Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board
Regional transit governance has become a topic of growing interest in some transit policy circles... more Regional transit governance has become a topic of growing interest in some transit policy circles in the United States. There is hope that the quality of transit service can be improved by creating governance structures that transcend municipal and county borders to oversee and coordinate transit provision over entire regions. Although several studies have recorded the benefits of such governance systems and several others have explored different models, few have investigated the methods by which these structures were created. This is crucial information, as establishing such governance structures is a delicate political process with no guarantee of success. Through interviews with planners in Germany, this study investigated six German regional transit governance bodies and searched for strategic components that were instrumental to the creation of at least one regional governance structure. Five were ultimately found, which can be mixed and matched for use in strategies in regions...
What Density Doesn’t Tell Us About Sprawl BY ERIC EIDLIN S PRAWL HA S NO SINGLE DEFINITION . Many... more What Density Doesn’t Tell Us About Sprawl BY ERIC EIDLIN S PRAWL HA S NO SINGLE DEFINITION . Many people, however, tend to think of “sprawling” cities as places where people make most of their trips by car, and non-sprawling cities as places where people are more likely to walk, cycle, or take transit. This is why Los Angeles, which has more vehicles per square mile than any other urbanized area, and where transit accounts for only two percent of the region’s over- all trips, is considered sprawling, while the New York urbanized area is not. We also know (or think we know) that places where people frequently walk, cycle, or take transit tend to have high population densities, and for this reason we tend to view low density as a proxy for sprawl. But as it turns out, the Los Angeles urbanized area—which in both myth and fact is very car-oriented—is also very dense. In fact, Los Angeles has been the densest urbanized area in the United States since the 1980s, denser even than New York...
As the scholarly literature and the experience on the ground indicate, good station-area planning... more As the scholarly literature and the experience on the ground indicate, good station-area planning is an important prerequisite for the successful operation of a high-speed rail (HSR) station; it can also trigger opportunities for economic development in the station area and station-city. What is less clear, however, is what constitutes good station-area planning. This study details the elements of good station-area planning for HSR stations, the challenges and opportunities for good station-area planning around the San Jose Diridon station, and the lessons learned from five case studies of successful European HSR stations.
Los Angeles, California, is generally considered the archetypal sprawling metropolis. Yet traditi... more Los Angeles, California, is generally considered the archetypal sprawling metropolis. Yet traditional measures equate sprawl with low population density, and Los Angeles is among the densest and thereby the least sprawling cities in the United States. How can this apparent paradox be explained? This paper argues that the answer lies in the fact that Los Angeles exhibits a comparatively even distribution of population throughout its urbanized area. As a result, the city suffers from many consequences of high population density, including extreme traffic congestion, poor air quality, and high housing prices, while offering its residents few benefits that typically accompany this density, including fast and effective public transit, vibrant street life, and tightly knit urban neighborhoods. The city's unique combination of high average population density with little differentiation in the distribution of population might best be characterized as dense sprawl, a condition that embod...
This report argues that in order for high-speed rail (HSR) to deliver on its promise to 38 millio... more This report argues that in order for high-speed rail (HSR) to deliver on its promise to 38 million Californians and investors, the project must be designed as the backbone of a comprehensive system for sustainable passenger mobility in California. If HSR is to serve as the backbone of sustainable intercity mobility in the state, the project's definition must extend beyond HSR route planning to include sustainable local transportation connections and careful station area planning. Cities across France and Germany demonstrate how HSR can be a powerful tool for strengthening cities and towns along HSR corridors in economic, social, and cultural terms. With careful planning, the same can be achieved in California. This is why the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CAHSRA) is funding planning efforts in most of the cities that will have HSR stations, to ensure that each station area is designed to maximize HSR-supportive development within station areas. This report highlights best practices from Europe that can help inform these CAHSRA-funded planning efforts.
Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board
Regional transit governance has become a topic of growing interest in some transit policy circles... more Regional transit governance has become a topic of growing interest in some transit policy circles in the United States. There is hope that the quality of transit service can be improved by creating governance structures that transcend municipal and county borders to oversee and coordinate transit provision over entire regions. Although several studies have recorded the benefits of such governance systems and several others have explored different models, few have investigated the methods by which these structures were created. This is crucial information, as establishing such governance structures is a delicate political process with no guarantee of success. Through interviews with planners in Germany, this study investigated six German regional transit governance bodies and searched for strategic components that were instrumental to the creation of at least one regional governance structure. Five were ultimately found, which can be mixed and matched for use in strategies in regions...
What Density Doesn’t Tell Us About Sprawl BY ERIC EIDLIN S PRAWL HA S NO SINGLE DEFINITION . Many... more What Density Doesn’t Tell Us About Sprawl BY ERIC EIDLIN S PRAWL HA S NO SINGLE DEFINITION . Many people, however, tend to think of “sprawling” cities as places where people make most of their trips by car, and non-sprawling cities as places where people are more likely to walk, cycle, or take transit. This is why Los Angeles, which has more vehicles per square mile than any other urbanized area, and where transit accounts for only two percent of the region’s over- all trips, is considered sprawling, while the New York urbanized area is not. We also know (or think we know) that places where people frequently walk, cycle, or take transit tend to have high population densities, and for this reason we tend to view low density as a proxy for sprawl. But as it turns out, the Los Angeles urbanized area—which in both myth and fact is very car-oriented—is also very dense. In fact, Los Angeles has been the densest urbanized area in the United States since the 1980s, denser even than New York...
As the scholarly literature and the experience on the ground indicate, good station-area planning... more As the scholarly literature and the experience on the ground indicate, good station-area planning is an important prerequisite for the successful operation of a high-speed rail (HSR) station; it can also trigger opportunities for economic development in the station area and station-city. What is less clear, however, is what constitutes good station-area planning. This study details the elements of good station-area planning for HSR stations, the challenges and opportunities for good station-area planning around the San Jose Diridon station, and the lessons learned from five case studies of successful European HSR stations.
Los Angeles, California, is generally considered the archetypal sprawling metropolis. Yet traditi... more Los Angeles, California, is generally considered the archetypal sprawling metropolis. Yet traditional measures equate sprawl with low population density, and Los Angeles is among the densest and thereby the least sprawling cities in the United States. How can this apparent paradox be explained? This paper argues that the answer lies in the fact that Los Angeles exhibits a comparatively even distribution of population throughout its urbanized area. As a result, the city suffers from many consequences of high population density, including extreme traffic congestion, poor air quality, and high housing prices, while offering its residents few benefits that typically accompany this density, including fast and effective public transit, vibrant street life, and tightly knit urban neighborhoods. The city's unique combination of high average population density with little differentiation in the distribution of population might best be characterized as dense sprawl, a condition that embod...
This report argues that in order for high-speed rail (HSR) to deliver on its promise to 38 millio... more This report argues that in order for high-speed rail (HSR) to deliver on its promise to 38 million Californians and investors, the project must be designed as the backbone of a comprehensive system for sustainable passenger mobility in California. If HSR is to serve as the backbone of sustainable intercity mobility in the state, the project's definition must extend beyond HSR route planning to include sustainable local transportation connections and careful station area planning. Cities across France and Germany demonstrate how HSR can be a powerful tool for strengthening cities and towns along HSR corridors in economic, social, and cultural terms. With careful planning, the same can be achieved in California. This is why the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CAHSRA) is funding planning efforts in most of the cities that will have HSR stations, to ensure that each station area is designed to maximize HSR-supportive development within station areas. This report highlights best practices from Europe that can help inform these CAHSRA-funded planning efforts.
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Papers by Eric Eidlin