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There are a lot of fantastic things I can say about Charlotte planners (rather, the job that they do).
Charlotte is beautiful; the city's municipal areas are meticulously kept, and I love all of the choices that planners made concerning the types of plants, stone work, lighting fixtures, etc. used in public areas. I also appreciate, and look forward to, the expanded LYNX light rail system.
Yet as much as there's a lot of 'good' within Charlotte planning, one thing boggles the mind: the road system, and *lack* of planning. What about right and left turning lanes? How about leaving a little room in the center median for future road expansion? How about widening the roads a little bit, so that emergency (fire) vehicles can get through?
When I look at some of the roads around newer, densely populated, apartment mid rises (e.g. South End and Elizabeth), and see the lack of turning lanes, I have to wonder: "what were they thinking!?"...Charlotte is following the same mistakes/patterns that were made in America's first suburbs.
Finally - and there's no gentle way to segue into this - I mean no offense to the people who live in CLT, nor am I comparing North -vs- South. To me, this is a Charlotte issue, for in many ways, cities within TN & GA seem to be well ahead of the curve on road planning.
Is there something that I am not seeing? I almost wonder: with all of the greenways, paths, future walkable communities, and improvements to LYNX, is it an expectation of planners that CLT will become a pedestrian friendly city, to the extent that many residents will severely curtail automobile use?
There are lots of high density apartments in the South End and to a lesser extent in Elizabeth this is true. However go to Ballantyne or Pineville, an area full of wide roads (to wide to cross on foot easily) and turning lanes, and you will see MORE traffic than on South Blvd. The people who live in the South End have curtailed automobile use - that is much of the reason why people move there and why I would like to move there. There is planning going on there too - from the bike lanes on East Blvd to the walkway.bikeway along the light rail tracks.
Is there something that I am not seeing? I almost wonder: with all of the greenways, paths, future walkable communities, and improvements to LYNX, is it an expectation of planners that CLT will become a pedestrian friendly city, to the extent that many residents will severely curtail automobile use?
I don't think THAT is the case. To me, the answer is much more simple. The city has limited funds, therefore the neighborhoods with the highest tax base (Myers Park, Dilworth, Elizabeth, South Park, Ballantyne) gets the most money.
Also, any street that is either an Interstate, US route, or a state route (ie, I-77, US 29, or NC 16) is funded by the state. The city has NOTHING to do with those roads. An example of this is South Blvd from I-485 to Woodlawn. This stretch used be designated as US 521. As a result, the state of NC built a suburban styled Blvd with no turn lanes, no medians, and very little sidewalk connectivity. Since the light rail line though, that same stretch has lost its US route designation. As a result, we can clearly see some improvements when it comes to pedestrian cross walks at major intersections (Woodlawn, Tyvola, Archdale, Arrowood, Sharon Road west).
I'm not 100% sure, but it seems to me that the city of Charlotte had to take over that section of road in order to "fix" some of the mistakes created by the state. FWIW, North Tryon Street from Uptown to Concord (and beyond) is yet another state owned disaster.
The bottomline here is that the NC Dot was NEVER an urban road building political machine. Their priorities are "more roads, more lanes, at the lowest cost". This might work well for small towns in the middle of nowhere, but it hurts cities where people expect and deserve better planning.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ex-burgher
There are lots of high density apartments in the South End and to a lesser extent in Elizabeth this is true. However go to Ballantyne or Pineville, an area full of wide roads (to wide to cross on foot easily) and turning lanes, and you will see MORE traffic than on South Blvd. The people who live in the South End have curtailed automobile use - that is much of the reason why people move there and why I would like to move there. There is planning going on there too - from the bike lanes on East Blvd to the walkway.bikeway along the light rail tracks.
You and me both!!! Neighborhoods like the South End is Charlotte's best hope of retaining residents like myself and my wife. Take away those areas, and I NEVER would have returned to this city.
There are lots of high density apartments in the South End and to a lesser extent in Elizabeth this is true. However go to Ballantyne or Pineville, an area full of wide roads (to wide to cross on foot easily) and turning lanes, and you will see MORE traffic than on South Blvd. The people who live in the South End have curtailed automobile use - that is much of the reason why people move there and why I would like to move there. There is planning going on there too - from the bike lanes on East Blvd to the walkway.bikeway along the light rail tracks.
I appreciate your thoughtful post, and agree with your thoughts on South End. Even so, one problem with South End (unless it's changed since my last visit), is a lack of shopping within reasonable walking distance. I can't imagine 5 stories of residents zipping in and out on a Saturday without causing some type of traffic jam.
And once it's built, it's hard to go back and change...
I appreciate your thoughtful post, and agree with your thoughts on South End. Even so, one problem with South End (unless it's changed since my last visit), is a lack of shopping within reasonable walking distance. I can't imagine 5 stories of residents zipping in and out on a Saturday without causing some type of traffic jam.
Believe it or not, traffic is not bad there on a weekend (5pm on a weekday is a different story). Retail is still lacking in South End (given it's size and population), but there are quite a few options in the area (Midtown and East Blvd in Dilworth). There's also the option of catching the train for a short trip into uptown. Walking is an option for those who wish to work out at the local YMCA or grab a bite to eat at a local restaurant. Due to the numerous options for getting around, not every one is driving for every single task of mobility.
Yet as much as there's a lot of 'good' within Charlotte planning, one thing boggles the mind: the road system, and *lack* of planning. What about right and left turning lanes? How about leaving a little room in the center median for future road expansion? How about widening the roads a little bit, so that emergency (fire) vehicles can get through?
When I look at some of the roads around newer, densely populated, apartment mid rises (e.g. South End and Elizabeth), and see the lack of turning lanes, I have to wonder: "what were they thinking!?"...Charlotte is following the same mistakes/patterns that were made in America's first suburbs.
Most of the roads around South End and Elizabeth have been there since the early 1900s. They were designed with walkers and streetcar riders in mind. I haven't heard of any problems with fire trucks getting through on these roads either.
Turn lanes and widening would have added massive expense for right of ways, new curbs and also in many areas would not have been possible. Indeed, planners in the last 15 years or so have been concerned more with making our urban areas more pedestrian friendly. I haven't seen this lead to many traffic jams.
I don't think THAT is the case. To me, the answer is much more simple. The city has limited funds, therefore the neighborhoods with the highest tax base (Myers Park, Dilworth, Elizabeth, South Park, Ballantyne) gets the most money.
Urban, thank you for educating me on CLT's roadways . What you say makes sense, so why not do what other municipalities have done? I have no links to provide, but it's been my experience with one county (should I say state) that I lived in, their attitude was simple:
"If you want to build (or develop) on such and such lot, then you, the property owner, are going to plan, and pay for, the necessary road improvements (right turning lanes, medians) *prior* to building - so that traffic will continue to flow smoothly on the road.
Here's my other thought: Gleaning over some of CLT's planning documents, it's apparent that they want to make CLT a "green" city.
Who knows? Locally where I live, traffic has greatly formed individual attitudes to embrace carpooling/high occupancy vehicle lanes. Perhaps the same type of thinking is employed in CLT, to encourage more walking and bike use.
The goals of getting people to exercise more, reduce emissions, and reduce our dependance upon oil, are noble.
If the city works as planned, Charlotte will be a smashing success.
But if the city's plans do not work as intended, Charlotte will become a huge, and largely irreversible, nightmare.
One final thought: Most of the population in CLT is reasonably young. What happens when the current children of CLT households get their licenses? The population won't increase, but the traffic could easily double.
Indeed, planners in the last 15 years or so have been concerned more with making our urban areas more pedestrian friendly. I haven't seen this lead to many traffic jams.
Hopefully it all pans out. I personally like walkable communities, and also hope for more retail.
I appreciate your thoughtful post, and agree with your thoughts on South End. Even so, one problem with South End (unless it's changed since my last visit), is a lack of shopping within reasonable walking distance. I can't imagine 5 stories of residents zipping in and out on a Saturday without causing some type of traffic jam.
And once it's built, it's hard to go back and change...
It's interesting. I live in the area and have never witnessed a weekend traffic jam unless the Panthers were playing or there was another event at BofA stadium.
I think the default of many planners and engineers in the past has been to assume the standard suburban, middle-class lifestyle for all residents. This assumes a lot of driving. But people are very good at adapting to their environments. More roads don't simply accommodate the demand for driving, they also create more demand. While retail is not available in walking distance, recreation is. Since weekends are so unstructured anyway, it's not common for tons of people to be leaving at the same time. Even a 1 minute difference in leaving the garage for whatever weekend errand makes trips dispersed enough to keep traffic flowing smoothly. Not to mention the roads there handle many more thousands of commuter cars during the week - weekends in the city are actually much more peaceful, with much less traffic, than weekends in the burbs.
Yes. They Are!
Matter of fact, there is one piece left in the plan to complete the maze of confusion by our city planners. That is..................
there is a bill in the NC Legislature(General Assembly) to rename the city of Charlotte........................... Queens Road, NC.
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Neighborhoods like the South End is Charlotte's best hope of retaining residents like myself and my wife. Take away those areas, and I NEVER would have returned to this city.
