Great Streets – Allan Jacobs

At the intersection, the hope is not realized. The spaces are too large, and the view is outward. By and large the intersections are just big spaces with considerable traffic movement. Does the problem come from the reality of it being a ring? It goes around. It would be hard to enliven it all. But why is aliveness critical? Was it ever really a bustling place?

The impor- tance may lie in the making of community. Maybe the best was always else- where. As a ring, as a distributor, it seems to have a centrifugal force, tending to move away from the center, even away from itself. It may not be a street to walk on normally, to get from here to there. It is not direct; other paths are surely faster. It is much more direct to walk across the city than around the ring. But if many people lived nearby, this would be a wonderful strolling street.

Or does its distribution role hinder that function? Probably a wonderful street to stroll upon on Sundays and holidays, when other activi- ties are closed. Certainly a great street for visitors walking from one historic building to the next. Details a“ – * The central roadway, about 50 feet (15 meters), is a reasonable width: three lanes in one direction plus two streetcar lanes, one running opposite the auto flow.

ony,” * Streetcars at the curb work well. Autos do not enter these lanes. Streetcar St Nia oO Us : : : ? : : oe UN i stops can be major transfer points, associated with underpasses, toilets, wait- = we Wn : ‘ , wy ing kiosks, above-grade shelters, snack stands, and newspaper-magazine kiosks. « Trees are in raised grass planting strips. At the central roadway the strips are continuous, presumably to discourage midblock crossings. Elsewhere they rarely run longer than three trees and permit walkers ease in crossing the street.

. * Bicycle paths are marked and used.

First MIT Press paperback edition, 1995 © 1993 Massachusetts Institute of Technology All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form by any electronic or mechanical means (including photocopying, recording, or information storage and retrieval) without permission in writing from the publisher. This book was set in Bembo by DEKR Corporation and was printed and bound in the United States of America.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Jacobs, Allan B. Great streets / Allan B. Jacobs. > Dp: (cm: Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-262-10048-9 (HB), 978-0-262-60023-1 (PB) ISBN-10: 0-262-10048-7 (HB), 0-262-60023-4 (PB) 1. Streets—Design. 2. Architecture—Human factors. 3. Urban beautification. 4. Pedestrian areas. 5. City planning. I. Title.

This is a short excerpt from the opening of “” by Unknown, quoted for review and introduction purposes. All rights belong to the copyright holders.

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