In Germany, during the cold war, the concept of the “ghost” station developed as a solution to a curious urban planning quagmire. As travel with Berlin became more restricted, the combined Berlin subway lines, referred to as the U-Bahn and S-Bahn, underneath the city had to be divided between east and west. In doing this [...]
Imagine taking one of the busiest highways in your city, sinking it underground, and replacing it with a dynamic urban park that caters to residents of all ages and backgrounds. Now imagine designing and building this feat of engineering in less than a decade. While most cities would find this task impossible to complete (ask [...]
Affordable housing, as defined by the U.S. government, enables qualified residents to put 30% of their income toward housing while the government subsidizes the rest of the cost. While New York City (N.Y.C.) upholds this basic principle, the conditions surrounding affordable housing often make its related costs unrealistic for low-income families. Contemporary affordable housing in [...]
Montreal Island (the core of the Montreal region) boasts of a city bus network, a subway system (hereafter, the metro), and a commuter rail system serving the entire metropolitan region. Eventhough Montreal has one of the highest public transit riderships in North America, some places in the Montreal area are not served by public transit [...]
Frequently cited as an indicator of an emerging economy, bicycles are becoming the symbol of sustainable and productive communities. From Copenhagen, Denmark, to Portland, Oregon, bicyclists represent a considerable portion of daily commuters. Will the Motor City (Detroit, Michigan) ever relinquish its auto-centric ideals for the benefits of pedal power? A combination of rising gas [...]
One of the nice things about living in Florida are ample beaches and water. Besides possessing your typical tourist attraction, Florida’s beaches and waterfront allows transportation and urban planners to be creative with public transit. Water taxis are gaining popularity in the state, and the Tampa Bay area can utilize water taxis to connect two counties [...]
The Turcot Interchange is a major highway junction in Montreal, connecting the north-south Autoroute 15 and the east-west Autoroute 20/720. The elevated interchange accommodates about 280,000 vehicles a day. It is located near several working-class neighbourhoods, and is next to a rail-yard as well as the Saint-Jacques Escarpment. Hastily constructed in 1966-67 in time for [...]
Two weeks ago, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) Board voted to award a nearly $130 million dollar contract to ACS Transport Solutions Group to install a modernized fare system for Philadelphia’s public transportation infrastructure. The move is seen largely as a response to the city’s “outdated” fare collection system, reliant heavily on tokens and [...]
Transit-oriented development (TOD) is the development of mixed-used development to optimize access and use of public transit. Transit stops serve as the center of the neighborhood. The concentration of shops and restaurants are highest around the center and gradually decline further away. TOD maximizes public transit use by making it easier for riders to walk [...]
For almost fifty years, there has been a missing link in Montreal’s road network between two segments of Cavendish Boulevard; one ending in Cote Saint-Luc (an independent municipality), the other in an industrial park in Saint-Laurent (a Montreal borough) to the north. Canadian Pacific and Canadian National railyards separate these areas, and the two sections [...]
One concern for contemporary city life may be how to implement and incorporate sustainability. Every day, each person who chooses to walk, or travel by bus or subway contributes to a cleaner and more sustainable environment. Chemically, it means fewer pounds of soot, carbon monoxide exhausted from automobiles, hydrocarbons naturally found in petroleum, and other [...]
“Rails-to-Trails” is an example of how urban planners and urban designers are repurposing abandoned rail corridors for use as pedestrian and bicycle trails. As of September 2010, there were 19,872 miles of rail-trails in the United States. Ithaca, New York is home to several rails-to-trails projects that offer active recreation opportunities, useful commuting alternatives, and [...]
The Leeroy Selmon Crosstown Expressway is a tolled road that connects the South Tampa neighborhoods with unincorporated Hillsborough County. It is a major transportation artery that cuts directly through Downtown Tampa, an area currently undergoing major planning redevelopments, including a planned Riverwalk development. There is ample space along the Crosstown Expressway to create a 1.7-mile [...]
A big Global Site Plans welcome to our newest blogger, Yosef Robinson in Montreal, Canada. Yosef Robinson, born and raised in Montreal, holds a B.A. in Geography with a Minor in Urban Studies from Rutgers University, as well as a Master’s in City and Regional Planning from the Ohio State University. At present, he is [...]
On October 1, 2011, SALT Beyoğlu hosted the event “The Making Of – Taksim Belongs to Pedestrians,” moderated by Hans Venhuizen. The second of the English-language “The Making Of” events held at SALT, this particular gathering discussed how Taksim Square could be utilized by pedestrians. Similar in the style of “The Making Of – Plans for [...]
In a previous blog, I wrote about the car-free suburb in Vauban, Germany. However, whether by intentional design or chance circumstances, quite a few other cities around the world continue to operate without automobile usage. Here is a selection of some of the more idiosyncratic car-free towns and cities around the world. Supai, Arizona is [...]
Many communities across Maryland do not think of sustainable improvements when it comes time to make road improvements. But the town of Edmonston saw the road’s expiration date as a time to put a new lease on the roadways. Leading by example, the town created an innovative green street that creates environmental and transportations improvements [...]
Sidewalks exploding, train tracks buckling, foundations cracking – Is it the End? No, just a really bad drought in Texas. Drought: Standard for North America In Texas, we’ve been recording weather since 1895. If you’re looking at that history, you only have the Dust Bowl of the 30s, the decade-long dry spell of the 40s-50s, [...]
In Europe, cities are dense and compact, public transportation is plentiful and convenient, and gasoline prices are high. In the United States, cities sprawl, public transit is, on average, difficult to come by, and gas is cheap. Digression: Whoa! Since when is $4 per gallon cheap, you say? Sure, it’s the price of gold compared [...]
As technology becomes increasingly mobile, city residents are constantly in demand for information on the go. But aside from their desire to Facebook and tweet anywhere, anytime, users are looking for ways to improve their commute, quicken their pace, and reach their destination faster. Public agencies and private developers have responded to the call, creating [...]
