1. Transportation / Land Use Interaction Mark Hallenbeck Director, TRAC-UW

2. Land Use What makes land attractive? (Why did you choose to live where you live?) –For business? –For other?

3. Introduction To Travel Transportation is a means to an end, not an end in itself Travel takes place so that people/goods can get from one activity to another

4. Travel Is an economic good –The cheaper travel is, the more people travel –The more expensive, the less they travel What are the costs of travel?

5. Transportation / Land Use Interaction Basic truisms: –Land use affects the level and nature of transportation demand –Availability of transportation affects the land use

6. Transportation – Land Use An increase in land use activity (generally) increases the demand for transportation A decrease in land use activity (generally) decreases the demand for transportation

7. Transportation – Land Use Increasing transportation access generally increases the value of land, and therefore its potential for development (or increased development) Poor transportation access generally decreases the value of land and consequently, its potential for development

8. Transportation – Land Use This relationship is thus circular In growing urban areas –Transportation drives land use –Which in turn drives the need for more transportation –Which in turn drives growth – which needs more transportation

9. Transportation – Land Use This relationship is not absolute Good/Improved transportation alone will not cause development –There must be a reason for development

10. Transportation – Land Use Similarly, in some cases, development occurs despite transportation system shortcomings –(other location qualities override lousy transportation)

11. Transportation – Land Use Availability of transportation can be used to encourage or discourage growth in specific areas It raises (or lowers) the attractiveness of land parcels relative to other land parcels

12. Land Use - Transportation Shape and design of land use dramatically affects the potential for success for different modes of travel Land use affects: –Access to / efficiency of - different modes –Mobility required to get to the next activity (distance that must be traveled)

13. Background People travel to get from activity to activity They choose their mode based on: –how easy it is to use, –how cheap it is, –how long it takes, and –whether it has other necessary attributes

14. Background Land use design affects many of these factors The following graphic helps illustrate the effects of land use on both mode choice and transportation system performance

16. Land Use – Transportation Interaction You see: –Street lay out affects what modes are convenient –The same is true for the design/presence of other modal facilities –Land use mix also determines distance required to change types of activity being performed

17. Land Use – Transportation Interaction Note that all of the cul-de-sac generated traffic must use the major arterial. It thus becomes congested quickly So why is this design so popular?

18. Effect of cul-de-sac Design Results in congested arterials Congestion results in pressure to expand arterials Same neighborhoods often resist expansion of roads near their development, because they impinge on the quality of life

20. NIMBY Not In My Back Yard

21. NOPE - not on planet earth NIMTOO – not in my term of office LULU – locally unwanted land use NIMFYE – not in my front yard either NIMEY – not in my election year

22. Effect of cul-de-sac Design In classic suburban design - through traffic is the “biggest problem” –It is hard to provide sufficient amounts of roadway space for all the development desired –“Lack of through streets” places all traffic on the limited number of through arterials –Turning movements often slow traffic further

23. Land Use – Transportation Interaction There’s more to it than suburban design = high vehicle use

24. Land Use – Transportation Interaction Style of development –Affects what travel choices you should provide –How you should design the transportation system for each if you wish people to use it

25. Land Use - Transportation How do these two styles of development effect transit route design and efficiency? –Distance to route –Circuity of route (and thus speed of trip)

27. Land Use – Transportation Interaction Transit requires density of trip making –Is density supplied by the level of development? Yes = local stops are sufficiently effective No = park and ride (or other mechanism) is needed

28. Land Use – Transportation Interaction Transit service and density –Density provides a good market –Good transit service + good market equals good ridership –Good ridership = even better service (more trips)

29. Land Use – Transportation Interaction Transit requires many people either: –Going from one place to another, or –Moving between multiple destinations along a corridor The higher capacity the transit vehicle, the more people are needed to cost justify the system

30. Land Use – Transportation Interaction To be attractive, even with density, transit requires other attributes as well: –How hard is it to walk to the bus stop? –Is it safe? –Is it comfortable to wait for the next bus? –Service frequency –Does service go where people want to go? –How quickly does it go there?

36. Side Note: Transit Service Policy What is the goal of transit? What is transit trying to accomplish?

37. Side Note: Transit Service Policy Because transit is heavily subsidized, does that affect where service should be placed? How much service should be spread around lower density areas? –My constituents paid for it, they should get service too!

38. Transit Service Policy Debate Of new transit service funded a few years ago by new taxes in King County, –How much should be spent in Seattle where the number of rides gained per dollar spent is greatest, versus –Suburban King County, which (because of lower density and the selected land use designs) has less access to transit, and where the number of new riders / dollar is low – but that contributes a large portion of the funding?

39. Land Use – Transportation Interaction What about other transit modes? –Light rail –Heavy rail –Monorail? They are successful if you can get enough people to/from their activities from the stations easily (attractively)

40. Land Use – Transportation Interaction How can I accomplish this? –Density near the station (within walking distance) –Provide parking (P&R) –Transit feeder access

41. Land Use - Transportation Each method for creating density of trip making has drawbacks –Traffic impacts More density = better transit market, but also More density = more car trips, therefore More density = more congestion –Cost Parking spaces aren’t cheap Feeder buses are expensive, and not always very attractive

42. Land Use – Transportation Interaction Where dense corridors do not exist, routes are often coordinated to improve the number of destinations you can serve from a single dense node This means transfers – which people generally hate

43. Transit Arrival Information Dramatically reduces perceived wait time

44. Transit Information (OneBusAway) Phone (voice or SMS)iPhoneWeb

45. Creating Density Is there a market for dense real estate development? –Will people buy/rent in the dense development?

46. Land use - Transportation What is needed to make walking an attractive mode?

47. Land use - Transportation Walking –Are there places to walk to? –Is it safe to walk? –Is it comfortable to walk?

48. Land use - Transportation Places to walk to? This means you need a mix of land uses near each other if you want lots of walking activity –But they have to be the right land uses mixed together

49. Land use - Transportation Mixed use developments: –Residential –Retail (particularly services) –Office Or: –Residential –Entertainment –Retail (restaurants)

50. Walking But even with good mixed uses, walking will only happen if it is convenient, safe, and comfortable –Are there good pedestrian facilities? (sidewalks) –Can I walk directly to my destination? –How badly am I affected by traffic? –Does it feel safe? (e.g., lighting)

51. Urban Villages The idea that we can create good mixes of land uses with a walkable area Thus, walking captures a large share of trips internal to the area –Increasing quality of life –Decreasing total traffic demand

52. Engineers Make Trade Offs Example: Arterials and pedestrians By definition, arterials are designed / intended to move modest to large volumes of vehicles –Ensures economic vitality –Many older roads are specifically designed for cars – and discourage pedestrians Aurora Ave North

53. Trade Offs As cities look to become more pedestrian friendly – we create conflict We want to allow safe pedestrian movements along and across arterials –But we still need to maintain traffic flow People want it –But different people than those who want people to walk Regional economics need it

54. SR 7 – Spanaway (Ft. Lewis)

55. Phase 2 Refuge, Remove X-walk, Flashing Signs, Consolidate bus stops

56. Phase 3 (Partial) Sidewalks, Bus Shelters, X-Walks

57. Walking Behavior Phase 3

58. Pedestrian / Vehicle Conflicts

59. Safely? In a land where drivers and pedestrians are constantly on their phones?

60. Video Clip http://vimeo.com/24572222

61. LA Times: Number of 'distracted walking' injuries quadruple in 7 years July 30, 2012|July 30, 2012 From 2004 - 2011, injuries and deaths to pedestrians wearing headphones more than tripled – U. of MD. The Consumer Product Safety Commission said more than 1,150 people (a fourfold increase in seven years) were treated in emergency rooms last year after accidents occurring while using handheld devices.Commission http://vimeo.com/35618156

62. Alter Behavior?

64. Land use - Transportation What is needed to make biking an attractive mode?