3.3. Avenue

Aus Pattern Language Wiki

In laying out the 400M Through Street Network, create a sub-network of streets between the Mobility Corridor and Multi-Way Boulevard.


03 3 01 Avenue.jpg


Problem-statement: People need streets that allow their vehicles to travel longer distances safely at moderate speed, while still giving good access to the buildings and neighborhoods along them.


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Discussion:: Multi-way boulevards are a good solution for large volumes of traffic, but many other streets within the network do not require multiple separated lanes. It is sufficient for these streets to have a single group of lanes — typically no more than two in each direction — and on-street parking to provide protection to pedestrians, and to slow traffic to moderate speeds (typically 30 kilometers per hour, or 20 miles per hour). If these streets are spaced (together with multi-way boulevards) at a regular 400m interval, they can handle ample volumes of traffic without negatively impacting pedestrian safety and neighborhood livability.


In a well-functioning multi-modal avenue, on-street parking slows traffic down and provides a buffer, making it possible for pedestrians to navigate the avenue safely. Unfortunately, transportation engineers have too often removed on-street parking in order to speed up traffic flow. This action will severely compromise the pedestrian component of avenues. Transportation engineers should recognize that they need not handle avenue traffic at the same high speeds as multi-way boulevards and other mobility corridors. Indeed, a growing movement in “context-sensitive design” (also called “complete streets”) is arguing for a design speed for avenues and other local streets of no more than about 30 kilometers per hour, or 20 miles per hour.¹


It is not only the street itself that must be designed carefully, but also the streetscape, building frontages, and non-vehicular circulation zones (e.g. for pedestrians and bikes). There might be spots where fast traffic passes close to pedestrians, and these need protection with attractively designed bollards. Bicycle pathways need to be carefully designed to avoid car doors as well as pedestrians, and also to avoid effectively widening the street. (This generally means any separate bike lane needs to go next to the sidewalk, not in the street.) Building entrances need to be close to the street, with frequently spaced locations. The street must be seen as a system, with all of these components combined and integrated.²


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Therefore:

Alternate multi-way boulevards with a network of avenues within the 400M spacing system. Provide on-street parking, and limit lanes to no more than two in each direction.


03 3 02 Avenue.jpg


Develop each area between avenues as a Pedestrian Sanctuary, incorporating the pattern Shared Space Lane…




¹ See for example LaPlante, J., & McCann, B. (2008). Complete streets: We can get there from here. ITE Journal, 78(5), 24.


² One approach to ensuring that the components of the streetscape, including the building elevations, are coordinated into a “complete street” regime is the use of a Form-Based Code. See for example Talen, E. (2009). Design by the rules: The historical underpinnings of form-based codes. Journal of the American Planning Association, 75(2), 144-160.



Mehaffy, M. et al. (2020). AVENUE (pattern). In A New Pattern Language for Growing Regions. The Dalles: Sustasis Press. Available at https://pattern-language.wiki/.../Avenue



SECTION I:

PATTERNS OF SCALE


1. REGIONAL PATTERNS

Define the large-scale spatial organization…

1.1. POLYCENTRIC REGION

1.2. BLUE-GREEN NETWORK

1.3. MOBILITY CORRIDOR

1.4. 400M THROUGH STREET NETWORK

2. URBAN PATTERNS

Establish essential urban characteristics…

2.1. WALKABLE MULTI-MOBILITY

2.2. LEVEL CITY

2.3. PUBLIC SPACE SYSTEM

2.4. BIOPHILIC URBANISM

3. STREET PATTERNS

Identify and allocate street types…

3.1. URBAN GREENWAY

3.2. MULTI-WAY BOULEVARD

3.3. AVENUE

3.4. SHARED SPACE LANE

4. NEIGHBORHOOD PATTERNS

Define neighborhood-scale elements…

4.1. STREET AS CENTER

4.2. PEDESTRIAN SANCTUARY

4.3. NEIGHBORHOOD SQUARE

4.4. NEIGHBORHOOD PARK

5. SPECIAL USE PATTERNS

Integrate unique urban elements with care…

5.1. SCHOOL CAMPUS

5.2. MARKET CENTER

5.3. INDUSTRIAL AREA

5.4. HOSPITAL

6. PUBLIC SPACE PATTERNS

Establish the character of the crucial public realm…

6.1. PLACE NETWORK

6.2. WALKABLE STREETSCAPE

6.3. MOVABLE SEATING

6.4. CAPILLARY PATHWAY

7. BLOCK AND PLOT PATTERNS

Lay out the detailed structure of property lines…

7.1. SMALL BLOCKS

7.2. PERIMETER BLOCK

7.3. SMALL PLOTS

7.4. MID-BLOCK ALLEY

8. STREETSCAPE PATTERNS

Configure the street as a welcoming place…

8.1. STREET AS ROOM

8.2. TERMINATED VISTA

8.3. STREET TREES

8.4. STREET FURNISHINGS

9. BUILDING PATTERNS

Lay out appropriate urban buildings…

9.1. PERIMETER BUILDING

9.2. ARCADE BUILDING

9.3. COURTYARD BUILDING

9.4. ROW BUILDING

10. BUILDING EDGE PATTERNS

Create interior and exterior connectivity…

10.1. INDOOR-OUTDOOR AMBIGUITY

10.2. CIRCULATION NETWORK

10.3. LAYERED ZONES

10.4. PASSAGEWAY VIEW



SECTION II:

PATTERNS OF MULTIPLE SCALE


11. GEOMETRIC PATTERNS

Build in coherent geometries at all scales…

11.1. LOCAL SYMMETRY

11.2. SMALL GROUPS OF ELEMENTS

11.3. FRACTAL PATTERN

11.4. FRAMING

12. AFFORDANCE PATTERNS

Build in user capacity to shape the environment…

12.1. HANDLES

12.2. CO-PRODUCTION

12.3. FRIENDLY SURFACES

12.4. MALLEABILITY

13. RETROFIT PATTERNS

Revitalize and improve existing urban assets …

13.1. SLUM UPGRADE

13.2. SPRAWL RETROFIT

13.3. URBAN REGENERATION

13.4. URBAN CONSOLIDATION

14. INFORMAL GROWTH PATTERNS

Accommodate “bottom-up” urban growth…

14.1. LAND TENURE

14.2. UTILITIES FIRST

14.3. DATA WITH THE PEOPLE

14.4. INCREMENTAL SELF-BUILD

15. CONSTRUCTION PATTERNS

Use the building process to enrich the result…

15.1. DESIGN-BUILD ADAPTATION

15.2. HUMAN-SCALE DETAIL

15.3. CONSTRUCTION ORNAMENT

15.4. COMPLEX MATERIALS



SECTION III:

PATTERNS OF PROCESS


16. IMPLEMENTATION TOOL PATTERNS

Use tools to achieve successful results…

16.1. FORM-BASED CODE

16.2. ENTITLEMENT STREAMLINING

16.3. NEIGHBORHOOD PLANNING CENTER

16.4. COMMUNITY MOCKUP

17. PROJECT ECONOMICS PATTERNS

Create flows of money that support urban quality…

17.1. TAX-INCREMENT FINANCING

17.2. LAND VALUE CAPTURE

17.3. EXTERNALITY VALUATION

17.4. ECONOMIES OF PLACE AND DIFFERENTIATION

18. PLACE GOVERNANCE PATTERNS

Processes for making and managing places…

18.1. SUBSIDIARITY

18.2. POLYCENTRIC GOVERNANCE

18.3. PUBLIC-PRIVATE PLACE MANAGEMENT

18.4. INFORMAL STEWARDSHIP

19. AFFORDABILITY PATTERNS

Build in affordability for all incomes…

19.1. INTEGRATED AFFORDABILITY

19.2. COMMUNITY LAND TRUST

19.3. MULTI-FAMILY INFILL

19.4. SPECULATION TAX

20. NEW TECHNOLOGY PATTERNS

Integrate new systems without damaging old ones…

20.1. SMART AV SYSTEM

20.2. RESPONSIVE TRANSPORTATION NETWORK COMPANY

20.3. AUGMENTED REALITY DESIGN

20.4. CITIZEN DATA