IMPEDIMENTS TO CONTEXT-SENSITIVE MAIN STREET DESIGN

This paper explores impediments to context-sensitive design of main streets, and suggests ways of overcoming them. Contrary to conventional wisdom, minimum design values in the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials' A Policy on Geometric Design of Highways and Streets (AASHTO's 2001 Green Book) do not appear to constrain main street design; nor do tort liability considerations in most states, primarily because of broad design immunity under state statutes and case law. From case studies conducted for this project, the real impediments to context-sensitive design appear to be: state design standards in excess of AASHTO minimums, and in excess of what is required for driver safety; minimum level-of-service standards adopted for driver convenience, which may be less important on main streets than pedestrian safety and comfort; over-reliance on typical sections from state roadway design manuals, when multiple cross sections tailored to abutting land uses would be more appropriate; and reluctance to seek design exceptions for purposes of "context savings." Additional impediments include: application of new construction standards to resurfacing, restoration, rehabilitation and reconstruction projects, even when a street's history suggests no safety problem; misclassification of streets as rural and application of rural standards to them, when they in fact run through small urban places; misclassification of streets as arterials, when bypasses and other parallel improvements have caused main streets to function as local streets; and reluctance of state departments of transportation to assume maintenance responsibilities for trees, landscaped medians, textured crosswalks and other main street improvements. Case studies from Albuquerque, New Mexico; Anchorage, Alaska; Brooklyn, Connecticut; Saratoga Springs, New York; and South Miami, Florida are used to illustrate how these impediments may be overcome through flexible design and decision-making.