East St. Louis Action Research Project
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

ESTL LIGHT RAIL PROJECT

References on Transportation

This page includes references on the following topics: light rail, Rails to Trails and other trail ideas and programs, and Transit-Oriented Design (TOD).

Light Rail References

U.S. Department of Transportation, National Transportation Library. htp://www.bts.gov/smart/cat/638.html (September 15, 1996).

This page contains a report entitled "Measurement of Transportation Benefits." The report examines the benefits of public transit to gain a better understanding of how they can be used to assist in decision making. The report contains a comprehensive evaluation of the types of consequences of transit services and the different methods that can be used to determine their benefits.

"CP Rail Seeks to Drop More Losing Lines in Maritime Provinces." Railway Age. Dec. 1992, Vol. 193: 13.

Canadian Pacific announced it has filed letters of intent with CanadaÕs National Transportation Agency and the ICC to seek permission to abandon 465 miles of track east of Sherbrooke, Quebec. They are prepared to explore solutions that would make continued rail service possible.

"IFBF Urges Wider Notification of Railroad Abandonment." http://agriculture.com/contents/fb/fbnews/newsrel/railroad.htm.

The Iowa Farm Bureau Federation is urging the Surface Transportation Board to expand public notification of abandoned rail lines and to keep the public informed of a railroadÕs plans for future development.

"Looking at Reviving Line (from Santa Cruz into Los Gatos, California)." ENR. Oct. 24, 1994. Vol. 233: 20.

Area planners and the California Department of transportation are investigating the possibility of reviving and abandoned rail line. It would connect Santa Cruz with other South Bay commuter rail lines at Los Gatos.

Welty, Gus. "Protecting Public Safety or Just Playing Politics." Railway Age. Oct. 1993. Vol. 194: 9.

The ICC turned down the Indian & Ohio Rail Corporation's application to reconstruct 2.9 miles of railroad in order to link 2 IONR lines north of Cincinnati. The ICC claims that the reconstruction would create a threat to public safety.

Rail-Trail Resource Center, "Hot News." http:///www.rail-trail.org/fredwert/

Congressperson Susan Molinari is going to hold hearings regarding changes to the national railbanking law which essentially makes it impossible to use. If you have used railbanking, or would like to in the future , please contact Congressperson Susan Molinari .

Rails to Trails and Trail References

"Three-Way Trade Saves Historic Michigan Bridges." Civil Engineering. Nov. 1994. Vol. 64: 22+.

Two historic bridges were saved from the scrap heap in an innovative bridge exchange project involving three Michigan counties. The idea for the exchange came from the Rails to Trails Program.

Hepler, Heather. "Trees in the "Hood": A Look at City Parks." American City and Country. Feb. 1995. Vol. 110: 20-22.

Officials are adopting long-term planning and land-purchase policies, and some innovative land-use policies, to ensure the availability of park land for future years. Possible sites include abandoned railroad properties.

"Cycling on Abandoned Railroads." http:www.brainlink.com/~glp/oyb/bikerail.html

Includes an introduction to railbiking and two book reviews. The books are: "RAILBIKE - Cycling on Abandoned Railroads" and "RIGHT-OF-WAY - A Guide To Abandoned Railroads".

"Healthy Summer Fun Along the Trails." http://www.westol.com/tat/articles/dmercy.htm

Submitted by Pittsburgh Mercy Foundation announcing the large number of trails in Western Pennsylvania already being used for recreation. Also, you can help raise funds for the Pittsburgh Mercy Health System by gathering pledges for every mile you walk!

"Victory in Indiana." http://home.navisoft.com/alliance/afaweb/0696012.htm

A group of property owners sued Conrail and West Central Indiana Railroad Recreation Inc., a non-profit group that wants to set up recreational trails along former railroad routes, and won. The decision confirms that railroads, in most cases, purchased only the right to cross the land, and not the land itself. After the railroads ceased operations and abandoned the land the property should have reverted to adjacent landowners.

"Integrating Rail-Trails into Statewide and Metropolitan Long Range Plans."http:www.bts.gov/smart/cat/irt.html

This paper has been developed for transportation planners and policymakers in state departments of Transportation and Metropolitan Planning Organizations who are engaged in intermodal, multi-modal, and bicycle and pedestrian planning. This document outlines the goals, policies and ongoing planning activities that Rails-to-Trails Conservancy recommends be included in every state and metropolitan Long Range Plan.

Transit-Oriented Design (TOD) References

Atash, Farhad. "Redesigning Suburbia for Walking and Transit: Emerging Concepts." Journal of Urban Planning and Development. March 1994: 48- 57.

The article describes two neo-traditional town planning concepts: traditional neighborhood design and pedestrian pockets. The article evaluates the two concepts and discusses the findings.

Center for Livable Communities Newsletter and Publications. http://www.bizline.com/clc/pub.html (September 11, 1996).

This home page contains numerous publications and guidebooks promoting the principles of transit-oriented design. The publications include a wide range of transit -oriented design information, from newsletters and conference summaries to techniques on how to improve citizen participation in communities.

Cervero, Robert and Roger Gorham. "Commuting in Transit Versus Automobile Neighborhoods." Journal of the American Planning Association. Spring 1995: 210-225.

Cervero and Gorham describe the recent movement to redesign suburbs that promote transit riding, walking, and bicycling, so that they depend less on the automobile. The results of a comparison between a transit-oriented design community and an auto dominated suburban neighborhood in the San Francisco Bay area and in Southern California are discussed.

Crane, R. "On Form Versus Function - Will the New Urbanism Reduce Traffic or Increase It." Journal of Planning Education and Research. Winter 1996: 117- 126.

The article concentrates on the popular planning movements known as New Urbanism and Transit-Oriented Development, focusing on their presumed transportation benefits, such as traffic "calming", integration of land uses and densities, and better street design. This paper discusses the problems of the supposed benefits and proposes a model to analyze the trade-offs that are imposed on transportation and land use planners.

Crane, R. "Cars and Drivers in the New Suburbs - Linking Access to Travel in Neotraditionl Planning." Journal of the American Planning Association. Winter 1996: 51-65.

The article highlights the numerous benefits associated with "new suburb" design, concentrating on the transportation benefits. The author feels that the transportation benefits of neotraditional planning and transit oriented design have been oversold, advocating the evaluation of each development individually to determine whether its net impact on automobile activity is positive or negative.

Ewing, R. "Beyond Density, Mode Choice, and Single Purpose Trips." Transportation Quarterly. Fall 1995: 15-24.

The article discusses the opposing viewpoints of those who support the belief that land use patterns affect every aspect of household travel behavior by promoting compact developments, pedestrian pockets, transit-oriented design, and mixed-use activity centers to those who question whether land use patterns have any influence in a society of universal automobile ownership, super highways, and low cost travel. The article presents the results of a study examining the independent effects of land use on household travel behavior.

Leccese, Michael. "Next Stop: Transit -Friendly Towns." Landscape Architecture. July 1990: 47-53.

Leccese describes architect/planner Peter Calthorpe's vision of pedestrian pocket towns in California and Florida. Calthorpe believes that transit-oriented design can solve the urban ills of smog, gridlock, and loss of farmland. The article highlights Calthorpe's Laguna West, California's first pedestrian pocket town.

Newman, P. and J. Kenworthy. "The Land-Use Transportation Connection - An Overview." Land Use Policy. January 1996: 1-22.

The growing international planning movements of the "New Urbanism" and transit -oriented design (TOD) are discussed. The article provides many case studies in areas around the world such as Singapore, Zurich, Copenhagen, Toronto, Portland, and Perth to show the level of performance of TOD in different environments.

Salvesen, David. "Promoting Transit-Oriented Development." Urban Land. July 1996: 31-35.

Salvensen's article provides a history of transit-oriented design (TOD), discusses policies and plans that support TOD, explains the obstacles facing TOD, and predicts the future of TOD. The article cites many examples of TOD communities in Chicago, Miami, San Francisco, Atlanta, and Dallas.

Stephens, Suzanne. "Should Architects Design Cities." Architectural Review. May 1994: 28-31.

The main focus of this article is traditional neighborhood developments of the New Urbanism movement and transit-oriented design communities. This article discusses the criticism of these two movements because they attempt to break society's dependence upon the automobile for mobility and curtail the patterns of typical suburban sprawl.

U.S. Department of Transportation, National Transportation Library. "Access: Communities and Transit-Oriented Design." http://www.bts.gov/smart/cat/271.html (September 11, 1996).

This site describes and provides information on many organizations that promote transit-oriented design, such as Mobility Partners, and also discuses recent studies and news briefs on transit-oriented design communities.

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Document author(s): Kevin Merrifield and Amy Caldwell
HTML by: Kevin Merrifield , Amy Caldwell, Brett Harsen, and Martha Pedersen
Last modified: December 19, 1996

East St. Louis Action Research Project