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A Vision For Transforming San Francisco’s “Unaccepted Streets”
Throughout San Francisco's history, from the early street grid to the more recent expansion of freeways, slivers of land that don't fit into the master plans of architects and designers have been cast aside, lumped into a category the Department of Public Works (DPW) refers to as "unaccepted streets." These "paper streets" are mapped but not maintained by any agency. As Chris Carlsson so beautifully chronicled in his Ghost Streets tour, many of these alleys and street stubs are cared for by neighbors and transformed into small gardens or pocket parks. Many more, however, are forgotten urban scars and latent public space.
September 24, 2009
Can SF Improve Upon New York’s Bicycle Access Bill?
Now that the New York City Council has approved a Bicycle Access Bill requiring commercial buildings to allow bicyclists entry, the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition is ready to push for a San Francisco version of the requirement "by the end of the year." New York's bill, which is limited in its scope and contains some significant loopholes, passed 46-1 and is expected to be signed by Mayor Bloomberg.
August 3, 2009
Streetfilms: Carmaggeddon Averted as NYC’s Broadway Comes to Life
When New York City opened up new pedestrian zones in the heart of Midtown this summer, naysayers predicted a traffic nightmare. Nearly two months later, we're still waiting for the much-feared Carmaggedon.
July 21, 2009
ZipCar Starts Second Annual Low-Car Diet Challenge
Zipcar kicked off its second annual Low-Car Diet challenge today in the 13 cities around the country where the company does business. The challenge asks participants to give up their personal cars for one month and walk, ride a bicycle, and take transit in place of driving.
July 15, 2009
When Old Parking Meter Poles Go, So Often Does Bike Parking
When Oakland installed its first pay-and-display parking kiosks in early 2007, parking managers ordered employees to remove the heads of the approximately 5,000 single-space meters they were replacing. Just like other cities transitioning from using single-space parking meters
to newer multi-space pay stations, the
parking managers failed to realize the utility of those old meter poles
for cyclists, who used them for locking up their bicycles.
July 1, 2009
The Crossroads of the World Goes Car-Free
I've lived in New York City for just about twenty years now but yesterday was my first trip to Times Square.
May 26, 2009
Great Streets Project Hires Director, Hits the Streets Running
Yesterday marked an important day for livable streets in San Francisco. In coordination with the Castro Street CBD, Supervisor Bevan Dufty, and the Mayor's Office of Greening, the nascent Great Streets Project (GSP) co-hosted a roundtable discussion about how to start and manage successful public spaces, with particular emphasis on the proposed street closure and public plaza at 17th Street and Market Street.
April 24, 2009
News From New York: The ABC’s of Trial Plazas and Complete Streets
When we wrote about the trial pedestrian plaza on 17th Street and Market Street that DPW expects to start this May, the story generated numerous doubts about how the city would create a successful public space out of a busy street abutting a gas station.
April 2, 2009