Tag: DoT

NYC Bike Lanes are a Financial Boon

9th Avenue Cycle Track Parking

The NYC Department of Transportation just released a new report on how NYC’s new transportation practices – including separated bicycle tracks and dedicated bus lanes – are paying off not only with faster commutes, safer streets, but financially: Measuring the Street: New Metrics for 21st Century Streets (PDF). Locally-based businesses on 9th Ave from 23rd to 31st Streets increased their retail sales up to 49%, compared to 3% borough-wide. This is in addition to a 58% decrease in injuries to all street users. And on First and Second Avenues in Manhattan there are 47% fewer commercial vacancies (compared to 2% more borough-wide).

“These projects aren’t just about the quality of life and aesthetics,” Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan said. “They really set the table for economic development.”

This is exactly what the complete streets view of the city should be: a holistic view in how we can make our shared streets work for all, not just cars.

LIMTV: DoT’s SUPERTRAIN?

The LIMTV (linear induction motor test vehicle) is tested at the Department of Transportation’s high-speed ground test center (now owned and operated by Association of American Railroads) near Pueblo, Colorado, in March of 1973. The experimental vehicle was designed to operate at speeds up to 250 miles per hour, using electro-magnetic forces for noiseless propulsion.

SUPERTRAIN?

While not exactly the SUPERTRAIN, the 1979 Love Boat-style show set on a huge nuclear-powered train zipping from NYC to LA which I’m obsessed with, the LIMTV undoubtably influenced SUPERTRAIN’S aesthetic. Except LIMTV actually helped pave the way for an actual product using linear induction-based systems, having found a niche with the aid of Bombardier’s Advanced Rapid Transit system. Notable installations are in Vancouver’s SkyTrain and NYC’s JFK AirTrain (below).

AirTrain