• Green Neighborhoods
  • Learn
  • Plan
  • Act
    • Leading Actions
    • Characteristics
      • Location
      • Density and Mixed-Use
      • Pedestrian Environment
      • Cycling Environment
      • Support for Transit
      • Parking Management
      • Transportation Management
      • Green Networks
    • Policy Levers
Support for Transit
"If a city has rapid mass transportation, it will hold together and renew itself. If it does not have a means of rapid travel, it will decentralize and the obsolete will be forsaken and left to fester and blight." Sidney Waldron, Detroit Rapid Transit Commission, March 23, 1944
The Portland Streetcar began by connecting across downtown. It has recently been extended into the South Waterfront renewal district and is planned to cross the Willamette River to the east side in 2008. Courtesy of: City of Portland

Transit provides the most practical alternative to commuting by private automobile for trips longer than 2.5 miles.

Transit systems are most efficient when higher-density, mixed-use development is clustered at nodes along major routes, and policies such as parking requirements encourage people to leave cars at home.  

An example of such a transit-oriented node is Denver’s Union Station project.  It will revitalize the historic Union Station and develop 20 acres around it into a multimodal transportation hub, set in a neighborhood and employment center at the core of Denver’s expanding rapid transit system.

Beyond land-use planning, the following are key design principles for supporting transit planning:

Transit Stop Design

  • Stops: Work to a goal of placing stops so all residents and employees can walk to a bus stop within five minutes (1/4-mile) or to a rapid-transit station in 10 minutes (1/2 mile).
  • Street design: Because all transit trips begin and end by walking, balance pedestrian-friendly and transit-efficient features when you design streets.
  • Waiting places: Locate comfortable waiting places close to shops, schools, places of work, and other activity centers.
  • Design features: Consider curb extensions, bus shelters, and the provision of real-time information or timetables as part of stop design.

Transit Routing and Priorities

  • Efficient routes: Routing needs to be direct and clearly identifiable.
  • Facilitate transit: On busier arterials, provide bus lanes, transit-responsive traffic signals, etc. to smooth the flow of transit vehicles.
  • Cluster riders: Try to cluster different routes on the same corridor to create a critical mass of riders and support nearby businesses.

Complementary Programs

  • Incentives: Provide subsidies and other financial incentives to use transit. These balance existing hidden subsidies for parking.
  • Storage facilities: Ensure that there are bicycle storage facilities where riders can switch to transit for longer trips.
  • Shared street use: Optimize the use of streets for all users, including pedestrians and transit. This often involves reducing road space for automobiles.
  • Parking standards: Minimize parking standards, especially for people at work.
  • Payment for use: Charge for parking and / or road use.