In “Walkable
City”, author Jeff Speck points toward a combination of the two, a European
concept called “shared streets”. On streets for which conventional traffic
engineering would normally call for stop signs or signals, all traffic controls
devices are instead removed. Curbs and
crosswalks are also removed. And the streets
are designed to encourage cars to move continuously but cautiously. The expectation is that traffic movement will
be improved.
Ten years
ago, I would have called the concept a fairy tale. And also made a comment about having a bridge
to sell.
But ten
years have taught me that urbanism, and drivers, can work in ways that don’t
conform to our deeply-rooted expectations.
There is surprising evidence that shared streets can work.
Exhibit A is
Poynton, Cheshire, England. A surface
intersection of two highways in the center of the village was creating large
traffic jams and, by discouraging pedestrian crossings, was effectively
dividing the village in half.
A shared
street solution was proposed, in what is called a double-roundel configuration.
Sarah Goodyear of Atlantic Cities describes further. The article includes a video which, at
fifteen minutes, seems twice as long as necessary, but is a good introduction
to the problem and the apparent solution.
(Language note: The British use “pavement” to describe what those in the
U.S. would call “sidewalks”. Knowing
this makes the video a little less confusing.)
Despite much
initial skepticism, the Poynton traffic modifications seem to be working. A local newspaper offers a cautious
thumbs-up. An internet search yields
voices still willing to decry the solution, but those voices will always be
present.
Even more
surprising are the residents on the video who tie an uptick in local civility
to the road configuration. I believe that
social interaction can be affected by physical form, but am surprised that
casual observers could make the same connection as quickly as they did.
As Goodyear
notes, the video producer is an advocate of shared streets and the concept has
been less effective in other locations, but every new idea has a period during
which its implementation issues are sorted out.
I’m not
willing to concede that shared streets can be a panacea, but the concept seems
to offer more potential than I would have expected. And I offer kudos to Poynton and the other
funding entities for spending the British equivalent of 6 million dollars on
such a novel idea.
Bringing the
issue closer to home, is there a traffic situation in the North Bay to which a
shared street concept might apply? My
nomination is the street loop around Sonoma Plaza. The stop sign controlled intersections have
always seemed inefficient, especially at the corner of Broadway and Napa
Street.
Shared
streets offer much about which to think.
And more proof that Jeff Speck has written a book that is doing much to
change the conversation about how cities, and villages, work.
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (davealden53@comcast.net)
Shared streets seem to have limitations, too. Take a look at Exhibition Road in London, where a shared street was attempted on an arterial street, and the problems that have developed there.
ReplyDeleteThat said, it appears shared street solutions are best for places with low- to medium- traffic, like village centers and secondary through streets, where there's too much traffic for a woonerf- or home zone-style play environment to take root, but not enough to warrant a complete street.
Steve, thanks for the comment and for the Exhibition Road suggestion. From my initial internet check of Exhibition Road, I found objective descriptions of the modifications, but not much pro and con comment. I'll continue looking.
DeleteMy thought is that shared streets are where roundabouts where twenty years ago, a newly identified tool in the traffic management toolbox, but one for which the best applications and design details were still to be determined.
I'm surprised that Poynton is working as well as reported and suspect that the video editor cherry-picked the interviewed. I'd love to visit Poynton, observe the shared street, and form my own opinion.