Impressive video on how a group of enterprising young people were able to transform a car-centric block into a more pedestrian-friendly, visually pleasing space in just two days spending only a thousand bucks.
We've got the first complete street in Dallas…. It didn't cost millions of dollars. We didn't have to hire consultants from other faraway places to make this happen. It took us a day. And all we did was slow the street down. We made room for everybody. For cars, for people, for bicyclists.… We've changed the psychology of the street.
The innovating company, Shenzhen Huashi Future Parking Equipment, claims that building the infrastructure for straddling buses is three times faster and much cheaper than a comparable distance of new subways. The wheel-rail-hybrid buses are powered by municipal electricity and solar energy, thus reducing the cost of their operation as well as fuel consumption. They will purportedly reduce traffic jams by 25 percent. There’s even motion-sensing alarm system built into the bus to prevent oversize vehicles from passing through the bus and to warn cars if they swerve too close to the bus’ wheels.
I guess I still don't see how its that much more advantageous over regular buses since it still has to stop at intersections. But I guess it won't disrupt the flow of traffic it is traveling with and hey, it looks pretty cool!
This video is the impetus behind this blog. It aired a few weeks ago on PBS' new show "Need to Know" and it highlights the dangerous nature of Buford Highway in Atlanta. Fast highway speeds, limited visibility due to hills, and virtually no pedestrian crossings have created a perilous environment for pedestrians, at a time when the area is attracting more low-income residents that utilize bus services and need to hazard crossing the highway to get where they need to go. The inspiration of this blog was the Atlanta pedestrian-advocacy group featured in the story - PEDS.org.
The story also reminded me of some of the state highways in our area that pose a risk to pedestrians. The one nearest to me is Shawnee Mission Parkway in Johnson County. Most of Shawnee Mission Parkway serves pretty automobile-centric areas, but as you travel east into the denser areas of Johnson County, the highway poses more of a threat to pedestrians trying to cross. The developers of the Mission Gateway Project at Shawnee Mission Parkway and Roe wanted to slow down the highway and make it more pedestrian friendly, connecting their project to neighborhoods to the south, but they received resistance from KDOT.
