[sustran] VTPI News - Spring 2016

[Todd Litman]

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                 VTPI NEWS

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              Victoria Transport Policy Institute

              "Efficiency - Equity - Clarity"

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              Spring 2016    Vol. 16, No. 1

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The Victoria Transport Policy Institute is an independent research
organization dedicated to developing innovative solutions to transportation
problems. The VTPI website (http://www.vtpi.org ) has many resources
addressing a wide range of transport planning and policy issues. VTPI also
provides consulting services.

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NEW REPORTS

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"Selling Smart Growth: Communicating the Direct Benefits of More Accessible,
Multi-Modal Locations to Households, Businesses and Governments"
(http://www.vtpi.org/ssg.pdf ). Summarized in "Selling Smart Growth"
(http://www.planetizen.com/node/86202 ).

Households often make trade-offs between housing and transportation costs:
they can choose a lower-priced home at the urban-fringe that has higher
transport costs, or pay more for a home in a more accessible and
multi-modal, "Smart Growth" neighborhood where transport costs are lower.
Urban fringe homes generally offer more space per dollar, and so appear to
be better investments, but there are other economic factors to consider. By
shifting household spending from transport to real estate, Smart Growth
tends to increase household wealth, and by providing more affordable
transport options it increases economic resilience. It increases mobility
options for non-drivers, which increases their economic opportunities and
reduces drivers' chauffeuring burdens. Smart Growth reduces residents'
traffic risks, and improves their fitness and health. Smart Growth also
increases real estate industry profits, local economic development and
property tax revenues. This report examines these factors and describes how
to communicate them to consumers, real estate professionals and policy
makers.

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PUBLISHED & PRESENTED ELSEWHERE

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"
<http://thecityfix.com/blog/todd-litman-costs-congestion-drivers-sprawl-poli
cies-smart-growth-alex-rogala/> Todd Litman on the Costs of Congestion, the
Drivers of Sprawl and Policies for Smarter Growth" (http://bit.ly/1ovjjli )
CityFix Interview. How can we tackle the challenge of traffic congestion?
What is driving urban sprawl? How does public transportation relate to
issues of equity? The CityFix sat down with Todd Litman of the Victoria
Transport Policy Institute, to discuss his thinking on these questions, and
how cities can move beyond costly car-oriented development.

 

"Towards A Sustainable Built Environment For British Columbia: Synthesis Of
Findings" (http://bit.ly/1NMYQ6F ), by the Real Estate Foundation of British
Columbia, examines how provincial policies can better achieve sustainability
objectives such as reducing air pollution emissions and improving public
health. Well done Real Estate Foundation!

 

"Economics of Highway Spending and Traffic Congestion"
(http://bit.ly/1WBV57b ). Todd Litman's StrongTowns webinar, which discussed
how common methods for evaluating traffic congestion can lead to
economically-excessive roadway expansions and vehicle travel. It is part of
StrongTown's 'No New Roads' campaign (http://www.strongtowns.org/nonewroads
). Webinar slides (http://bit.ly/1K0Bucr ) and bibliography
(http://bit.ly/1QeV2GG ).

 

"Higher Density Developments Reduce Transportation Costs, Traffic
Congestion, Says Study" (http://bit.ly/1WjgMt8 ). This Palmetto Business
Daily Report article concerning the costs of sprawl and benefits of compact
development quotes Todd Litman.

 

"We Are Transport! We Have Solutions!"
(http://thecityfix.com/blog/we-are-transport-we-have-solutions-todd-litman
). CityFix blog describes 'win-win' solutions to multiple transportation
problems.

 

Recent Planetizen Blogs (http://www.planetizen.com/blog/2394 ):

"Selling Smart Growth" (http://www.planetizen.com/node/86202 )

"Evaluating Affordable Housing Development Strategies"
(http://www.planetizen.com/node/85106 )

"Smart Growth Policies for Urban Affordability and Fertility"
(http://www.planetizen.com/node/83847 ) 

"Does Wendell Cox Realize He Just Supported Smart Growth?"
(http://www.planetizen.com/node/82596 )

 

Let's be friends. Todd Litman regularly posts on his Facebook page
(http://www.facebook.com/todd.litman ). Befriend him now!

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BEEN THERE, DONE THAT

=======================

"Selling Transit Oriented Development," presented at the 'TOD and Real
Estate Development Conference' (http://www.tod.org/events/la2016.html ). 

 

"TransportationCamp - What Excites You" (http://bit.ly/27tBY3c ). This short
video shot during the 2016 Washington DC TransportationCamp
(http://transportationcamp.org ) asks innovators to describe projects that
will make the future of transportation better.

 

"OECD Roundtable on Income Inequality, Social Inclusion and Mobility"
(http://bit.ly/1ZZsVkV ). This Roundtable investigated the distributive
impacts of transport decisions and ways that transportation and land use
development policies can help achieve social equity (i.e., social inclusion
or fairness) goals. Presentations and summary report are posted on the
website.

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USEFUL RESOURCES

=================

"Direct Transfer Daily" (www.thedirecttransfer.com ) is an urban
transportation news list that summarizes key articles and reports, including
'Quote of the Day' and 'Most Read' items. Subscriptions cost $10/month. Use
the subscription code "TD34636T" for a 20% discount for the first three
months.  

 

Great new tools for measuring urban accessibility:

"Urban Accessibility Explorer" (http://urbanaccessibility.com ) is the most
comprehensive tool for evaluating multi-modal accessibility. 

"This Map Wants To Change How You Think About Your Commute; With The Help Of
4.2 Trillion Points Of Data" (http://bit.ly/1TmsZe0 )

"TOD Opportunities in Chicago" (http://growchicago.metroplanning.org )
quantifies how transit-oriented development can support regional social and
economic development goals. 

"All-Transit Tool" (http://alltransit.cnt.org ) uses General Transit Feed
Specification (GTFS) data to measure transit accessibility and connectivity
in U.S. cities.

"Revision" (http://bit.ly/1TGLpSM ) integrates various data sets to
facilitate sustainable communities planning. 

"Sugar Access Program" (http://bit.ly/1XkKMDL ) allows accessibility
analysis to be performed in any city. 

 

Great planning resources: "Global Designing Cities Initiative"
(http://globaldesigningcities.org ) and the "National Association of City
Transportation Officials" (http://nacto.org ) provide practical guidance for
improving urban transport planning and roadway design. 

 

"Parking Basics: Paving the Way for Better Cities!" (http://bit.ly/1Xy3RCW
). This Institute for Transportation and Development Policy report describes
why and how to more efficiently manage urban parking in order to achieve
economic, social and environmental goals. More efficient management not only
reduces parking congestion problems and facility costs, it also helps reduce
traffic congestion, accidents, pollution emissions and sprawl-related costs.
Also see our "Parking Management" (http://www.vtpi.org/park_man.pdf )
report.

 

" <http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01944363.2015.1092879> Parking Infrastructure:
A Constraint on or Opportunity for Urban Redevelopment? A Study of Los
Angeles County Parking Supply and Growth" (http://bit.ly/1XkDUGo ). This
study estimates that Los Angeles County has approximately 18.6 million
designated parking spaces, about 3.3 spaces per automobile, including 1.0
residential, 1.7 nonresidential, and 0.6 on-street spaces. In total, 14% of
Los Angeles County's incorporated land is devoted to parking, more than road
rights-of-way. The urban core has the greatest density of parking spaces,
but suburban areas have greater parking supply growth. This abundant parking
supply increases vehicle ownership and use, and so contradicts other
planning goals. Also see "Parking Costs"
(http://www.vtpi.org/tca/tca0504.pdf ).

 

"GreenTRIP Connect" (http://connect.greentrip.org ) helps users calculate
how more accessible locations, affordable homes and traffic reduction
strategies can reduce driving and greenhouse gas emissions, and how much
money and space can be saved from right-sized parking. 


"Rank Eight Congestion Reduction Policies" (http://bit.ly/1PXW7Yp ). This
document evaluates potential congestion reduction strategies. It estimates
that a combination of cost effective strategies could achieve a 25%
reduction in regional vehicle travel and help achieve other economic, social
and environmental goals. Summarized in this CityLabs blog:
http://bit.ly/1TTG3Ua . Also see "Smart Congestion Relief"
(http://www.vtpi.org/cong_relief.pdf ).  

 

"Increasing Highway Capacity Unlikely to Relieve Traffic Congestion"
(http://bit.ly/1QlDn4z ). This fact sheet explains why urban roadway
expansion is unlikely to reduce congestion. It cites our report, 'Generated
Traffic and Induced Travel' (http://bit.ly/1WXC258 ).

 

"Perspectives on Helping Low-Income Californians Afford Housing"
(http://bit.ly/1Xl0b6V ). Also see, 'Urban Mythbusting'
(http://bit.ly/1sp1yWA ). This study investigates factors that affect
housing affordability. It finds that increasing market-rate housing
development reduces housing costs for low-income households and can help
reduce displacement.

 

"Legalizing Inexpensive Housing"
(www.sightline.org/series/legalizing-inexpensive-housing ). This Sightline
Institute series describes various policy reforms to allow more affordable
housing development.

 

"Income, Location Efficiency, and VMT: Affordable Housing as a Climate
Strategy" (http://bit.ly/1soFoDH ). This study uses detailed travel-survey
and land-use data to evaluate how affordable-accessible housing can help
achieve social equity and environmental goals. Also see our report,
"Affordable-Accessible Housing In A Dynamic City"
(http://www.vtpi.org/aff_acc_hou.pdf ).

 

"Sustainable Urban Transport Financing from the Sidewalk to the Subway:
Capital, Operations, and Maintenance Financing" (http://bit.ly/1VZdU4h ).
This World Bank study identifies and evaluates 24 potential urban
transportation funding options. Also see our "Local Funding Options for
Public Transportation" (http://www.vtpi.org/tranfund.pdf ).

 

"Calgary, Canada Applies Cost-Based Development Fees" (http://bit.ly/1qsntLi
). Calgary development fees now reflect the higher costs of providing public
services (water, sewage, roads, etc.) to more dispersed locations
(http://bit.ly/1rSGO9C ), reducing existing subsidies for sprawl. This is
consistent with our research on the costs of sprawl and benefits of more
compact development (http://www.vtpi.org/sg_save.pdf ). Well done Mayor
Nenshi!

 

"Shared-Use Mobility:
<http://www.apta.com/resources/reportsandpublications/Documents/APTA-Shared-
Mobility.pdf> Shared Mobility and the Transformation of Public Transit"
(http://bit.ly/1pnTKD5 ). This American Public Transportation Association
report examines the relationship of public transportation to shared modes,
including bikesharing, carsharing, and ridesourcing services such as Uber
and Lyft. It indicates that shared modes help households reduced their
vehicle ownership and associated costs, and increase public transit use.

 

"Go LA" (http://golaapp.com ) offers information on various urban travel
options including ride-hailing companies like Lyft and Uber, buses, trains,
taxis and bicycle commuting. A good example for other cities.

 

"Urban Access Regulations in Europe" (http://urbanaccessregulations.eu )
provides information on policies and programs that restrict vehicle travel
in various cities. 

 

"Next Stop Equity: Routes To Fairer Transit Access In The Greater Toronto
And Hamilton Area" (http://bit.ly/24Yb29r ). This comprehensive (150 page)
report evaluates the fairness of public transport service allocation and
pricing, and recommends policies to achieve social equity objectives. It
cites our transportation equity research (www.vtpi.org/equity.pdf ). 

 

"Does Walkability Matter? An Examination Of Walkability's Impact On Housing
Values, Foreclosures And Crime" (http://bit.ly/1swuVXD ). This academic
study found that, all else being equal, higher WalkScore ratings are
associated with higher property values, lower housing foreclosure rates, and
lower crime rates in Louisville, Kentucky neighborhoods.

 

"The Value of Cycling: Rapid Evidence Review of the Economic Benefits of
Cycling" (http://bit.ly/1sp18iN). This comprehensive report indicates that
cycling provides diverse benefits and helps achieve various planning goals,
but conventional analysis tends to undervalue many of these benefits,
resulting in underinvestment in walking and cycling. Also see our report,
"Evaluating Active Transport Benefits and Costs"
(http://www.vtpi.org/nmt-tdm.pdf ).

 

"Bicycling and Walking in the United States: 2016 Benchmarking Report"
(http://www.bikewalkalliance.org/resources/benchmarking ). This report
provides great information about active transport trends and programs. It
cites our research concerning lower crime rates in more walkable areas due
to more "eyes on the street."

 

"Future Demand" (https://vimeo.com/146071924 ) by the New Zealand Ministry
of Transport. This short video describes the Ministry's Futures Thinking
program, which examines factors that may affect future travel activity. Once
again, NZMT demonstrates innovative thinking.

 

"The Feds Want to Reform the Cult of "Level of Service"
(http://bit.ly/1OyB1ea ). This column discusses changes in the way that
transport system performance is evaluated to better support more efficient
and multi-modal planning.

 

"Statement by the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) on the Future
Direction of Trip Generation" (http://bit.ly/27xmWJO ). The ITE is starting
a program to improve its trip generation data. Current practices often
result in oversized roads and parking facilities, and discourage infill
development (http://bit.ly/1DHcCiG ). 

 

"Accelerating Low-Carbon Development in the World's Cities"
(http://bit.ly/1Fv5Dc8 ), by the New Climate Economy. This report describes
how cities can implement low-carbon urban development strategies using the
Compact of Mayors framework.

 

"Tackling Fossil Fuel Subsidies and Climate Change: Levelling the Energy
Playing Field" (http://bit.ly/1LYGt8G ). This Nordic Council of Ministers
report describes policies to achieve emission reduction targets by reducing
fossil fuel subsidies, investing in energy efficiency, and introducing
carbon taxes. It estimates that these strategies can reduce emissions by 11%
and provide significant financial savings. 

 

"Does Urban Sprawl Hold Down Upward Mobility?" (http://bit.ly/20mqHk8 ).
This academic study uses new data sets to measure how land use factors
affect economic mobility (the chance that a child born in a lower-income
household becomes more economically successful as an adult). It finds that
upward mobility is significantly higher in compact areas than sprawling
areas due to better job accessibility and more mixed incomes.

 

"Urban Sprawl as a Risk Factor In Motor Vehicle Crashes"
(http://bit.ly/1THQTg8 ). This study finds that sprawl is associated with
significantly higher fatal crash rates due to a combination of increased per
capita vehicle travel and higher traffic speeds.

 

Two of my favorite blogs are Shane Phillips' "Better Institutions"
(http://www.betterinstitutions.com ) and Eric Fischer's "Experimental
Geography" (https://experimental-geography.blogspot.ca ). Both provide
thoughtful analysis of urban development policy impacts and options.

 

"Isochronic World Maps 1914 and 2014" (http://bit.ly/1XkPK3m ). These two
heat-maps show the travel times from London to world destinations (note
different time scales). They illustrate the large increase in travel speeds
during the last century. 

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Please let us know if you have comments or questions about any information
in this newsletter, or if you would like to be removed from our email list.
And please pass this newsletter on to others who may find it useful.

 

 

Sincerely,

Todd Litman (litman at vtpi.org)

Victoria Transport Policy Institute (www.vtpi.org)

Office: 250-360-1560 | Mobile: 250-508-5150

1250 Rudlin Street, Victoria, BC, V8V 3R7, CANADA

     Efficiency - Equity - Clarity