Thinking about Public Spaceand Automobile Traffic Culture-In the Context of Traffic Safety in the Age ofAutonomous Driving-

Katsutoshi OHTA
Professor Emeritus, The University of Tokyo（2017.11.17）

1Contents
1. Introduction：Background and viewpoint
2. Concepts and the Context： Public space andtransport behavior
3. Transport Behavior in Public Space: Researchreview
4. Theory of Street Planning and Design: Engineering
standards and manuals
5. Toward the Future: Issues and proposals
21. Introduction• Background：Behavior of the people in public space ｈａｓ ｃｈａｎｇｅｄ very muchrecently with the carrying items （smartphones, carrying bags etc.) together
with increasing numbers of older people and mothers with children. Some
dangerous situation are often observed on our streets. *Pokemon GO fever.
• Stuns：Discuss street as the major public space here in the context of traffic
safety and transport culture from urban transport planning perspective.
• Approach：Review the behavior studies , planning /design manuals and policiesof the streets in Japan, England and USA in accommodating public spacefunctions. Identify issues of current engineering approach and propose a way todesign streets as a public space based upon quantitative measurements, taking
into consideration of technological innovation of autonomous and connectedvehicles(Auto Sapiens).

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2. Concepts and the Context:
Public space and transport behavior• Public Space of road transport：
・Subject: Public space accessible by general public in transport. Street(urban roads), transport squares, station plaza, bus terminal ,parking
area and other transport infrastructure(links and nodes).
・Land ownership: Public land(ROW) , some private lands of transport
operators and some others are used for transport. Besides street’s
surface, the underground and the overground spaces are used fortransport. Also, front space of building and space between buildings arerecognize as public space and restricted their free uses.

・ Behavior of transport participants( persons and vehicles) with
their purpose on the streets focusing on safety and security aspects.
The use of streets reflects local conditions and transport culture.

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３．Transport Behavior in Public Space :Japanese studies of transport space• Modernologio (1930, Wajiro Kon）： Observation and analysis ofpresent things and situation (behavior, customs). *Modernology ⇒Archaeology on the past things and history• Lifelogy (1972, Wajiro Kon, Tadao Umesawa, Noboru Kawazoe,

Kennji Ekuann et al：Study on the meanings of life focusing on

the history of people’s life based on outdoor observation to
discover the problems and issues.

• Life-oriented Behavioral Studies (2013,Zhang Junyi, et al)：Study on people’s life and the related situations from the viewpointof human behavior.

－Interdisciplinary studies have been advanced. Related

academic fields are folklore, cultural anthropology, ethology,architecture history, and industrial design, then recently transport
planning/engineering, psychology and behavioral economics.
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Front Cover of KOGENGAKU (Modernologio)ｰKon Wajiro,1930 ｰ

6Transport in a Station Plaza (Hirosaki station)

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Walking Course of a Modern Girl

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Analysis of Vehicle Behavior on Street:
A Study of Car Body Language （IATSS, 1991）
・Background: Driving behavior is different by region. Various
spontaneously developed local rules or manners using body(voice,face expression and hands) and equipment(lights and horns) arefound. But, some dangerous cases of these ＣＢＬ should be modified.
－Function of ＣＢＬ: Information exchange of the traffic situation, intentionof the driver/greetings(takeover, tailgating, ‘After you’ and ‘ Thank you’.

－Intentional/Ｅｘｐｌｉｃｉｔ vs Unintentional/implicit CBL. 1 or 2 way CBL－Local CBL communication ability( understanding and responses)
depends on driver’s skills/experiences, age and gender.
－Big risks of confusion, embarrassment and misunderstanding for
new comers/visitors other than local peers.
＊CBL is unofficial local Vehicle-to-Vehicle(V２Ｖ) communication rules.
**Body language: A form of nonverbal communication using consciousor unconscious gestures and movements.
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Examples of Car Body Language

Younger drivers tend to communicate more using various vehicle
equipments. They are more selfish and egoistic than older drivers.
Source: Masaki Aoki(Pl.), A STUDY OF CAR BODY LANGAGE. IATSS. 1991.3

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Transport Behavior in Public Space：
Theories and Studies
Proxemics: Edward T.Ｈａｌｌ, THE HIDDEN DIMENSION,1966
・Animal ethology, cultural anthropology: Concepts of distancecoordination such as Spacing and Territory are applied to understandhuman behavior in public space. 4 Distance zones/Territories Model:-Intimate zone: Physical contacts with 5 senses（～46cm)-Personal zone: A small protective space or ‘bubble’(46~122cm)-Social zone: Outer area of ‘the limit of (direct) domination’.
Non-personal contact area. (1.2~3.7m)-Public zone: Well outside of personal involvements. Possible totake evasive or defensive action(3.7~7.6+m)＊Useful concepts to understand behavior based on communication（Ｐ２Ｐ）.
Road traffic safety: Identification of each transport participants and theircommunication(Ｐ２Ｖ and Ｖ２Ｖ) of their real time distance zones are useful.
114 Theory of Street Planning and Design:
Japanese standards and manuals• Engineering standards for Street： Road Structure Law
specifies alignment, width ,number of lanes and cross section
based on design traffic volume, design speed etc.
―Developed based on vehicle traffic. At first, Street Structure
Law(1919-1958) was specified separately. Consideration onpedestrian and bicycle traffic has improved since 1970’s.

・ Functions of Street： Transport Function(traffic function andaccess function) and Space Function(formation of urban skeleton
and landscape, securing of environment, accommodating utilityfacilities and community building). Street as a public activity
space is considered in space function. Under and over groundspace is also used for transport. *Different from ROAD.
12Function of Street: Japanese case
Function

Effects

Trafficfunction

Transport services forvehicles, pedestrians,
bicycles etc.

Improved safety, reduction of traffic
congestion, travel time/cost, energy
use and pollutions

Accessfunction

Access to land,buildings and facilities
along the street

Improved platform for regional
development and life, promotion ofland use

Space Function

Formation of urban
skeleton・ landscape,securing good environment ,preventionof disaster damage,accommodation ofpublic utility facilities,
community building

Improved image of the city, formationof urban landscape, space for greening,ventilation and lighting, escape route,space for fire fighting and checking offire spread, accommodation of subway
and utility facilities(electricity,telephone, gas and water ), improvedneighborhood contacts

Transport
Function

Source： Niitani and Harata、URBAN TRANSORT PLANNING 3rd edition. 201713

Concepts of Street Planning and Design－UK－
TRAFFIC IN TOWNS (Buchanan Report), 1963

The Buchanan Principles:

１．Clear separation of urban rooms (Environmental Areas) from corridor(Distributors).
2. Functional hierarchy of urban distributors( Primary, District, and Local distributors, and Access roads).
3. Three basic factors: The Accessibility and Living Environment are in tradeoff, but they can be improved by infrastructure investments with Costs.

◆It has widely accepted especially in planning new towns and residential
developments in Japan and European countries. It proposed separation ofvehicle traffic from pedestrians, but consideration of total transport modes( public transport and bicycles) are limited.

* Buchanan’s recollection: People have chose Accessibility, we have failed toimprove our Environment. ** Motor vehicle is ‘the Beloved Monster’. AV?

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・The Buchanan Report (HMSO,1963)

1958



1963

Car : “The beloved monster” ⇒ 2013 Even, today?

YES.

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・The Buchanan Principles
A. Urban room and corridor

B. Environmental areas and distributors

Primary distributors
District distributors
Local distributors
Environmental area boundaries

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Function of Street:

A new approach in England ｰ LINK AND PLACE

Source： Peter Jones et al, ‘LINK AND PLACE’ : A Guide to Street Planning and Design, 2007.

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Street Type in Link/Place Matrices (Example)

Source: P. Jones et al, LINK & PLACE. 2007

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The Coverage of the Link/Place Street Plana. Conventional scopeof a road planb. Conventional scopeof a land use planc. Scope of a Street Plan

*Note: Public space includes public land (street ROW ) plus privately owned land/space accessible
or visible from the street (front areas of buildings , space between buildings and others).
Source：Peter Jones et al, ‘LINK AND PLACE’ : A Guide to Street Planning and Design. Local Transport Today, 2007.

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Case Example: London Mayor’s Proposal
Greater London Authority, ”Draft Mayor’s Transport Strategy” 2017

―A recent long-term proposal on London’s transport strategies ( Targetyear 2041, over the next 25 years) by Mayor Sadiｑ Khan
‘The Healthy Street Approach’ with the following themes:

1. Healthy streets and healthy people－Less traffic and more active travel.
2. A good public transport experience－More pleasant, fast and reliable public
transport service with the expanded network. More affordable and accessible services.

3. New homes and jobs－Sustainable travel in regeneration and new developments.

＊Targets: Traffic congestion ⇒ Quality of Life(Environment)/Health.
Reduction of vehicle trips(36% in 2015 to 20% in 2041).

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Central London VisionHigh levels of public transport connectivity by reducing car use and increasing walking, cycling
and public transport use. More efficient deliveries.＊Autonomous vehicles are not seen here.
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Concepts of Street Planning and Design― USA ―NATCO(National Association of City Transportation Officials）,
URBAN STREET DESIGN MANNUAL, 2013
―Design principles and strategies for world-class streets of 21st century.
 Five Principles of Urban Street design: ①Street are public spaces, ②Great streetsare great for business,③Design for safety,④Street can be changed,⑤Act now!
 Street Function： ①Traffic flow and access, ②Multi-purpose public space Sidewalk： 4 zones are identified for design from the building to the curb
①Frontage Zone, ②Pedestrian Through Zone, ③Street Furniture/Curb Zone,④ Enhancement/Buffer Zone
＊ Besides traffic function, public space function is focused. Planning covers privatelyowned land such as building frontage area as a public domain.
＊＊NATCO’s President is the former New York City’s Transportation Commissioner, Janette
Sadik – Khan(2007-2013), who promoted pedestrianized area of Times Square and expansion ofthe cycling network under former Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

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Design Domain of Sidewalk Zones in ＮＡＴＣＯ’s Manual① Frontage Zone
③ Street Furniture/Curb Zone
② Pedestrian Through Zone
④ Enhancement/Buffer Zone
Cf. Austin City’s Draft Street Design Guide(2017) identifies three street zones, Pedestrian Zone, Bicycle and Street
Edge Zone, and Motor Vehicle and Transit Zone. Pedestrian Zone includes building setbacks.
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Recent Manual of Street Design: New York CityNew York City, STREET DESIGN MANNUAL, 2nd ed. (2015)
Supplementary manual of conventional ones（MUTCD, AASHTO’s GreenBook ), showing design guidelines, policies and the management process.
Background: ‘ A more vibrant public realm, with safety, health andeconomic benefits for all ’*Succeeding a bold attempts of street’ redesign of the former Mayor.

Design Goals & Principles: ① Safety, ② Balance of local access and mobility,③ Design for context, ④ Street as public spaces, ⑤ Sustainability and resiliency,⑥ Cost-Effectiveness.

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A Street Scene of New York City in the Early 20th Century－Street served as the front yards and public squares of citiesｰSource: New York City DOT, STREER DESIGN MANNUAL, 2015.

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4.2 Planning and Design of Street・Street Planning/Design: Traffic Engineering concepts－Design standards for each road categories are specified by thetechnical standard laws and manuals.
－Basic units：Vehicle size and other characteristics are defined for thestreet planning by standard design vehicles of motorcycle, car, truck and etal. Number of lanes and road width are decided by future traffic volumes perhour in pcu(passenger car unit). Similar approach is used for walkways.

・Recent Trends in Big Cities : All modes and inclusive design
Renewed focus on bicycle and pedestrian from health andenvironmental problems. Policy shifts to restraint of car use andsustainable transport. Road space reallocation, complete street ,road diet, traffic calming, complete street, shared space and otherkey words show that redesign of streets have become new trend.
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Traffic Behavior on Streets:
Approach from Traffic Engineering
・Fundamental Diagram of traffic flow－Relations of traffic volume and the service level(speed), used indeciding numbers of lanes, road width, alignment and cross/verticalsectional structure and other elements of the road.
－Similar approach is used in designing walkway and cycle paths.
* The approach is useful for traffic function of streets, but difficult to analyze
stationary traffic(parking and loading) and mixed traffic.
* For the quantitative analysis of space function of streets, appropriate
measures are limited, besides the availability and size.

** Potential applicability of Proxemics： Ideas of distance based zones isuseful for the description and analysis of traffic accident risk as well as
potentials of human contacts. Connectedness of transport participants(streetusers) are analyzed as P2P,P2X communication.
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Application of Proxemics Theory
to Street Planning and Design

・Transport Function: Efficient provision of stationary/moving

transport services as derived demand. Safe and comfortable travelwith less cost and time.
・Safety： Based upon mutual recognition and communication of alltransport participants, crash prevention/evasion, crash management
and other measures should be redefined by Proxemics in spatial domain.
＊Each transport participant(person, cycle, vehicle, AV etc.) should showits identity(species, performance, intention of street use) by passive ID(respond only) or active ID( dispatch its intention as well).

・Space Function (Street activities)：Time-space activity services

as primary demand. Maximize safe and pleasant time-spaceexperiences, and human contacts/meeting chance.
* Consideration of all street users’ needs: Provision of social zone
and public zone based upon P2P(Peer to Peer),P2X connectivity.

28Redefining Basic Units for Street Planningand Design －TＳＯ（4 dimensions, ㎥・hour/use）ｰ

Basic Measures/Units

Conventional measures such as traffic volumes(vehicles in pcu orperson/hour) for traffic function and area(㎡) for space function are notappropriate to quantify mixed traffic and various activities on the street.

・Proposals: In quantifying various behavior of Transport Participants,
their ‘slot’ in terms of distance zones based on Proxemics should be useful.
－Time-Ｓpace Occupancy ＴＳＯ（Unit: TSO/use in ㎥・second/hour）：

Redefined capacity of public space applicable to street design, cost allocation,
reservation of use(available ‘slot’ management).
*(Person/Vehicle)Trip ⇒ (Transport participant) TSO-ｓｌｏｔＵｓｅ－Time-Space Exposure (Unit: time/use in seconds): Environmental/healthrisk(Exposure time per day) and personal contact chance( Number of chances perexposure time) can be quantified using TSO.

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5. Toward the Future: Issues and Proposals
1. Street’s space function is also important. *Beside traffic function
２．Public space extends to public land including frontage areas ofbuildings and space between buildings.
３．Design and use of streets reflect local life, history and culture.
４．Conventional planning and design are mainly based on theoriesand standards of vehicle traffic, limited consideration of other modes
and activities on the street.
５．People’s behavior has changing with innovations in ＩＴ and vehicle
technology, and safety remains an issue. The trend is toward
restraining vehicle use due to people’s valuing health and theenvironment.
６．New extended theories and basic quantitative indicators related
street development and use are necessary. E.g. Proxemics ,TSO etc.
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