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Placemaking and Health
Use alternative surfaces to accommodate emergency access, such as gore-striped shoulder areas, stamped or patterned asphalt or concrete, traversable medians or truck aprons, curb and gutter, and unpaved surfaces such as gravel or stabilized turf. Alternative surfaces for this purpose should not impede other functional requirements of the street appropriate to the Context Based Classification. Complete Streets principles in Suburban Town (C3T) and Urban General (C4) contexts call for smaller blocks and gridded street systems governed by land use policies. These street networks increase the number of people walking and bicycling and reduce vehicle miles traveled. A California study found that places with a dense, connected street network had three to four times more people walking, bicycling, or using transit to get to work. This in turn led to a 50 percent reduction in vehicle miles traveled per capita in these cities 24 A reduction in vehicle travel decreases exposure and probability of crashes. Two primary reasons why Suburban Town (C3T) and Urban General (C4) grid street networks work better for emergency response are maximizing the number of addresses served from each station and providing a redundancy of routes. Studies in Charlotte, North Carolina, found that when one connection was added between cul-de-sac subdivisions, the local fire station increased the number of addresses served by 17 percent and increased the number of households served by 12 percent. Streets must meet the relevant fire codes that govern emergency vehicle street criteria. This includes the minimum width necessary for vehicles to park adjacent to buildings, and parking restrictions approaching intersections to allow for safe turns. While radii and curb extensions should be designed with these needs in mind, the strategies provided in this document, including increasing the effective curb radius and recessing stop bars, can accommodate emergency response vehicles without jeopardizing the everyday safety of street users. Greenscape/Landscape Greenspace is a collection of street trees, shrubs, planters, and grasses that plays a key role in improving sustainability. There are many environmental benefits that greenscaping provides: Shade from street trees can keep buildings cooler, reducing the need for air conditioning, Plantings absorb greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide) and filter particulate matter which can be extremely harmful to those with asthma, Greenscape elements clean, remove, and stabilize contaminants that are either washed from sidewalks and streets by stormwater or are already in the soil, and Trees and flowers can support native natural ecosystems and help restore a balance to urban and suburban contexts.
24 Marshall, W. and Garrick, N., “The Spatial Distribution of VMT Based upon Street Network Characteristics,” (90th Meeting of the Transportation Research Board, Washington, D.C., January 2011)
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