CASE STUDY LESSONS LEARNED Introduction

These four case studies illustrate several key lessons. First, there is no one universal approach to pedestrian safety. While several of these locations undertook similar prac- tices, the particulars of those approaches were tailored to fit each location. Second, in each of the locations, high-level policy guidance played an important role in setting the tra- jectory of departmental or agency actions. Third, in each of the locations, design guidance also played a critical role. Those involved in the day-to-day planning and design of the pedestrian realm required up-to-date, specific guidance on acceptable practices.

Throughout the practices described in these four case studies, several challenges emerge as recurring themes. Navigating the requirements and priorities of agencies that share jurisdictional authority is a common difficulty. Often municipalities are reliant on county, state, or federal pro- grams and agencies; misalignment of values among the various agencies can jeopardize pedestrian-related projects. Additionally, changing the culture of an organization, or institutionalizing new philosophies, is a common difficulty.

Similarly, these case studies demonstrate several recur- ring themes in terms of successful principles that can be applied to different practices. Many of the practices were successful because of early and meaningful collaboration with partnering agencies and other stakeholders. These case studies also underscore the need for pragmatic approaches— in many cases, success was enabled by the ability of the professionals involved to form a realistic assessment of the institutional, political, or financial framework at play and adapt an approach that fit within that framework.

Challenges to Implementation

Jurisdictional Issues

Municipalities are the central players in the design, construc- tion, maintenance, operation, and retrofitting of pedestrian environments. Yet, as evidenced in the case studies, local communities are heavily reliant on funding from various levels of government and are frequently bound to the stan- dards or requirements of those bodies. Similarly, municipali-

ties frequently have county and state properties within their borders for which they lack jurisdiction.

Internal Adoption

For several of the practices included in these case studies, internal adoption or institutionalization of new practices was difficult. This challenge was often due to existing agency culture or to staff being acculturated to working a certain way. In Minneapolis, the philosophy and approach of the Design Guidelines for Street and Sidewalks was success- fully incorporated into the city framework by requiring that the guidelines be reflected in the Project Overview and Rationale document. This forced planners, designers, and engineers to begin projects using the guidelines’ approach. In New York, adoption of a similar requirement for the inclu- sion of a new project cover sheet that describes the project’s adherence to the Street Design Manual has been a useful tool for institutionalizing the policy shift.

Keys to Success

Policy Guidance and Support from the Top

In all four case study communities, broad high-level policy documents served two important roles: (1) they provided direc- tion for improving the pedestrian environment, and (2) they served to clearly express to city staff and community residents a new philosophy—one that places pedestrians on equal foot- ing with other modes. These policies all featured implicit, and in some cases explicit, reinforcement of highest level political support. They offer clear directives from elected officials.

New York City’s PlaNYC 2030 required a change in the way the public and city agencies think about and interact with the city. New York City DOT and other city agencies were given clear directives to take bold steps in reimagining the built environment. PlaNYC 2030 also sent the message that agency staff would have the highest level of support nec- essary to undertake these tasks.

Charlotte’s Transportation Action Plan set out definitive policy guidance that spelled out Charlotte’s urban vision and declared the need for increased multimodalism. With the support of the general public and formal adoption by the City Council, city departments had clear instructions to increase the safety and comfort of the walking environment.

Access Minneapolis tied various transportation initiatives together under a common vision of increasing multimodal opportunities and strengthening the role of pedestrians and bicyclists throughout the city. What could have been six discrete initiatives was instead packaged as one common program that built on the successes of each piece and used momentum to carry significant positive change for pedestri- ans in Minneapolis.

Olympia’s Transportation TMS formalized the will of the community to make walking more attractive and safe. By working through policy recommendations, the TMS pro- vided city staff with clear direction on strategies to pursue. Design Guidance Is Essential

All four communities created new design guidelines or standards to fill the void for projects that would incorporate pedestrians in innovative and meaningful ways. However, each of these design guidelines is uniquely oriented toward the specific environment in which it was created and demon- strates the flexibility of these documents.

The New York City Street Design Manual is a voluntary design manual that provides guidance on the full spectrum of tools that designers and engineers have at their disposal in New York City, including innovative ideas that previously lacked such guidance.

In Charlotte, the Urban Street Design Guidelines was created not just to implement new standards that better accommodate all modes (including pedestrians) but also to provide a new implementation approach to street design that incorporates the Complete Streets philosophy and requires the consideration of pedestrians in the design of all projects. In Minneapolis, the Design Guidelines for Streets and Sidewalks was developed to help city staff and city residents implement the Complete Streets philosophy and was made enforceable by proxy through the Citywide Action Plan,.

Olympia’s street standards were revised to better incor- porate pedestrians, and then were used as a tool for leverag- ing available impact fee funding.

Each of these design guidelines serves a slightly different function, but all demonstrate the importance of providing clear guidance on what is acceptable and desired in a given community.

Collaboration

The creation of safe and inviting pedestrian environments relies on the interplay among several factors that necessarily involve multiple disciplines and practices. It is not surprising that an oft-cited key to success for the practices described above was collaboration with other relevant agencies. How- ever, those interviewed described this collaboration as going above and beyond traditional consultation. In three of the case studies—New York City’s Active Design Guidelines and Street Design Manual, Charlotte’s Urban Street Design

Guidelines, and every component of Access Minneapolis— the lead agency brought partnering agencies on board from the inception of the project and incorporated their input and expertise in real and meaningful ways throughout the devel- opment of the product and well into implementation. Pragmatism, or Practical Approaches

Throughout these case studies, success has largely been driven by the ability of those involved in development and implementation to make accurate and clear assessments of the institutional, political, and/or financial framework at play and adapt a practical approach that fits within that framework. In Olympia, for instance, state law prevents the city from using impact fees for stand-alone pedestrian projects. As a practical response, the city adapted its Street Design Standards to require full consideration and accom- modation of pedestrians in every project so that it could leverage those impact fee dollars to include pedestrian plan- ning in everything.

This approach is seen throughout the case studies. The New York City Plaza Program, which at its heart is a dras- tic reimaging of street space, has taken an approach that requires both expressed support by the local community and an organization that will take responsibility for the proposed plaza’s operations and maintenance. If those conditions are not met, the New York City DOT will spend its limited resources elsewhere. In Minneapolis, the Downtown Action Plan began with the specific target of untangling congestion for buses on two central thoroughfares. After evaluating ways to accomplish that goal, the participating agencies built a practical action plan that hinged on emphasizing transit and pedestrians in sensible locations and enabling connec- tions where demand existed. The partnering agencies also recognized that design guidelines would be necessary to plan the significant changes they were proposing.

Conclusion

The four case study locations demonstrate the universal chal- lenges facing transportation professionals who are trying to improve the pedestrian environment and common themes in the ways that communities have sought to address these chal- lenges. From New York with more than eight million residents to Olympia with 50,000 residents, radical changes to improve pedestrian safety and the overall walking environment rely on clear policy direction and proper design guidance, and are often enhanced by meaningful collaboration and cooperation with other relevant agencies or stakeholders, and an overall pragmatic approach that utilizes creative adaptation to formu- late successful implementation strategies.

CHAPTER FOUR