In 2012, the City-County Council approved Complete Streets Ordinance. Under Chapter 431, Article VIII of the Consolidated City and County Code of Ordinances the Compete Street Policy outlines the scope of Complete Streets applicability, design standards, performance measures, implementation, and reporting. Sec. 431-807 states, “The department of public works, the department of metropolitan development, the office of sustainability and other relevant departments, agencies, or committees will incorporate Complete Streets principles into all existing plans, manuals, checklists, decision-trees, rules, regulations, and programs as appropriate (including, but not limited to, ReZone Indy, ReBuild Indy, the Comprehensive Plan, Transportation Capital Program, the Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plans, Transit Plan and other appropriate plans).” In sum, the Indianapolis-Marion County Thoroughfare Plan establishes a clear vision of the future thoroughfare system that is both multimodal and context sensitive. It also clarifies the relationship to other implementing tools, and is clearly written, graphical, and brief to be highly accessible to the public and potential developers. It is an optional element of the Comprehensive Plan, therefore instead of being regulatory, the document provides long-range guidance and is meant to inform decision making. The cross sections described above are not prescriptive, rather, they are meant to be graphic illustrations of a particular concept. For any given mode, other multimodal elements that are appropriate can be substituted for what is illustrated in the ROW Standards and Design Guidelines Table. Additionally, right-of-way minimums can be waived if substantiated by technical justification from the Department of Public Works and certain roads that do not fit design parameters (e.g., roads on National Register of Historic Places) can be addressed on case-by-case basis. El Paso, Texas El Paso has a detailed, yet flexible framework for future growth in its award-winning comprehensive plan that guides all future development, including that of the transportation system. Thoroughfares in El Paso are organized into a functional hierarchy based on criteria including design speed, travel lane width, and access, which define the thoroughfare’s role in the overall network. The thoroughfare network is mapped and depicts proposed network extensions in a grid pattern (Figure 25). Thoroughfares are further defined in relation to the following area types: Compact Urban, Drivable Suburban, and Rural. The City has also identified a number of subcategories within each area type to identify its various planning areas (Table 21). The Texas Department of Transportation refers to these designations for guidance as it designs roadway projects. In May 2011 the City of El Paso adopted the Institute of Transportation Engineer’s Recommended Practice, Designing Walkable Urban Thoroughfares: A Context Sensitive Approach (2010) as a guideline for designing and redesigning new and existing thoroughfares. The practice of “context sensitive solutions” (CSS) and the designation of context zones helps describe the physical form and characteristic of a place and can be interpreted on a block-by-block basis for thoroughfare design. A SmartCode was also adopted providing additional detailed community types and design criteria. Title 21 of the Code of Ordinances describes the process of using SmartCode in the development process. Incentives for developers to use this method include receiving the highest priority review status by all reviewing agencies, having all applications or filing fees waived, and City acceptance of dedications and maintenance of civic space.
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