Start here · Essential guide
Street Anatomy: Lanes, Curbs, Sidewalks and Everything Between
A plain guide to the parts of a city street, from travel lanes to sidewalks, and how each one competes for the same limited width between buildings.
Infrastructure and Services
Street-level design choices that decide how a block works.
Start here · Essential guide
A plain guide to the parts of a city street, from travel lanes to sidewalks, and how each one competes for the same limited width between buildings.
Why some downtowns reverse their one-way street grids, what the change is meant to do, and the trade-offs in traffic, safety, cost and business access.
How crosswalk markings, signal timing, refuge islands and corner design affect comfort, safety and waiting time for people crossing city streets on foot.
Why the curb is a scarce public resource, how parking, loading, rideshare and bus stops compete for it, and the tools cities use to allocate it.
How the movement of goods shapes city streets, loading zones and neighbors, and the options cities weigh to keep deliveries working without harming other uses.
The arguments for and against tearing down or covering urban highways: reconnecting neighborhoods, traffic effects, cost, land reuse and displacement concerns.
What cities and owners do with oversized, underused or poorly placed parking garages: wrapping, conversion, shared use, partial removal and demolition.
How required parking counts raise building costs, consume land and shape the look of city blocks, plus what happens when cities reduce or remove the rules.
How reducing travel lanes frees space for bike lanes, turn lanes and sidewalks, what safety evidence suggests, and the concerns residents and drivers raise.
How streets where people walking, cycling and driving mix at low speeds work, what design features support them, and who may find them difficult.
How benches, shelters, trash bins, lighting and signs shape everyday street quality, and the practical questions of placement, upkeep and who is served.
A comparison of humps, tables, chicanes, curb extensions, roundabouts and narrowed lanes: how each slows vehicles, what it costs and where it has drawbacks.
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