Urban Transportation and Planning

Planning for Growth in the Lower Mystic (Assignment 4)

After assessing the level of growth projected from the various developments in the Lower Mystic area, the impacts and capacity constraints of major transportation infrastructure in the area, and projected and estimated mode shares, now it's your turn to propose as individuals how to achieve a transportation plan that can maintain and improve access to jobs and opportunities while supporting the plans and goals of the surrounding cities.

Re-Designing Massachusetts Avenue (Assignment 2)

The Cambridge Director of Transportation has asked you, his trusted advisor, to help him plan his strategy with respect to current issues regarding Massachusetts Avenue between Central Square and the Harvard Bridge.

For this assignment, you will have access to the counting reports of the teams at three intersections and locations along Mass. Ave. You should walk and observe, and use the first several steps of the 19 step process as part of your background work in preparing to write the assignment. Pay explicit attention to the first step: "who are you?" and how this impacts the advice you give.

Counting and Observing at Key Intersections (Assignment 1)

The first assignment is a group assignment, to go out and observe key street cross sections and intersections nearby in Cambridge. This assignment gives you a chance to observe and think about how people, different travel modes, infrastructure, and neighboring land uses interact in a real, live place. You will not only look and see what is going on, but also start to become familiar with how "little numbers" translate to real-world conditions: what does 800 cars/hour look like vs. 800 people riding the T, and what impact do these differences have on the nature of the urban scene? You should become familiar with basic ideas like level of service, saturation flow rate, capacity, speeds, flow, and mode share (see Meyer and Miller, Chapter 3). We want you to think about how you measure and what you measure, and what impact this has on the transportation planning process and built outcomes.

Weekly Reading and Class Responses

You are required to submit a one-paragraph (no more than 150 words) response to the readings each week by 4pm the night before class. The responses are not meant to be formal, but instead help you engage with the class material and help us lead and focus the class discussion. You should not spend more than 30 minutes each week on the responses, although we expect you will spend significantly more time doing readings. 

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