STREET FIGHT 2: Mapping Our Reclaimed Streets During COVID-19 (Seattle & Minneapolis)
By: Twelve Tone Consulting
Tags: Mobility, Covid 19, Open Streets, Urban Planning, Coronavirus

A weekly series presented by Twelve Tone Consulting in partnership with Urban Radar and DePaul University’s Chaddick Institute featuring interactive maps of two new cities each week that have closed their streets to cars during COVID-19 (aka reclaimed streets or open streets). We aim to find out how these streets impact current bike infrastructure and find out the racial makeup of these reclaimed streets.

Introduction

COVID-19 has changed the world in many ways, in our first blog post we discussed how we got here and how the automobile took over our streets. Before we dive into our two new cities, Portland and Minneapolis, we break down what the streets will look like post-COVID. After all, now is the time for cities to start planning for the future.

Streets Pre-Coronavirus

We all know what streets looked like before this pandemic: congestion, poor connections and wait times, along with spotty safe passages for walkers and bikers. During COVID-19 streets have literally come to life with people craving the spring air. Some cities, like Chicago, have had to close their public trails & parks due to the crowded trails (i.e. Lake Shore). Many have been upset about this, but there has grown an alternative: Open Streets.

Streets Post-Coronavirus

According to epidemiologists, social distancing is going to be the new normal. There will be upticks and breakouts across the U.S. and elected officials will have to mandate shelter-in-place orders, shutting down schools and universities, for weeks at a time. Because of this reclaiming our streets should not be a temporary measure. The time is now for cities to rethink public space, private vehicles, and specifically our roads and our curb. What will the streets of the future look like?

Here are some other options for cities to consider moving forward:

Those are examples of what some cities are doing to bring us into the next phase of street utilization. Another thing cities are doing right now in order to transition to post-Coronavirus streets? Reclaimed/open streets!

Let’s take a look at Seattle and Minneapolis…

Seattle: 20 Miles

Seattle plans to permanently close 20 miles of residential streets (rolled out in phases). The streets are closed to through traffic to provide more space for people to walk and bike at a safe distance apart during the coronavirus pandemic and the closures will continue even after the stay-at-home order is lifted. The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) will replace the temporary closure signs on the so-called Stay Healthy Streets with permanent markings, guiding drivers to other routes. The only vehicles allowed will be residents, delivery drivers, garbage and recycling workers, and emergency response vehicles. The city will be spending between $100,000 and $200,000 on making the street closures permanent.

A Problem With Rushed Permanent Policy

That said, not everyone appears to be in favor of these road closures becoming permanent. Several residents have expressed concerns with the local government’s decision to unilaterally make these changes permanent without consulting their constituents. There are adverse impacts that will be felt by all neighborhoods surrounding these road closures. Does this drive traffic to neighborhoods that had previously not experienced high volume? How will this impact commute times? These are the kinds of questions that have residents and groups such as the Washington Policy Center questioning the “suddenness” to make this pilot program a permanent change. It is important to note that the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) has said that they will discuss “future expansion” with residents and shared an email alias where residents can submit feedback to the department. However, there has still been no mention of walking back Mayor Durkan’s decision to make the Stay Healthy Streets program permanent.

List of Reclaimed Streets: (Here and here)