Living at UC-Irvine make me think a lot about the current state of planning and the thought and effort which goes into developing public spaces and areas for the use by members of the public. One of my projects in coursework involved remixing my neighborhood. I focused on remixing my own neighborhood and the street that I lived on.
Strong Towns blog calls the street that I lived on — Campus Drive — a STROAD. Wide lanes, little thought given to anything other than the efficient and highest-speed delivery of vehicles on the road. What I experienced, on the other hand, was a street with a good amount of pedestrian traffic and significant traffic from the campus shuttle service — with almost all the lines of the campus shuttle converging on the street I lived on. This is an example of a cross section of the street that I lived on.
I figured there has to be a way to prioritize transit and the pedestrian experience on my street. Observing the usage of the street, I noticed the following
- Lots of bicyclists on the sidewalk.
- Shuttles coming by every minute or two toward campus in the morning and evening peak (combined, 30+ busses per hour).
- Student housing along the street.
What do you think? Does this balance the user experience much more? I personally think that this would be a good draft for a renewed Campus Drive.
Andrew Reker 