Street Design Projects

1. Street Design Projects Spring 2014 CE 4720 5720 Norman Garrick

2. Introduction to Projects Each group has a choice of one the following projects: • Assessment of the Walking and Biking Environment in Storrs Center • Transportation Plan for the South Storrs Neighborhoods An overview of each project is given in the following slides

3. Assessment of the Walking and Biking Environment in Storrs Center neighborhood. Storrs Center was conceived as a vibrant urban center with streets that should be good for commerce, for living and for all modes of travel - including walking, biking and transit. The purpose of this project is to assess the extent to which the street and transportation design in the center supports this vision. This will be done by a detailed assessment of the overall design, and specific design details of the streets and street network in the center. As part of this assessment you will need to categorize how the the center is being used by various categories of users, including shoppers, diners, residents, pedestrians, bikers, motorists and transit. Your ultimate goal is to identify both strengths and weaknesses in the design of the center and to suggest design changes for improving any perceived shortcomings.

4. Transportation Plan for the South Storrs Neighborhoods The neighborhoods in the south of Storrs include The Courtyard at Storrs, Hanks Hill Road, Storrs Heights, Birchwood Heights and Spring Hill. Most of these neighborhoods are predominantly residential, but they also have strong pockets of commercial and retail activities. Currently, largely because of the design of Storrs Road south of South Eagleville Road, they feel disconnected from the rest of Storrs, both in a physical and psychological sense, even though much of this area is within a mile radius of the town green in Storrs Center. The purpose of this project is to develop a conceptual design for Storrs Road in this area, and for the adjacent road network that will serve to extend the pedestrian and bike connections to this part of town. In addition, this plan should aim to remove the sense of a divide between this area and the rest of Storrs Center.

5. Project Guidelines The project groups should consist of a minimum of four members. Each group will be responsible for i) project presentation and ii) written report. Each presentation will be 12 minutes long. The written report should be no more than 10 pages, double spaced. The recommendations in the report should be based on best national and international practices. In other words, they should not be limited by what is allowable in existing Mansfield and Connecticut codes. Both of these projects emphasis the importance of skillfully characterizing the existing conditions, including how the streets are currently being used.