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Urban Street Design Guide
The NACTO Urban Street Design Guide shows how streets of every size can be reimagined and reoriented to prioritize safe driving and transit, biking, walking, and public activity. Unlike older, more conservative engineering manuals, this design guide emphasizes the core principle that urban streets are public places and have a larger role to play in communities than solely being conduits for traffic.
The well-illustrated guide offers blueprints of street design from multiple perspectives, from the bird’s eye view to granular details. Case studies from around the country clearly show how to implement best practices, as well as provide guidance for customizing design applications to a city’s unique needs. Urban Street Design Guide outlines five goals and tenets of world-class street design:
• Streets are public spaces . Streets play a much larger role in the public life of cities and communities than just thoroughfares for traffic.
• Great streets are great for business . Well-designed streets generate higher revenues for businesses and higher values for homeowners.
• Design for safety . Traffic engineers can and should design streets where people walking, parking, shopping, bicycling, working, and driving can cross paths safely.
• Streets can be changed . Transportation engineers can work flexibly within the building envelope of a street. Many city streets were created in a different era and need to be reconfigured to meet new needs.
• Act now! Implement projects quickly using temporary materials to help inform public decision making.
Elaborating on these fundamental principles, the guide offers substantive direction for cities seeking to improve street design to create more inclusive, multi-modal urban environments. It is an exceptional resource for redesigning streets to serve the needs of 21st century cities, whose residents and visitors demand a variety of transportation options, safer streets, and vibrant community life.
The well-illustrated guide offers blueprints of street design from multiple perspectives, from the bird’s eye view to granular details. Case studies from around the country clearly show how to implement best practices, as well as provide guidance for customizing design applications to a city’s unique needs. Urban Street Design Guide outlines five goals and tenets of world-class street design:
• Streets are public spaces . Streets play a much larger role in the public life of cities and communities than just thoroughfares for traffic.
• Great streets are great for business . Well-designed streets generate higher revenues for businesses and higher values for homeowners.
• Design for safety . Traffic engineers can and should design streets where people walking, parking, shopping, bicycling, working, and driving can cross paths safely.
• Streets can be changed . Transportation engineers can work flexibly within the building envelope of a street. Many city streets were created in a different era and need to be reconfigured to meet new needs.
• Act now! Implement projects quickly using temporary materials to help inform public decision making.
Elaborating on these fundamental principles, the guide offers substantive direction for cities seeking to improve street design to create more inclusive, multi-modal urban environments. It is an exceptional resource for redesigning streets to serve the needs of 21st century cities, whose residents and visitors demand a variety of transportation options, safer streets, and vibrant community life.
192 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 2013
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277 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
July 23, 2016
Invigorating and enlightening. A vision of city streets, unfolding now.
Autocentric design of city streets dominated urban planning for a hundred years. This book pulls away from that bias of city streets as car thoroughfares. A new generation of street design will lead to the transformation of city traffic for for all users in the new era.
This book documents visions and principles that work well, offering a new and better understanding of street design. Blueprints, graphic renderings and case studies dominate this manual. This is a new set of standards for city streets, sidewalks and intersections.
When, for example, the discussion centers on transit, it is good to learn about solutions that can solve common frustrations. Freight trucks, such as USFoods and Sysco, blatantly and illegally park in unenforced bus stops. These flagrant and frequent violations force buses to stop in lanes of moving traffic, impeding the movement of everyone. For transit users with mobility issues, they lose the extra inches that the curb would provide.
Transit zones need enforcement, which benefits everyone. And, as a new generation of streets comes along, more transit stops and stations will move to the median, which avoids conflicts with freight trucks and turning cars. But even there, bus-only lanes will need regular enforcement. Dedicated median bus lanes work on major routes with rush headways of ten minutes or less, according to guidelines in this practical book.
As we might expect from a book about design, this guide presents itself by using modern design and layout throughout the guide.
This book is an example cited in Streetfight: Handbook for an Urban Revolution of new guidance for city streets.
Blurbs on the back cover:
“State-of-the-art practices.” — Janette Sadik-Khan, author of Streetfight: Handbook for an Urban Revolution, a five-star book published in March. Sadik-Khan, when this street guide was published, served as president of the National Association of City Transportation Officials and as the transportation commissioner of New York City.
“Solid urban standards for safe, sustainable, inviting streets.” — Gabe Klein, author of Start-Up City: Inspiring Private and Public Entrepreneurship, Getting Projects Done, and Having Fun, another four-star book published by Island Press. Klein served as Chicago’s transportation commissioner.
Autocentric design of city streets dominated urban planning for a hundred years. This book pulls away from that bias of city streets as car thoroughfares. A new generation of street design will lead to the transformation of city traffic for for all users in the new era.
This book documents visions and principles that work well, offering a new and better understanding of street design. Blueprints, graphic renderings and case studies dominate this manual. This is a new set of standards for city streets, sidewalks and intersections.
When, for example, the discussion centers on transit, it is good to learn about solutions that can solve common frustrations. Freight trucks, such as USFoods and Sysco, blatantly and illegally park in unenforced bus stops. These flagrant and frequent violations force buses to stop in lanes of moving traffic, impeding the movement of everyone. For transit users with mobility issues, they lose the extra inches that the curb would provide.
Transit zones need enforcement, which benefits everyone. And, as a new generation of streets comes along, more transit stops and stations will move to the median, which avoids conflicts with freight trucks and turning cars. But even there, bus-only lanes will need regular enforcement. Dedicated median bus lanes work on major routes with rush headways of ten minutes or less, according to guidelines in this practical book.
As we might expect from a book about design, this guide presents itself by using modern design and layout throughout the guide.
This book is an example cited in Streetfight: Handbook for an Urban Revolution of new guidance for city streets.
Blurbs on the back cover:
“State-of-the-art practices.” — Janette Sadik-Khan, author of Streetfight: Handbook for an Urban Revolution, a five-star book published in March. Sadik-Khan, when this street guide was published, served as president of the National Association of City Transportation Officials and as the transportation commissioner of New York City.
“Solid urban standards for safe, sustainable, inviting streets.” — Gabe Klein, author of Start-Up City: Inspiring Private and Public Entrepreneurship, Getting Projects Done, and Having Fun, another four-star book published by Island Press. Klein served as Chicago’s transportation commissioner.
August 19, 2020
Sure, I read this for work. To fully invest myself in the urban standards, I wanted to consume the entire book, and to do that I would need to spend time at home as I slowly worked my way through it without granting myself the opportunity to skim. One of the greatest strengths of this book is the visualization tools for how to modify a roadway to be friendlier to alternate modes.
It was interesting to see the traffic signal section written up with the primacy given to bikes and pedestrians. I also appreciated the acknowledgement that this section primarily relates to in-town urban streets. It is worth noting that this book focuses on standards and recommended policy for urbanized area, while sources like AASHTO focus on standards more for rural and limited access facilities. Neither is perfect in applicability for suburban areas, so judgement is needed to determine what parts belong where.
It was interesting to see the traffic signal section written up with the primacy given to bikes and pedestrians. I also appreciated the acknowledgement that this section primarily relates to in-town urban streets. It is worth noting that this book focuses on standards and recommended policy for urbanized area, while sources like AASHTO focus on standards more for rural and limited access facilities. Neither is perfect in applicability for suburban areas, so judgement is needed to determine what parts belong where.
January 17, 2015
This is a terrific resource for planners and engineers. The text contains excellent graphics, intelligent imagery and on spot explanations of how to transition a typical roadway into a modern complete street. This book contains so many great ideas and the ways you can improve the pedestrian and driver experience and create a community asset out of a roadway.
December 31, 2014
a book you need as a city planner, an architect, or an engineer . it is written for a practical purpose and it is very contextual. it elaborates principles and example actions to redesign and reconstruct urban street in providing accessibility and mobility for all.
January 6, 2018
Consumable, tactical design considerations for rehabilitating city streets to accommodate a balance of user needs. This design guide moves through street types and design goals by providing the benefits and considerations of specific road features.
When transportation priorities have been set and goals have been laid out for a more balanced road system, this is the book that engineers, planners, policy makers, advocates, and citizens can turn to for inspiration on what to include in their upgraded streets.
When transportation priorities have been set and goals have been laid out for a more balanced road system, this is the book that engineers, planners, policy makers, advocates, and citizens can turn to for inspiration on what to include in their upgraded streets.
April 11, 2018
Must-read for any urban architect or anybody interested in convenient and efficient street design. This books covers many topics from intersection design to stormwater management. It has a lot of graphics and design examples that complement the narrative. It makes you feel that you make a city a better and safer place together with the author.
August 4, 2022
Interesting book about urbanization and revitalization by creating safety and enjoyment for pedestrians and bikers primarily at intersections of roads. I for one didn’t think about the turn radius formula being helpful for intersections and such. But I’m just a baby planner.
November 12, 2023
Glad I read this book cover to cover but I don’t blame them not encouraging it. To be honest, I knew most of it already, but it is great.
August 30, 2016
It's a good book to see different ideas and considerations for (re)designing modern city streets. The target audience is city architects/designers (eg, students and city planners), and it's not very interesting or useful for regular people. Lots of examples, but not enough explanations why this or that.
September 2, 2015
Poorly-planned and well-planned intersections drawn side-by-side, making the graphics speak for themselves. Quick explanations of bus bulbs, pedestrian islands, and other urban design elements I hadn't thought of.
January 24, 2015
I wish, my city had planners has read that book :(
November 28, 2015
This is a great book... It helped me a lot when I was doing my thesis, omg terrific i felt so relieved when I found it.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews