Planning and transit
Chapter 7 of the New Urbanism Best Practices Guide
Transit-oriented development (TOD) has proliferated in the past several years, and the public sector has become increasingly adept at organizing it. Most TOD focuses on rail transportation, which needs a high population density within walking distance of the station — at least 14 dwelling units per acre, one source suggests. TOD should include amenities such as a park, stores, schools, and trees if it’s to attract residents. This chapter includes material from Hank Dittmar and Shelley Poticha’s The New Transit Town presenting the land-use mix, minimum housing density, housing types, scale, regional connectivity, transit modes, frequency of service, and US examples of six kinds of TOD: urban downtown, urban neighborhood, suburban center, suburban neighborhood, neighborhood transit zone, and commuter town center.
For a five-station segment of the Orange Line Metrorail corridor in inner suburban Arlington, Virginia, officials determined that office buildings needed to be within three blocks of the station to lease well, while residential buildings rented or sold well if they were within six blocks of the station. Arlington’s stations feature a range of housing — large detached houses, bungalows, townhouses, live-works, and apartments — to appeal to many segments of the population, from young people starting out, to families with children, to the retired. Other TOD examples in this chapter include Orenco Station near Portland, Oregon; Columbia Heights in Washington, DC; Fruitvale Village in Oakland, California; Lindbergh Center in Atlanta; and station along the Hiawatha light-rail line from downtown Minneapolis to suburban Bloomington.
An excerpt from a handbook by Calthorpe Associates advises on the spatial extent of the project, mix of uses, pedestrian-oriented site design, street design, parking management, location of transit and core uses, public involvement, market analysis, and controls and incentives. The chapter also discusses bus rapid transit and new streetcar systems.
