Leicester opens bicycle park
A secure cycle parking facility in the centre of Leicester has been reopened under new management after a year-long refurbishment programme. The Bike Park, which is located beneath Leicester Town Hall, incorporates showers, lockers and a bike shop as well as parking spaces for 110 bikes. According to the BBC, the premises were refurbished at […]
The 250km traffic jam
Following the ten-day traffic jam in China in 2010, Brazil recently notched up an ignominious record of their own: a traffic jam that stretched for 250km. A strike by workers on Sao Paulo’s subway and commuter train system in late May forced 20 million commuters into cars, creating a traffic jam that authorities estimate covered […]
Should new freeways be tolled?
In a follow up to last week’s article on the recommendations of a government taskforce that users should pay for all new toll roads and infrastructure financing, Alan Davies of Crikey.com also explored whether new freeways should be tolled. Davies claims that the argument for tolls is straightforward – they provide the ultimate test of […]
Car park signage – the good, the bad and the ugly
One of the areas that is often overlooked or taken for granted in car parks is signage. From exterior signage that attracts customers, to interior signage that helps drivers and pedestrians navigate quickly and easily through a car park, the importance of good signage to a positive customer experience is crucial. We would like to […]
Saga City film on urban planning
This week we came across a film on the website of the Victoria Transport Policy Institute called Saga City. This short film is intended to show how our communities can tackle the challenges of urban planning and vehicle emissions, as well as learning more about the impacts of our current development patterns. The film is […]
Executives value their car parks
An article published in the Sydney Morning Herald this week rated and ranked the top ‘extras’ in demand by senior business executives. A car park ranked as the third most in-demand perk; following money and holidays. (The fourth and fifth most important factors were flexibility and relocation). Given the scarcity of CBD car parks, the […]
Citibank sponsors NYC’s bike sharing system
In New York, Citibank have announced that they are sponsoring and commercialising the bike share system. To be renamed Citi Bike, the system will be 100% privately funded with 600 stations and 10,000 bikes in Manhattan and Brooklyn. According to TreeHugger, Citi Bike’s pricing is listed as $95 for an annual pass, $25 for a […]
Is there a worldwide parking problem?
Following our recent post on Eran Ben-Joseph’s book, ‘Rethinking a Lot’, The BBC have also picked up on the story. They summarise some of Ben-Joseph’s key recommendations for improving parking lots to make them more ‘environmentally responsible’ and ‘aesthetically pleasing’ as follows: Better design. Citing Miami’s car park as a prime example, drawing on great design […]
Vacuum tube transport system
In one of the stranger articles we’ve come across this week, the concept of the Evacuated Tube Transport system, from design group et3.com, will see 16ft long capsules of humans traveling at around 6,500km/h and around the world in less than six hours. According to The Creators Project, the Evacuated Tube Transport features a range […]
Turning roads into solar panels
A US-based company has developed a concept prototype for a ‘solar roadway’ – a series of structurally engineered solar panels that can be driven on. < The concept sees roads literally replaced by the solar panels, which when linked together effectively serve as an energy grid itself. Any home or business connected to the Solar […]
Congestion pricing in New York in consideration
Former New York City traffic commissioner Sam Schwartz is proposing a plan that would toll the East River Bridges of New York, while lowering tolls on other, non-Manhattan bound spans in an effort to both reduce congestion and give the city’s transit system a funding boost. According to Transport Nation, these tolls and other fees […]
Car usage in Sydney on the decline
A recent paper published by the Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics has quantified an ongoing trend in Sydney – that drivers are driving less every year than the year before. Since 2005, the average number of kilometres driver per year has been on the decline. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, in 1965, […]
Space fillers: the dynamics of airport parking
Airport car parks are huge business, with major airport hubs seeing car parking producing around $80 million to $100 million of revenue each year. Recent results from the 2012 ACI Airport Economics survey shows that car parking now accounts for around 7% of global airport revenues and is the second biggest source of non-aviation related […]
…as Monorail’s planned demolition calls for higher line
Due to be demolished to make way for the redevelopment of Darling Harbour, Sydney’s monorail has seen significant debate over what should happen to the structure once dismantled. Landscape architect David Vago has drawn up a plan to take inspiration from New York’s famous High Line (see our blog post about the High Line here!), […]
Sydney’s Darling Harbour to be rebuilt..
The NSW government announced last week that the Sydney Entertainment Centre, Convention Centre and Exhibition Centre at Darling Harbour will be closed for three years while they are expanded or replaced under a $1 billion upgrade approved by NSW cabinet. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, the precinct will be expanded with a view to […]
The cost of parking in America
During the 2012 Intertraffic conference, the American based National Parking Association released their fourth annual Parking in America report. The study measures monthly, daily and hourly rates in cities throughout the United States and Canada, including parking facilities in hospitals, hotels, educational institutions and airports. It also documents rate trends in downtown parking areas and […]
NFC payments in parking
Near field communication (NFC) technology allows secure data to be transmitted from a device or object to exchange information or even conduct electronic transactions with a tap. The technology is already embedded in many chip credit cards, and mobile phone providers are moving to roll out handsets which are NFC enabled, allowing users to pay […]
Shared spaces put squeeze on Auckland parking
Car parking faces a continuing squeeze in downtown Auckland streets, following a 20 per cent reduction in spaces over the last five years. Auckland Transport says 843 street parking spaces have gone since 2007, leaving 3417 bays compared with 4260 previously. According to the NZ Herald, the trend is set to continue as more CBD […]
Queensland public transport policies
The recent Queensland State election saw public transport policy as a key point of the campaign and an important issue for voters. The win for Labour has resulted in the first of their election promises becoming a reality: free travel after nine journeys a week. To commence from July 1, the scheme will see commuters […]
Melbourne Airport’s Southern Precinct project
The Southern Precinct project and expansion of Melbourne’s Tullamarine Airport is part of a proposed program of investment by Melbourne Airport over the next five years. The expansion project is budgeted to cost in excess of A$1 billion. According to MICEBTN magazine, Stage 1 of the project is focused on the area south of the […]
Free parking under threat for NZ workers
A report prepared by the New Zealand Transport Agency has recommended that the government investigate changing the fringe benefit tax to include employer-subsidised parking. The proposed additional tax is being considered to address concerns that employees are undermining attempts to ‘encourage more efficient commuting behaviour’. According to Stuff.co.nz, more than half of the country’s workforce […]
Why cyclists are better customers for local businesses
A recent post on the DC Streets Blog examined the economic effects of cycling, and specifically exploring the notion that an investment in cycling infrastructure generally will limit car parking. The article quotes a few numbers, statistics and pieces of information around the economic benefits of the bicycle over the car. We’ve summarised some of the […]
Melbourne Airport’s Southern Precinct project
The Southern Precinct project and expansion of Melbourne’s Tullamarine Airport is part of a proposed program of investment by Melbourne Airport over the next five years. The expansion project is budgeted to cost in excess of A$1 billion. According to MICEBTN magazine, Stage 1 of the project is focused on the area south of the […]
Volvo pedestrian air bags a hit
Volvo has recently announced a world first in the introduction of a new safety technology it calls Pedestrian Detection. According to ZDNet, it’s part of Volvo’s IntelliSafe system that, in the first instance, will brake sharply if someone steps in the way. If the car goes on to hit someone, an external airbag on the […]
Perth CBD cycling terminus to cater for bike boom
Perth’s bike boom has led to the proposal from the state government to provide a cycling facility featuring showers, lockers and parking for 500 bikes in the Perth CBD. The ten-year bicycle network plan, released by Transport Minister Troy Buswell, proposes to spend up to $10million in expanding existing bike paths and creating new paths […]
Shrinkable cars are all the rage
Following last week’s post about MIT’s ‘folding’ Hiriko City Car, scientists have unveiled a similar 2.1m ‘pod’ car that can shrink to fit into tight parking spaces. The car’s length can be reduced by 50 centimetres by the driver for those tight parking spots, and like the Hiriko, it also features wheels that can turn […]
London 2012 sets out venue parking plans
The world’s biggest transportation and parking challenge (the Olympics) has seen the London 2012 Organising Committee publish proposals for parking management and parking plans around all Olympic and Paralympic venues in London. According to the Organising Committee’s press release, the proposed plans would see a number of traffic alterations and parking restrictions in the vicinity […]
City of Sydney releases transport strategy
The City of Sydney released its ‘Connecting the City’ Transport Strategy document this week. It includes a wide compilation of figures and statistics associated with traffic and transport movements in and around the city. These statistics underscore the growing impacts on amenity, lifestyles and costs and reinforce why Sydney needs an integrated transport network. Naturally, […]
US transit lanes changing to paid permit lanes
In and around Atlanta, a new scheme putting a price on convenience is being introduced as a way to manage traffic congestion. According to the New York Times, transit lanes are now able to be accessed by solitary motorists, on a user-pays model. In addition to the usual occupants (car pools of three or more, […]
San Fran parking plan undergoing reappraisal
After a strong pushback from the residents and business owners in neighbourhoods planned for parking meter expansion, San Francisco transportation officials have said that they will gather more data and work more closely with each neighbourhood to refine the parking management proposals. According to SFGate.com, the plan to add about 5,000 new meters across a […]