Which elements of urban design were 'aha' moments for you?

This week, I attempted to give my first urban design walking tour of Fredericton to about a dozen friends. Before hitting the road, I asked my partner if I've ever mentioned something about urban design that made him see the city in a new way. Then, I revisited my own highlights from dog-eared books that have guided my own thinking and compiled a best-of list.. I'd like to practice, improve, and repeat this walking tour going forward. What else would you add to this list of concepts that cover the basics and 'aha' moments of urban design?

Read More
Do the Math

Strong Towns provides an empirical argument "for doing the math", when it comes to new development; that is compelling for citizens, but even more compelling for presenting to elected decision makers in our own towns.

Read More
Giving you the tools you asked for

You asked us to give you social-media-friendly ways to share the Strong Towns message with others in your community. Short, on message and powerful. Thanks to the volunteer contributions of a very special member -- Matthias Leyrer -- we've been able to produce some of these graphics.

Read More
MembershipStrong Towns
Just an accident

The engineering profession -- with a growing number of notable exceptions -- employs a systematic approach to design prioritizing the fast and efficient (but not safe) movement of automobiles over everything else. Engineers show a conscious indifference to pedestrians and cyclists, misunderstanding their needs where they are not disregarded completely. This is the very definition of gross negligence.

Read More
The Bollard Defense

Car leaves the stroad, smashes into another car which smashed into a daycare killing one and injuring many others. What do the adults here do to keep their kids safe?

Do they slow the cars? Do they address the incompatibility of having highway speed vehicles on a nasty, complex stroad just feet from the doorway to the facility? Do they look at the sidewalks adjacent to vehicles traveling at highway speeds and think it strange, even barbaric, that we would place anyone -- let alone young children -- in such a dangerous environment? 

Of course not.

Read More