Located outside Washington, D.C., in Arlington County, Virginia, Columbia Pike is a thoroughfare stretching more than three miles— from the edge of the Pentagon to the border of Fairfax County. The road was built in 1810 to connect Washington’s Long Bridge to the Little River Turnpike and the rest of Virginia. It evolved to become an automobile-oriented arterial—lined with fast-food restaurants, drive-through restaurants and banks, convenience stores, and strip malls—characterized by intense traffic congestion.
Arlington County sought to alleviate the congestion through the Columbia Pike Initiative, a corridor revitalization plan focused on the commercial corridors and adopted in 2002. The initiative was organized around an innovative Commercial Centers Form-Based Code (FBC) and supportive government-led programs, including a partnership with D.C.’s Metrobus. In 2008, the Arlington County Board issued a charge to begin work on Phase II of the Columbia Pike Initiative, which focused on multifamily residential areas located between the commercial centers. Phase II culminated in the adoption of the Neighborhoods Area Plan in 2012, which outlined the goals and tools that could be used to create the transportation, form, and housing vision for the multifamily areas. In 2013, the Columbia Pike Neighborhoods Form-Based Code (NFBC) was adopted in support of this vision. Together, the plans and the two codes work to create more urban parks and affordable housing, promote a safe biking and walking environment, and improve the corridor’s transit options.
In 2012, the first of a planned network of 28 “cycle superhighways” opened in Copenhagen, with a second route opening in 2013. These upgraded bike paths connect the central city with suburban areas and link residential neighborhoods, schools, and business districts.
The cycle superhighways were planned to meet the needs of commuters in outlying parts of the Copenhagen region by creating long-distance routes with consistent, high-quality design standards. The project is intended to entice thousands of daily commuters to switch from driving to bicycling, thereby decreasing traffic congestion, carbon emissions, and health care costs, while increasing the quality of life of area residents.
In Spring 2015, construction began on two cycle superhighways that will connect central London and outlying areas of the capital with bicycling routes that are largely physically segregated from motor vehicle traffic. Also known as “Crossrail for Bikes,” a name evoking the east–west commuter rail line that is being built underneath central London, the new cycle routes are meant to be used as alternatives to driving or taking public transportation.
In addition to road safety benefits and an increase in the proportion of bicycle commuters, the £160 million (US$240 million) investment in the creation of the cycle superhighways is spurring new residential and commercial development along the routes.
The Circuit is a growing regional trail network that connects destinations across Greater Philadelphia. Consisting of paths that link city centers, transit hubs, parks, and recreational destinations, the Circuit allows pedestrians and bicyclists to travel among urban, suburban, and rural destinations without having to use a motor vehicle.
With 300 miles (483 km) in place and ongoing progress toward the goal of reaching 750 miles (1,200 km) of trails before 2040, the Circuit is emerging as a key component of the overall transportation system in Greater Philadelphia. The real estate community has taken notice. Developers building near the Circuit have noted trail access as a key amenity for residential and commercial properties, and homeowners close to Circuit trails are experiencing increased property values.
The Midtown Greenway is a commuter trail in Minneapolis that was built in stages between 2000 and 2007, with future extensions still to come. The Greenway provides healthy and safe automobile traffic–free connections between key destinations in south Minneapolis and facilitates access to the heart of downtown due to its links with other bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure.
The Midtown Greenway has come to be known as a “bicycle freeway” because it includes separate one-way paths for each direction of bicycle travel and a parallel two-way pedestrian path. The creation of the Greenway has led to an explosion of residential and commercial development along the surrounding corridor.
Allentown, Pennsylvania, went from a multimillion-dollar city budget deficit to a multimillion-dollar surplus. While other Pennsylvania cities were seeing real revitalization in recent decades, Allentown (the biggest city in the Lehigh Valley) saw lethargic economic growth after broad deindustrialization. The state designated a Neighborhood Improvement Plan in Allentown which, in conjunction with private developers, set forth a plan for economic vitality. It resulted in 4,000 new jobs in the urban core and a billion dollars of new development. Allentown is now the fastest-growing city in Pennsylvania with particularly promising job growth in its urban core.
After the village of Orland Park, Illinois, invested $35 million in public infrastructure and land assembly, the real estate market collapsed and quashed anticipated development that would bring taxes to reimburse the village investment. When a new partner proposed a mixed-use project but could not obtain sufficient conventional financing, the village took the very risky step of providing a loan that completed the financial package. The village now has a viable center which achieved its initial goals and it has plans to repay the public investment.
Greenville, South Carolina, took an opportunity to dramatically enhance its downtown area by opening up and preserving its waterfalls, creating pedestrian-focused places in the heart of the central business district. Changes in the local economy and labor market resulted in downtown disinvestment in Greenville. Over the course of about 30 years, city and state governments worked with private businesses to create a new vision for downtown Greenville that would reestablish the city as an attractive place to be with a viable business center. Economic development and rising land values have allowed residents and workers to now use spaces that were once viewed as eyesores and unsafe.
Euclid Avenue in Cleveland has seen many lives, from a one-time “Millionaires’ Row” early in the 20th century to an underused industrial corridor lined with dilapidated buildings. Always a major artery in the region’s transportation network and lined with major regional institutions such as Cleveland State University and University Hospital, this historic main street was recently transformed by a $197 million investment in bus rapid transit (BRT) and special attention to the latest innovations in street design. Today, more than 89 development projects totaling roughly $4.7 billion of investment are completed or in progress along Euclid Avenue, as estimated by the regional transit authority.
Although some projects have been delayed by the recent nationwide downturn, overall the corridor has bucked national trends and as the economy comes back is now poised to again become one of the United States’ great urban boulevards. Cities around the country are now looking to Cleveland as a model for successful BRT thanks to the thoughtful and comprehensive public investment that has leveraged itself many times over in private sector and institutional dollars.
Under conditions of expansionary pressure and strong growth trends, the Saigon South New City Center represents a new urbanizing core just south of central Ho Chi Minh City. This new urban node covers a 433 hectare (1,070 ac) district and seeks to serve young urbanites along with international businesses. The new district includes 645,239 square meters (6,945,295 sq ft) of office space, 430,307 square meters (4,631,786 sq ft) of retail space, 3,486 single-family homes, 11,262 multifamily units, and 891,500 square meters (9,596,0236 sq ft) of open space, along with space for hotels, education, civic uses, and parking. Over the decade after its completion, the new district was completely sold and 90% leased with many international businesses choosing to locate there.
