Complete Streets represent a transformative approach to how we plan, design, build, operate, and maintain our streets. This methodology prioritizes safe access for all individuals, regardless of age or ability, including pedestrians, cyclists, motorists, and public transit users. It moves beyond traditional transportation planning that often favors vehicular traffic, aiming instead for a holistic system that accommodates the diverse needs of a community.
Image showing a before-and-after example of a street transformation to illustrate the concept of Complete Streets, enhancing pedestrian and cyclist safety.
Complete Streets: More Than Just a Street Design
Complete Streets is not simply about implementing a specific type of street or a singular product. It’s fundamentally a process and a comprehensive approach. It’s about embedding a new philosophy into the very fabric of street planning and development. This approach meticulously considers all street users from the outset of any project, ensuring that designs are inclusive and cater to a wide spectrum of needs. This includes those historically underserved by traditional transportation models, such as senior citizens, individuals with disabilities, people without personal vehicles, and communities of color.
Addressing the Shortcomings of Incomplete Streets
The concept of Complete Streets arises from the evident problems created by “incomplete” streets. These are streets designed through processes that historically have overlooked the needs of many, relying on outdated metrics of street success that often prioritize speed and vehicle throughput over safety and accessibility for all users. The outcome is often a street environment that ranges from inconvenient to dangerously unsafe for anyone not traveling by car. Incomplete streets often lack basic infrastructure like sidewalks, safe crossings, and bicycle facilities, creating hostile environments for pedestrians and cyclists.
Two animated images visually depicting the dangers of incomplete street design for pedestrians, emphasizing the risks of crossing wide roads without adequate pedestrian infrastructure.
The Diverse Look of Complete Streets
While Complete Streets represents a consistent process and approach to urban and rural street design, there’s no one-size-fits-all blueprint. Each Complete Street is uniquely tailored to its specific community context. The beauty of Complete Streets lies in its adaptability. A Complete Street can incorporate a variety of elements depending on local needs and priorities. These elements might include:
- Dedicated sidewalks to ensure safe pedestrian movement
- Protected bike lanes or widened shoulders for cyclists
- Designated bus lanes to improve public transit efficiency
- Comfortable and accessible public transport stops
- Frequent and safe pedestrian crosswalks
- Median islands to enhance pedestrian refuge and safety during crossings
- Accessible pedestrian signals for visually impaired individuals
- Curb extensions to shorten crossing distances and slow turning vehicles
- Narrower vehicle travel lanes to reduce speeding
- Roundabouts to improve traffic flow and reduce collision severity
The appearance of a Complete Street will naturally vary across different environments. What constitutes a Complete Street in a rural setting will differ from one in a suburban or dense urban area. The key is that the planning process, regardless of location, embraces the core principles of Complete Streets, prioritizing safety and accessibility for all users within their specific context.
Two images showcasing examples of Complete Streets in different contexts: one featuring cyclists in an urban bike lane, and another showing a revitalized main street in a smaller town with pedestrian and cyclist amenities.
The Urgent Need for Complete Streets: Addressing Rising Pedestrian Fatalities
The implementation of Complete Streets is becoming increasingly critical due to a disturbing trend: a significant and alarming surge in pedestrian fatalities. The number of people struck and killed while walking has been steadily climbing since 2009, reaching levels not witnessed in over three decades. This grim reality underscores the urgent need for a fundamental shift in street design and transportation planning.
A bar chart illustrating the alarming increase in pedestrian fatalities from 2010 to 2019, highlighting the urgent need for safer street designs.
Speed is a primary factor contributing to these tragic fatalities. Vehicle speed is not only the main cause of accidents but also a critical determinant of the severity of a collision. Higher speeds dramatically increase the likelihood of serious injury or death in a crash. This is further compounded by the increasing size of vehicles on our roads, which also contributes to pedestrian fatalities.
A graphic emphasizing the relationship between vehicle speed and pedestrian safety, illustrating how higher speeds drastically reduce a pedestrian’s chance of survival in a collision.
One of the most effective strategies to combat speeding and reduce pedestrian fatalities is to adopt street designs that inherently prioritize safety over speed. Currently, many transportation agencies inadvertently prioritize vehicle speed and minimizing delays. This bias stems from long-standing practices and political pressures that emphasize congestion reduction, often at the expense of safety. While safety is acknowledged, the default approach to street design often places vehicle speed and throughput at the forefront, overshadowing other crucial considerations.
The Conflict Between Speed and Safety in Street Design
There’s often an inherent conflict in street design priorities: speed versus safety. The prevailing approach often favors speed, as illustrated in the video referenced in the original article. Design choices frequently reflect this prioritization, sometimes leading to dangerous conditions, particularly for vulnerable road users. A case study of a hazardous arterial road in Memphis, TN, further exemplifies how design decisions can prioritize speed to the detriment of safety.
Two images from a case study in Memphis, TN, visually demonstrating how street design choices can prioritize vehicle speed over pedestrian safety, creating dangerous conditions.
However, even simple interventions can significantly improve safety on wide, unsafe streets, making them more user-friendly for everyone. Complete Streets principles advocate for these types of interventions to rebalance the priorities of street design.
The Growing Adoption of Complete Streets Policies
Across the United States, the Complete Streets movement is gaining momentum. Over 1,700 Complete Streets policies have been adopted nationwide, including policies at the state level in 35 states, as well as in Puerto Rico and Washington D.C. This widespread adoption reflects a growing recognition of the importance of Complete Streets in creating safer, more equitable, and more livable communities.
A map of the United States highlighting the states and regions that have adopted Complete Streets policies, demonstrating the widespread and growing adoption of this approach.
However, the mere existence of a policy doesn’t guarantee effective implementation. The National Complete Streets Coalition actively evaluates and scores Complete Streets policies at both state and local levels. This evaluation is based on a robust framework that emphasizes accountability and prioritizes the needs of the most vulnerable street users. Strong policies are crucial for driving meaningful change and ensuring that Complete Streets principles are translated into tangible improvements on the ground.
The Impact of Strong Complete Streets Policies: Transforming Communities
Complete Streets policies serve as a catalyst for transforming how states, regions, counties, cities, and towns approach street design and transportation planning. A well-crafted policy is just the initial step in a longer-term process of changing established practices. These practices ultimately shape the projects that are implemented, which in turn, form the building blocks of a comprehensive network that effectively and safely connects people to destinations.
The city of Tucson, Arizona, provides a compelling example of the transformative potential of Complete Streets. Mayor Regina Romero emphasizes the city’s commitment to institutionalizing Complete Streets and prioritizing mobility for all. Faced with high rates of traffic injuries and fatalities, Tucson adopted a strong Complete Streets policy in 2019. This policy is already influencing city practices and shaping future projects, demonstrating a clear shift towards prioritizing safety and accessibility in street design. Tucson’s story illustrates how a strong policy can lead to real-world changes and a fundamental shift in a city’s approach to transportation.
In conclusion, Complete Streets represent a paradigm shift in street design and transportation planning. By prioritizing safety and accessibility for all users, Complete Streets create more livable, equitable, and sustainable communities. The growing adoption of Complete Streets policies and the success stories from cities like Tucson highlight the transformative power of this approach in creating streets that truly serve everyone.
