Week 9:Is a car-free city possible? Zermatt thinks so!

Is a car-free city possible? Zermatt thinks so!

Located near the Swiss/Italian border, Zermatt is over-shadowed by the famous and elegant Matterhorn mountain peak. Zermatt has always been a play-ground for the rich and the famous, and is still considered one of Switzerland’s most foremost destinations for foreign individuals; over 1/3 of the residents in Zermatt come from countries other than Switzerland. However, due to the attraction of tourism because of the Matterhorn, nearly half of the economy in Zermatt is geared towards tourism. 

Seeing that tourism has such a dramatic role in the economy of Zermatt, Zermatt has enacted ordinances that ban internal-combustion engines within the city limits. Since internal-combustion engines produce emissions that lead to the creation of smog, Zermatt is very protective of its famed view of the Matterhorn. This has led to the wide-spread usage of electric vehicles.

The electric vehicles are used as a replacement for cars, trucks, and buses. Emergency service vehicles and city sanitation vehicles are exempt and are the only internal-combustion vehicles allowed to drive within the city. Due to the ban on gas vehicles, this created a problem to allow easy access for tourists and residents to get into Zermatt. So, Zermatt created a rather extensive solution to this problem; they created a cog-railway line from the city center in Zermatt, 6 kilometers down to the nearby city of Tӓsch. In Tӓsch, there is a massive parking lot and people can park there and then take the electric train to Zermatt. 

Zermatt is able to get away with only electric vehicles within the city limits because the town is nestled deep in the narrow valley, the terrain renders the town to be within a rather small size. Also, because the roads were built for normal sized cars, which means that the streets are not used to the same capacity by regular vehicles anymore and this has lead to large increase in the amount that people ride their bikes and walk within the city. Another positive aspect to limit the amount of vehicles within the city has been the decline in noise created from cars. However, the large dependence in electric vehicles to get around the city was underestimated and there have been recent studies that show that the city needs a much stronger electric taxi/bus network in order to keep up with the demand.

Although probably considered a massive pain-in-the-neck by outsiders, Zermatt has managed to create a city that thrives and prospers without the dependency on regular gas powered vehicles. If other cities copied Zermatt and tailored plans for themselves, a gas-powered vehicle world could possibly be created. 

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zermatt

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matterhorn

Pictures:

[[File:Matterhorn from Zermatt3.jpg]]Wikipedia. Author:Zermatt photos. 2008

[[File:Gelbes Elektroauto in Zermatt.jpg]]Wikipedia. Author:Claus Ableiter. 2008

Week 8: Germany > America

               A much needed review occurred throughout Tuesday's lecture. Professor Sanchez made sure to put emphasis on the role of certain authors in urban development and planning. We won't be redundant and go into those authors because they are in previous posts. But, we will provide you with this link to some of the best urban planning authors, according to Planetizen.com. A lot of the authors mentioned in class fall on this list  http://www.planetizen.com/books/20. 

               Accordingly, on Thursday, Ralph Buehler, a guest speaker from Virginia Tech's Alexandria campus, spoke to us about sustainable transport in Germany (comparing it to America); he constituted sustainable transport as walking, biking, and public transportation. First, he started off by comparing Germany to America (this was about the only time he went easy on America... but we deserve it):   Both countries have federal systems of government with a tradition of local self-government, strong economy, important auto industry, highest levels of car ownership, most adults have driver’s license, extensive road network, and lots of urban and suburban redevelopment. Problem number 1: Most German residents will walk distances less than one mile, where as American's tend to drive these short distances. Problem number 2: USA has about 16% sustainable transportation, where as Germany has about 43%. Problem number 3: There is  3 times more C02 emission and energy per capita usage in the USA. Travel in the USA is more dangerous - you have 2.2 times more traffic fatalities per capita in USA. It is 5 times more dangerous for bikers and walkers.  US households spend more for transport, and governments spend more on transport than Germany per capita. Problem number 4 (caused by 3 partially):  Obesity rates are more than twice as high in USA. 

                After revealing the problems with America, he went on to stressing why Germany is successful with limiting car use. Taxes and regulation make car use more expensive in Germany, and there is more funding for walking, cycling, and public transport. Land use planning is stricter and requires cooperation among multiple levels of government. There is  strategic leadership through national transport and land use plans at the federal level. There are taxes on gasoline which increase every year, but come back in the form of social security later on. So you pay at the pump, but you get the money back through social security.      USA takes in less money than they spend in subsidies for roadways, but Germany takes in way more money than they spend (2.2x more). The German AAA gets off to the graph that displays the previous facts. Then, Buehler moved to a case study of an incredibly sustainable city in Germany by the name of Freiburg.

               Freiburg has many traffic cam areas where you go 4mph or below in a heavy pedestrian zone, or 20mph/ below in a lighter pedestrian zone. And then there are pedestrian only areas – there are highways where they try to channel all the traffic going around the outside of the city. They built a ring-shaped road around the companies where there are many above ground and below ground parking garages. They tell drivers how many parking spots are available in each parking garage at a time. The most expensive parking is in downtown areas. There are annual parking passes for some areas in and around Freidburg which are incredibly beneficial. Also, there are public transportation options covering everything from buses to trolleys: 75 towns, 187 operators, and over 3050km of routes are all integrated together after paying one flat rate of around 600 dollars (at most). These are especially convenient because 80% of all residents in Freidburg live within .km of light rail (and most of Germany follows suit). 

               Multi-modal coordination is another interesting perk alongside bicycle infrastructure: lanes, streets and paths are offered – most German cities feature safe and attractive bike paths. They have stoplights specifically for bicycles (meaning cars stop and wait for bicycles to pass). German children takes cycling lessons and must pass a police administered cycling test. German drivers ed. favors pedestrians and cyclists over motorists. There is a specific law stating children and elderly people are not fully rational – you have to be ready to brake for them. 

               Finally, transportation and land use planning need to go hand and hand. Policies need to be multi- modal and offer incentives and dis-incentives. Sustainable transport policies must be long term, and have a lasting, significant impact. Controversial policies need to be implemented in stages, and plans should be adoptable over time so they can adapt to changing conditions. Citizen involvement is an integral part of policy development and implementation!!! We need to address all modes of transportation at the same time! 

              After Professor Buehler's lecture, I felt a decreased sense of nationalism. Hopefully, this link will help you and I overcome this: http://www.apta.com/mediacenter/ptbenefits/Pages/default.aspx. This article contains facts that really do look at the bright side such as public transportation’s overall effects saving the United States 4.2 billion gallons of gasoline annually, which is more than 3 times the amount of gasoline imported from Kuwait.

                                 

Week 7: Public Space

              In Tuesday’s class we discussed the benefits, basic rules, and critiques of public space, or “open space.” Public space provides people the only type of area where there is equal access, and use for everyone. In other words, your race, gender, age, certifications, etc. do not dictate how one is able to use that space. Public space is the location of movement of goods, services, and ideas without tax or cost. It is important for assembly, communication, and political debate. Historically, it was necessary because there were no cell phones and no technology… this is the only way people could talk and share ideas. A public space is open to public health, recreation, etc…; it is a space of debate – both democratic and social; and it is accessible- all city-goes are equal and there is free circulation of persons and goods. This accessibility reflects a notion of basic quality, social freedom of circulation, and anonymity. Also, Public spaces have become an asset upon which cities build their image and upon which developers sell real estate. But, public space is more and more recognized as an essential ingredient to the sustainability of cites for social, economic, and ecological reasons. Large public spaces have been important historically for other social and political reasons. According to Wikipedia, the definition of a public space is an open, accessible area for people to congregate- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_space - aka Professor Sanchez’s definition is pretty spot on.

While public, or open space is available to all, there are basic rules that everyone is expected to follow, regardless of the fact that there is no written “law” on how to act in this space. Civil attention, restrained helpfulness, and civility towards diversity are some of those rules. When using public space, one is there to act as an individual, and therefore not expected to help others or ask for help. One may act in any way they wish, and be whoever they want, which is why one is expected to respect that others do so.
Public space serves as a positive thing for all, but just as with anything good, there always comes criticisms. Above the others, I think that it is important to note that open space is not legible, and does not help one find their way around or get a better image of their surroundings, as streets would. Open space is there for equal use from all, but it not there to be of help.

                ‎For Thursday’s class, we were assigned a video to watch called "Social life of small urban spaces.” It goes into great depth on the different factors that affect our/the view of urban spaces. The video talks about spaces which are mainly large open areas, or plazas. It was interesting to see the role of little things you don’t really notice in the city: they often times offer a large, important role. One thing the video talked about was: in many plazas, benches are more of an artwork than a bench. The video describes them as an architect’s "punctuation" on an area. The narrator suggests that these benches need to be made larger in order to promote more socializing among pedestrians. In relation to this, the link listed below talks about the concept of “architecture of control.” It uses the example of windows in a classroom: often times they are high enough that kids don’t get distracted by what’s going on outside, but low enough that the optimal light shines in. Conceptually, architects use the same concepts for benches. If there is a particular feature of the environment they want you to focus on, they place the bench accordingly http://architectures.danlockton.co.uk/architectures-of-control-in-the-built-environment/. Another interesting point brought up was the stairs leading to these plazas or empty spaces. The use of longer and shorter stairs offer a welcoming entrance to a plaza, while steep climbs will likely turn people away from the plaza. These shorter and longer stairs can be especially helpful for elderly people who may have trouble walking up huge flights of stairs. Speaking of staircases… here are some pretty cool staircase designs: http://www.toxel.com/inspiration/2008/11/22/unusual-and-creative-staircase-designs/.