Lower Manhattan (LM) is America's fourth-largest central business district and one of the oldest and densest areas in New York City. It is also New York City's fastest-growing residential neighborhood and contains some of the highest levels of pedestrian, transit, and vehicular activity in America. Since September 11, 2001, redevelopment has dramatically transformed the area into a vibrant 24/7 live–work–visit community. The changes present an unprecedented opportunity to create a more livable and environmentally sustainable neighborhood by reducing traffic and managing parking while giving residents and employees better, greener mobility options. Consequently, the city is focused on finding new ways to manage competing demands for different uses of limited street space. Improving street management is paramount to improving the quality of public space and speeding LM's revitalization. In 2004, the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation funded the New York City Economic Development Corporation and the New York City Department of Transportation to contract Arup to undertake a multi-year comprehensive planning study to consider ways to reduce traffic congestion, manage placard parking, and create complete streets and engaging public spaces in LM. This paper discusses the necessity for and development of a proposed street management framework to help guide the city in meeting the transportation and public realm needs of LM's residents, employees, tourists, and businesses. As of October 2008, the project is ongoing; the proposed framework is still conceptual and has not yet been implemented.
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) operates Metrorail, Metrobus, and MetroAccess paratransit services in the Washington, D.C., region. By 2040, the region’s forecast projects an increase in population and jobs in the transit zone by 22% and 34%, respectively, and an increase in the remainder of the region by 36% and 46%, respectively. Much of that growth is planned where transit is already crowded, whereas many other areas that have high-quality transit continue to be underdeveloped. The result is an unbalanced use of the transit system. To handle the forecast growth, transit infrastructure could be built at high cost, but what if land use and other policies were applied regionally to make better use of the transit system and perhaps postpone the need for expansion? Scenarios modeled by WMATA and its consultants are summarized. The study developed and tested six policy scenarios for 2040 that would keep transit constant while varying land use and other policies. The results show that some real benefits could accrue to the Washington region if decisions about land use, pricing, and other policies were to be made within a regional context rather than the existing parochial approach that seeks to maximize jurisdictional benefits alone. Capacity improvements to the transit network would also be needed to address forecast transit crowding and Metrorail core capacity limitations. However, making changes to land use decisions while adding pricing strategies could provide the region with the necessary funds to make expansion possible.
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