The Institute for Transportation Engineers produces a Developing Trends Report annually, representing collective input from councils and committees on emerging transportation challenges and solutions. The 2020 report covers transportation planning, engineering, management, and operation advancements and will benefit the industry’s leadership and professionals in public and private sectors.
E-commerce (short for electronic commerce) describes the buying or selling of products and associated services over the internet or through mobile applications. The most visible vendors are Amazon, Walmart and Wayfair furniture, however, there are millions of smaller entities thanks to the ease of online marketplace platforms. Offerings include durable goods (such as furniture), small goods, groceries and prepared food deliveries. The growth in e-commerce is now reshaping cities, suburbs and outlying industrial districts, as well as traffic patterns for moving goods from ports to warehouses to a shopper's doorstep.
This 2018 Guide (50 pages) from the Institute for Transportation Engineers (ITE) provides an overview of planning consideration for curbside management. Curb space is where movement meets access, however, is not always optimized for its highest and best use. Traditional uses, such as on-street parking and loading, are experiencing increased competition for space from technology-enabled uses such as Transportation Network Companies such as Uber and Lyft, as well as increased deliveries with e-commerce.
Provided by the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordination Agncy (NOACA), Street Supplies is a library of supplies for temporary street installations for bicycle, pedestrian and transit improvements. The library includes a range of materials such as paint, bike racks and planters.
Micromobility refers to low speed (< 15 miles/hour) vehicles such as bicycles, scooters, skateboards and other rideables. They may be owned or shared, human powered or power assist, and docked or dockless. While shared use models of bikes and scooters draw the most attention, there is substantial growth in sales to individuals. Most attention to micromobility fouses on shared-used companies, however, owned models will also contribute to demand for infrastructure and parking. As such cities and campuses should look at all aspets of micromobility.
Protected bike lanes are bikeways that are physically separated from vehicular traffic. using curbs, plantings, bollards or other physical separation.
Streamlined application process for short-term, low costimprovements in public rights-of-way. These installations may be demonstrations to test future, permanent solutions.
The City of Austin Texas is proactively planning discrete steps for adopting shared, electric, and autonomous vehicles for a future that is equitable, affordable, prosperous and data-driven.
Mixed Motorized trails host low impact modes of transportation that is both human-powered and motorized, including pedestrians, bicycles, personal mobility devices and low speed electric vehicles. Note this does not include all-terrain, off-highway vehicles (OHVs)
This handbook outlines practical steps that local elected officials can take right away to improve their transportation systems and make their cities better places to live, work, and visit
The Active Streets LA Street Treatment toolkit contains 45 idea cards explainging elements of street design, signage and transportation assets.
Cycle Atlanta is a smart phone app that collects and reports information to inform decisions on bicycle programs in Atlanta Georgia
Alleys offer opportunities for green infrastructure by replacing impervious pavement with pervious materials and landscaping. Cities can also swap older lighting with energy efficient fixtures.
Laneways are narrow passageways for either vehicle or pedestrian travel. Around the world, cities and towns are revitalizing laneways as usable space for green infrastructure, the arts, cafes & social activity.
A chicane, or off-set extensions, are constructed features creating extra winding "S-turns" in a road to slow traffic and/or reallocate street space.
Grade separated, or raised, bicycle lanes provide separation and protection from car travel. The raised profile, sometimes shared with sidewalks, offers additional separation from vehicle traffic.
A road diet reduces the number or size of street travel lanes to support multiple modes of transportation, other public utility uses, economic development and/or other amenities. Other terms include lane diets (where lane width is reduced), roadway reallocation or roadway reconfiguration.
Popup sidewalk dining allows temporary restaurant space on sidewalks, in on-street parking spaces or in the street.
Outdoor cafes and dining extends restaurant seating and enlivens the sidewalk environment. Cities enact rules and policies to balance restaurant activity with the public's' interest in public spaces.
Channels and runnels are concrete or stone lined pathways used to carry rainwater runoff along the surface or subsurface to other stormwater features and systems. Runnels are smaller, shallow systems while larger, deeper channels carry larger flows.
Parking Benefit Districts (PBDs) coordinate public and private parking within a defined district to manage the availability, pricing & location of parking. Meter revenues are then reinvested into improvement within that district.
Stormwater inlets collect runoff from streets, typically along curbsides, and direct water to underground pipes for discharge to a river or stream. Cities are retrofilling inlets with filtering design & devices to treat runoff before it enters waterways.
Scramble crosswalks (also referred to as a Barnes Dance, X Crossing) stops all traffic to allow pedestrians to cross in all directions.