Relationships Between Streetcars and the Built Environment (2010) / Chapter Skim
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Great diversity exists among operating and planned systems, and this synthesis begins to identify several stages of streetcar system development. These stages are potentially but not necessarily sequential and include the following: Demonstration:• a volunteer or local agency establishes the feasibility of a modest streetcar line Targeted trips:• expanded service is focused on certain groups, typically tourists and residents but not necessarily commuters Full service:• frequent daily service, including during commute hours with service to downtown or business centers Urban connector:• multiple routes between various districts and full integration into the regional transportation system These stages have distinctly different implications for the potential impact of streetcars on the built environment, and the types and amount of economic development and changes in the built environment that might occur.
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Few systems, however, reported the types of ancillary changes in the built environment, such as reduced parking garage construction, increased pedestrian or bike lane investments, or explicit parking reductions that often are associated with light rail systems. Few, if any, streetcar system operators seek information on their impact on economic activity, although most interviewed consider economic-related questions to be vital and desire further research on this topic.
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CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION BACkGROUND In the past 20 years, numerous cities have planned and implemented new rail transit systems. This movement has coincided with other urban regeneration trends, bringing new life to urban centers and advancing strategies to manage growth that promote more efficient patterns of development.
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These and other systems straddle the definition between streetcar and light rail and are at times variously classified as either typology. Approach to Synthesis To clearly focus this synthesis on the impacts of streetcars on the built environment, distinct from light rail, and also to draw meaningful findings with respect to the unique qualities of streetcars' impacts, this report focuses on recently built streetcar systems (i.e., developed within the past 20 years)
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In an indirect sense, streetcar systems impact the built environment by activating neighborhoods (e.g., through an increase in foot traffic) or by altering perceptions of an area (e.g., signaling that a district is "up and coming")
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. Notes: VTA Light Rail is the Santa Clara, California Valley Transportation Authority.
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. SUMMARY OF LITERATURE LIMITATIONS The literature on impacts on the built environment overwhelmingly focuses on heavy rail and light rail systems.
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8 Streetcar Development Impacts (8)
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The number of contemporary streetcar systems completed in the past 20 years, for which the conditions exist to measure changes to the built environment, are limited (a total of 13 systems as described in the Introduction)
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In Savannah, the streetcar was implemented in large part to solve congestion on historic streets affected by private automobile traffic as well as an overlapping network of bus and shuttle systems. Based on experience with its initial streetcar line, the current downtown Master Planning process reflects considerable interest in expanding the system.
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uses. In Seattle, the city and a major property developer, Vulcan Properties, see the streetcar as necessary to achieved planned densities and overall goals for pedestrian-oriented development in the South Lake Union neighborhood.
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Several bus routes intersect the streetcar line. Planning for Kenosha's streetcar system began in the early 1990s as a part of a master plan for the redevelopment of HarborPark, a 69-acre brownfield site located on the embankment of Lake Michigan.
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Although KAT has not conducted a survey, the KAT director commented that a significant number of riders are tourists visiting the area's four museums. Impacts of Streetcar on Built Environment Impacts on Existing Development Previously an industrial manufacturing zone, the redevelopment plan for HarborPark called for new zoning to allow high-density, residential mixed-use and museums.
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Streetcar System Savannah's River Street Streetcar is the demonstration phase of what is intended to be a larger effort to incorporate extension of a streetcar system with downtown master planning to enhance mobility and the competitive position of downtown for offices, retail, and residential uses (see Figure 5)
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System Development The River Street route is a demonstration project that establishes the viability of a streetcar. An earlier 2003 study by Chatham Area Transit (CAT)
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The streetcar system is not part of the regional MAX light rail system, which links suburban communities more than 30 mi apart to each other as well as offering service to the Portland International Airport and north Portland. Initially announced in 1997, the system commenced operations in 2001, with the initial segment running from Good Samaritan Hospital to Portland State University.
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will contribute 10% and 19%, respectively. Impacts on the Built Environment Impacts on Existing Physical Development The Portland streetcar system has been analyzed extensively, primarily in terms of the amount, density, and timing of development it has stimulated, rather than streetcar impacts on land value.
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, the Fareless Square (free bus, light rail, and streetcar in the downtown) , extensive streetscape improvements, substantial allowable density, fine-tuned parking regulations, strong design guidelines and review, and a host of financial incentives offered The survey conducted for this report included an interview with staff of the Portland Development Commission, the city of Portland's agency devoted to economic development and redevelopment of specific areas of Portland designated as URAs.
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. Another way to understand the change is that the addition of more than 4 million square ft in densely developed new projects near the streetcar allowed this specific one-block area to "catch up" with, and thus achieve similar overall density as, more distant downtown blocks that contain Portland's more concentrated downtown districts (see Table 5)
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System Development In initial planning for the trolley system, MATA strategically placed the Main Street line between two intermodal transportation terminals: Central Station to the south, and the proposed new North End Terminal to the north. These two transportation terminals facilitate several types of intermodal connection and house joint development tenants.
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The analysis compared tax appraisal data for residential and commercial uses drawn from the Shelby County Tennessee Assessor's Office for the tax years 2002 and 2008 for properties within 0.25 mi of all stops along the Madison Street line to determine change in property values over ates on roughly 10-min headways during the week, with less frequent service during off-peak evening weekday hours and on weekends. Ridership has significantly grown since the mid-1990s, when the system had approximately 500,000 riders annually on the Main Street line alone, to more than 900,000 after the opening of the Riverfront Loop in 1997.
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tools to isolate those parcels within 0.25 mi from stops along the line. Since the Madison Street line opened in 2003, this data analysis compared the before values to after values along the streetcar line, compared with the citywide data for the same time period.
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Impacts on New Development The redevelopment of Central Station spurred additional residential development in the downtown core. After 1999, the area emerged as an arts and entertainment district, with a substantial amount of new residential uses, including several adaptive reuse projects that have converted historic buildings TABLE 7 PROPERTY VALUE INCREASES ALONG MADISON STREET ROUTE (0.25 MI FROM STOPS)
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It has been an integral factor in the redevelopment of the former light industrial South Lake Union area into Seattle's hottest new area for development, attracting major corporate headquarters campuses such as Amazon.com, as well as a range of biotech and high-tech uses along with extensive residential development. The city council has adopted a concept for expansion of the streetcar route to areas north, south, and east of South Lake Union.
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(Source: Seattle Streetcar.) System Development South Lake Union is a former light industrial area that was planned and rezoned for redevelopment to accommodate new office and R&D uses.
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Impacts on New Development The city has not been tracking changes in land values or rents, so quantitative information on the streetcar's impact is not available. The city designed the South Lake Union as one of six urban centers to receive a majority of future residential and employment growth, and increased height limits to 90 ft (but not downtown heights)
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Although the diversity is great among operating and planned systems, based on the work done for this synthesis, it is possible to identify several stages of streetcar system development. These stages are potentially but not necessarily sequential and include the following: Demonstration:• a volunteer or local agency establishes the feasibility of a modest streetcar line Targeted trips:• expanded service is focused on certain groups, typically tourists and residents but not necessarily commuters Full service:• frequent daily service, including during commute hours with service to downtown or business centers Urban connector:• multiple routes between various districts and full integration into the regional transportation system These stages have distinctly different implications for the potential impact of streetcars on the built environment, and the types and amount of economic development and changes in the built environment that might occur.
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11. Fox, T., "The Memphis Trolley System: A Transportation Link and Development Tool," Proceedings of American Public Transportation Association/Transportation Research Board, LRT Conference, Nov.
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era and general character of the streetcar route or most recent segment. Does the new streetcar corridor follow any historic streetcar systems (from early 20th century)
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Do you see any direct relationship, such as a concentration of proposed/built LEED buildings near the streetcar? Are there notable differences in • other signs of private investment along the streetcar corridor (e.g., façade improvements, developer marketing promoting streetcar transit, etc.)
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-- Did your city change its parking requirements or parking management strategies along the streetcar route prior to construction or in conjunction with it? If so, please describe the changes.
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32 APPENDIx B LIST OF RESPONDENTS Astoria, Oregon Planning Director, City of Astoria Director of Sunset Empire District, Astoria Riverfront Trolley Association City Planner, City of Astoria Ex-Director of Public Works, Astoria Chamber of Commerce Charlotte, North Carolina Assistant Director, Strategic Planning Services, City of Charlotte Manager, Rail Transportation, Charlotte Area Transit System Galveston, Texas Vice President, Goodman Corporation (consultant to Galveston Island Transit) Director of Transportation, Galveston Island Transit Kenosha, Wisconsin Director of Transportation, City of Kenosha Community Development Specialist, City of Kenosha Little Rock, Arkansas Executive Director, River Rail System Metro Plan Planning Manager, Central Arkansas Transit Authority Lowell, Massachusetts Community Planner, National Park Service Planning and Permitting Director, City of Lowell Memphis, Tennessee Vice President of Planning and Development, Center City Commission Manager of Planning, Memphis Area Transit Authority Memphis Metropolitan Planning Organization Portland, Oregon Portland Development Commission Executive Director, Portland Streetcar, Inc.
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MELANIPHY Motor Coach Industries BRADFORD MILLER Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority FRANK OTERO PACO Technologies KEITH PARKER VIA Metropolitan Transit PETER ROGOFF FTA JEFFREY ROSENBERG Amalgamated Transit Union RICHARD SARLES Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority MICHAEL SCANLON San Mateo County Transit District MARILYN SHAZOR Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority JAMES STEM United Transportation Union GARY THOMAS Dallas Area Rapid Transit FRANK TOBEY First Transit MATTHEW O TUCKER North County Transit District PAM WARD Ottumwa Transit Authority ALICE WIGGINS-TOLBERT Parsons Brinckerhoff EX OFFICIO MEMBERS WILLIAM W
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W ashing to n, d .C . 20001 A D D R eSS SeR ViCe R eQ UeSTeD TRB A Synthesis of Transit Practice Sponsored by the Federal Transit Administration 1430977803099 ISBN 978-0-309-14309-7 90000 >
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