24th May 2023

Newsletters

Sign up for American City & County’s newsletters to receive regular news and information updates about local governments.

Resale Insights Dashboard

The Resale Insights Dashboard provides model-level data for the entire used equipment market to help you save time and money.

Municipal Cost Index

Updated monthly since 1978, our exclusive Municipal Cost Index shows the effects of inflation on the cost of providing municipal services

Media Kit and Advertising

Want to reach our digital audience? Learn more here.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • IWCE’s Urgent Communications
  • IWCE Expo

WORKING WITH US

  • About Us
  • Contact Us

FOLLOW American City and County ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2023 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.