Citizens for Appropriate Transportation (CAT)
The Eisenhower
Transportation Corridor
CONTEXT-SENSITIVE DESIGN
– DESIGNING WITH THE COMMUNITY
What is Context Sensitive Design?
Context Sensitive Design (CSD) is a philosophy of
transportation planning which recognizes that transportation has wide societal
impacts. It is a collaborative approach
to developing transportation facilities that fit their physical settings, and
preserve neighborhood, recreation, scenic, aesthetic, historic and
environmental resources, while maintaining safety and mobility.
Efficient
movement of vehicles was the primary concern of designers during the era of
interstate highway design; aesthetics and environmental issues were discounted,
and community involvement was not encouraged.
Despite this outlook, in the 1950’s the Village of Oak Park was able to
influence the design of the Eisenhower Expressway. Three compromises were negotiated with the
Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT), including pushing the roadway
below grade; keeping the corridor narrower by using center on/off ramps instead
of side ramps at Austin and Harlem; and designing for a future ramp, should it
be needed, at East Avenue instead of putting one in at the outset.
As the era that introduced the interstate highway system
passes, we are seeing throughout the country a heightened expectation that
designers consider the impact of transportation facilities on the communities
they serve. The impetus has come from
the bottom up, with the affected communities demanding more participation in
transportation decisions.
Transportation systems shape the urban environment,
affecting community cohesion, land use, environmental quality and the overall
quality of life in a community.
Transportation decisions cannot be separated from community values and
public policy. The point of CSD is to
satisfy not just the user of the road, but also the community it impacts. A roadway must be safe for both the user and
the community; be in harmony with the community; and preserve environmental,
scenic, aesthetic, historic, and natural resource values of the area. It should cause minimal disruption and add
lasting value to the community.
Design issues to consider in CSD are of course
location-specific. Some considerations
for the Ike Corridor are:
§
Control of noise, fumes, and particulate
pollution: If the road were dropped
further below grade, could these problems be ameliorated?
§
Continuity of communities split by the Ike: Should
there be more bridges? Should the
bridges be wider, and include bike lanes, planters and seating? Can the bridges have more aesthetic appeal?
§
Aesthetics of other built elements, such as sound
barriers and retaining walls: Could
there be “green walls”, or walls on which plant materials thrive?
§
Use of natural features, such as embankments, site
grading and planting materials: Can
landscaping increase aesthetic appeal, while helping to control pollution?
§
Width of the right-of-way: If the corridor were to be
widened, what features might be lost? At
a minimum, landscape embankments might be replaced by retaining walls. How would houses and other structures be
affected, especially at the intersections?
§
Access to the CTA:
Can safer pedestrian paths to the stations be provided?
§
Preservation of historic features, such as the Oak
Park Conservatory, Columbus Park and the Maze Library: What assets are important to the community?
Community involvement is an absolutely critical factor for
achieving CSD. To be most effective,
citizens must be involved early in the process, so their input can be garnered before
design begins. (See Issues Brief 8,
February 2003, “Citizen Participation”)
Ideally, consensus on the problem definition is reached at the outset,
so as to reach consensus on the final design.
The designer should address community issues before doing any
engineering, and employ a process that examines multiple alternatives. In the case of the Eisenhower, design has
begun without much citizen input.
However, the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) is developing a
Multi-Modal Study that includes the Ike.
The RTA should solicit meaningful citizen input, and consider forming
one or more citizen advisory boards.
This will allow citizens to examine which transportation alternatives
best meet user needs, while minimizing negative impact on the community.
Those who control the process control the outcome; plans for
the Eisenhower Corridor should not be controlled exclusively by IDOT but can
and must be influenced by citizens.
While the Eisenhower serves a constituency of people who are going
somewhere, it also traverses a community of people who already are somewhere.
The right to shape our community
comes with a responsibility, to have a vision for what we want this place to
be. This vision will allow for
constructive input into transportation planning—neither an obstructionist outlook,
nor simple acquiescence to planners’ proposals.
The community must also see to it that all stakeholders are involved in
the process, a task we can’t leave to the transportation agencies.
Joan L. Suchomel – April 2003