Livable Streets

Livable Streets

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“People have always lived on streets. They have been the places where children first learned about the world, where neighbors met, the social centers of towns and cities, the rallying points for revolts, the scenes of repression... The street has always been the scene of this conflict, between living and access, between resident and traveler, between street life and the threat of death.”
-Donald Appleyard

Distinguishing Characteristics of Livable Streets

Streets serve various functions in our daily routines. The nature and composition of these streets is varied; they can serve as conduits for different modes of transportation or as locations of community assembly. How we utilize them and what we make of the space allotted, is determined by the design and functions we choose for our streets as well as the way we interact with the urban spaces that line them.

A livable street is difficult to define; they serve as the fabric that holds together extraordinary urban spaces and ultimately build desirable communities. They strike a balance between the vehicles that travel through them and the community that lives there, works there, and plays there. They are functional corridors of public realm where people live, shop, interact, travel, and resolve their daily needs. Livable streets establish great neighborhoods and the possibility for true community building. Goods and services are readily accessible while adequate open space is provided for the local community. Unlike other streets that primarily serve the needs of traffic, they cater to the needs of everyone using them.

Livable streets are safe. Two of the best crime prevention tools, community and the vigilance created through vibrant pedestrian activity, replace fences, cameras, and padlocks along livable streets. As streets are a crucial place for children to learn about their surroundings and develop some independence, this is crucial. Children play, walk to school, and ride bicycles in these neighborhoods and along these corridors. The inherent socialness of livable streets is a benefit to communities by both bringing them together and encouraging greater interaction and by simultaneously making them concretely safer.

Street Environment

The basic concept of creating a livable streets network begins with the enhancement of the pedestrian setting. The pedestrian environment is maintained by a continuous grid-like network of through streets while incorporating design features that minimize the negative impacts of motor vehicle use on pedestrians. Traffic calming and physical separation of vehicular traffic from the pedestrian area is of paramount importance.

When a neighborhood’s streets are viewed as conduits for vehicular traffic, we sacrifice safety, community, and comfort for the sake of efficiency. Livable streets provide transportation alternatives where life is not governed by the constraint of owning a vehicle for personal mobility.

Physical Characteristics

Similar to most of the qualities of functional urban environments, there isn’t a set formula or list of prerequisites that guarantee a livable environment; however, there are some key features that foster the growth of a functional urban setting. A critical quality that most livable street environments share is the presence of physical barriers disconnecting sidewalks from automotive traffic. Typically, on-street parking or landscaping serves as sufficient barriers. A lush tree canopy provides sufficient shade while also serving as a physical division between the sidewalk and street. The delineation of these two very distinct realms is critical because it provides a spatial definition of the very different rights-of-way.

The width of the right-of-way is also a significant factor. Wide streets have a tendency to feature an excessive number of travel lanes, converting the available public space into an inhospitable arterial. The width of the roadway is a critical element for pedestrians to establish a sense of place along the corridor. Conversely, narrow streets create a claustrophobic setting for pedestrians.

While narrow streets are a critical aspect of the pedestrian environment, the street width alone is not enough to guarantee vibrant pedestrian traffic. A walkable environment cannot survive without meaningful destinations that are readily accessible to pedestrians. A street’s purpose is governed primarily by the land use and zoning classifications we designate surrounding it.

ALSO ON THE LIVABLE STREETS NETWORK

REFERENCES

Each source is referred to by the same number every time it is cited. Please keep citation style consistent.

[1] Appleyard, Donald. "Livable Streets." Los Angeles: University of California P, 1981.

[2] Duany, Andres, Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk, and Jeff Speck. "Suburban Nation: the Rise of Sprawl and the Decline of the American Dream." New York: North Point P, 2000.

[3] Dumbaugh, Eric. "Safe Streets, Livable Streets." Georgia Institute of Technology. 2005. 283-300. 01 June 2008

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