Buses and TOD

[Mary Gute]

I'm doing some research on Transit Oriented Development and its potential for application around bus stops. Does anyone have some examples of cities that have some bus stops surrounded by a variety of mixed uses. I am not necessarily concerned that they have been marketed as TODs, more so that they contain at least some TOD elements.

Also, is anyone aware of cities (besides Seattle) which are actively attempting to implement TOD principles around bus stops?

Your input is most appreciated. Thanks.

Mary Gute

 

[Josh Pastin]

European cities, especially those in Germany and England would be good candidates to look at. I suggest Manchester in England, and probably Aahrus in Germany

Josh

 

[DDD]

Get the Award winning Charlotte Integrated Transportation Land Use Plan. The Planning Commission is in the process of currently implementing transit overlay districts that have TOD characteristics for their BRT and light rail system.

 

[slackdammit]

TODs & PODs

In my mind Peter Calthorpe's application of these terms is most useful. A 'POD' (pedestrian oriented development) is primarily a residential community centered on a mass transit stop. A 'TOD' is a commercial and public development also centered upon a transit stop. A TOD should hold such trip generators as a hospital, sports arena, high school, and office buildings. Both of these developments are circular, built around said mass transit stops.
Buses and trams with their frequent stops, tend to generate a more linear development. Urban development from, say 1880 to 1940 exemplifies this sort of form--long commercial streets with robust streetwalls. Later, when autos arrived, en mass, the form shifted to the strip-mall with the parking lot between the street and buildings. Anathama to the planner! The logic, however, behind this form of development is very strong. The sucker riding the bus day after day sees hundreds of store fronts hundreds of times. He/she learns the locations of all these businesses. He/she can scan for a particular shop and get off at the next stop. A planner may be able to enforce a different form of development along the bus route but he/she would be swimming against wind and tide, seems to me.