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Loukaitou-Sideris, Wachs Offer New Data on Aging Adults’ Mobility Needs

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Urban Planning Professor Anastasia Loukaitou-Sideris and Professor Emeritus Martin Wachs are featured in an American Planning Association article along with co-author Miriam Pinski discussing their research article, “Toward a Richer Picture of the Mobility Needs of Older Americans.” The authors point out that “commonly used data sources on mobility provide high-level insights but fail to provide much detail about the travel experiences of older adults.” After conducting interviews, focus groups and walking audits with a group of 81 older adults in the Westlake neighborhood of Los Angeles, the authors found that many have concerns including fear of crime, heavy traffic and speeding vehicles, and discomfort on crowded or littered streets. The authors recommended government action, including sidewalk repairs and increasing walk time at crosswalks, to better meet the mobility needs of aging adults, particularly those from low-income and minority communities. Their research also has implications for transit accessibility broadly, particularly for people with disabilities. 

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Reduced Traffic Accidents: Manville Sees Silver Lining of COVID-19

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Associate Professor of Urban Planning Michael Manville spoke to NBC LA about the record low number of car accidents following state and local “stay at home” orders in Southern California. With fewer drivers behind the wheel and the closure of all non-essential businesses to curb the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, traffic crashes in Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, Riverside and Ventura counties dropped 73% last month compared to March 2019. The total number of crashes causing fatalities, injury and property damage went from 21,270 in March 2019 to 5,827 last month. “The amount of travel that’s happening has fallen as close to zero as maybe we’ve ever seen in the modern era,” Manville said. The coronavirus traffic data is being used to inform discussions not only about the high toll that driving takes, but the environmental, social and economic impacts as well, such as how companies handle working from home.

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Loukaitou-Sideris Co-Authors Book on ‘New Practices for Reimagining the City’

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Urban Planning Professor Anastasia Loukaitou-Sideris is one of five co-authors of the new book “Urban Humanities: New Practices for Reimagining the City,” published by MIT Press. Urban humanities is the emerging field at the intersection of the humanities, urban planning and design, according to the authors. Their book offers a new approach not only for understanding cities in a global context but for intervening in them, interpreting their histories, engaging with them in the present and speculating about their futures. The book offers case studies of real-world projects in mega-cities in the Pacific Rim, including Tokyo, Shanghai, Mexico City and Los Angeles. Several projects are described in detail, including playful spaces for children in car-oriented Mexico City, a commons in a Tokyo neighborhood, and a rolling story-telling box to promote “literary justice” in Los Angeles. The interdisciplinary nature of the book is highlighted by the team of authors, which includes four of Loukaitou-Sideris’ UCLA colleagues from other departments: Dana Cuff, Todd Presner, Maite Zubiaurre and Jonathan Jae-an Crisman. The book features work from faculty and students in the Urban Humanities Initiative, who come from the urban planning, architecture and humanities programs. The initiative draws from humanist practices and a concern for social justice to interpret and intervene in the city. Loukaitou-Sideris is the author of numerous articles and co-editor of multiple books. “Urban Humanities: New Practices for Reimagining the City” is Loukaitou-Sideris’ fourth co-authored project.

Loukaitou-Sideris Studies Sexual Harassment on Public Transit

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An article in Progressive Railroading highlighted the findings of a study on sexual harassment co-authored by Urban Planning Professor Anastasia Loukaitou-Sideris. Conducted at San Jose State University, the study found that sexual harassment experienced by riders on buses and trains leads to reduced use of public transportation. Of the 891 student transit riders surveyed, 63% indicated that they had experienced some form of sexual harassment while riding the train or bus over the past three years. According to Loukaitou-Sideris, “the findings from San Jose State University are comparable to those found when the same survey was administered at 18 other universities located across six continents.” The report included recommendations to combat sexual harassment, including educating the public, making it easier for riders and bystanders to report incidents of harassment to the police, and keeping transit environments well-lighted.

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Accuracy Is Crucial in Census Count, Ong Says

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Paul Ong, director of the Center for Neighborhood Knowledge at UCLA Luskin, spoke about the importance of accurate census data in guiding how we build cities and communities on the new podcast 2020 Counts. “The census allows us to understand who we are, how we live, where we live,” Ong said. A reliable count is key to understanding issues and inequities that shape policies, interventions and funding priorities — including new investments in public transit and infrastructure that will be in place decades into the future, he said. Ong cautioned that several groups are at risk of being undercounted. “If you are a renter, if you don’t speak English, if you are overly burdened with other aspects of life so you don’t have time or opportunity to fill out that census form, or you feel alienated from the government and society, or are fearful — all these are factors that lead to a lower probability of participating that has a rippling effect,” he said. Ong’s comments begin at the 23:30-minute mark.

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Matute on the Eerily Empty Freeways of L.A.

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Juan Matute, deputy director of the Institute of Transportation Studies at UCLA Luskin, spoke to the Los Angeles Times about the COVID-19 outbreak’s effect on L.A. freeway traffic. As reported cases of COVID-19 surge in Los Angeles County, residents are following recommendations to stay at home and avoid public spaces, resulting in strangely empty freeways. Urban planning experts explain that reducing the number of vehicles on the road by a small amount can greatly reduce freeway traffic. “Pretty much every freeway lane in L.A. experiences some degree of this phenomenon: Everything is going fine, then suddenly it all slows down,” said Matute, an urban planning lecturer at the Luskin School. Freeway lanes have the capacity to support between 2,000 and 2,400 vehicles per lane per hour, but traffic grinds to a halt when lanes hit their capacity. On some freeways, reducing the number of cars by 5% could cut rush hour travel time in half, experts say.

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Manville Weighs In on Declining Bus Ridership

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Michael Manville, associate professor of urban planning, was featured in a New York Times article discussing the factors responsible for a nationwide decline in bus ridership. Urban planning experts point to suburbanization, increasing levels of car ownership and new rideshare services as partially responsible. Manville added that the rise of Craigslist has “altered the market for used cars, making them easier to find and cheaper to buy.” In addition, declining immigration rates in general could shrink the pool of potential bus riders. Manville argued that the best solution is to “make the true costs of driving more apparent” by implementing congestion pricing, higher parking rates and higher gas taxes. “At the end of the day, we may never know what’s driving this decline,” he said. “But I guarantee you that if you took a lane of Vermont Avenue in Los Angeles and gave it only to the bus, ridership would go up.”

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Wachs Hopes for Long-Run Transition to Telecommuting

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Martin Wachs, distinguished professor emeritus of urban planning, was featured in a Los Angeles Times article discussing the potential long-term impact of COVID-19 on Los Angeles residents. Commonly crowded public spaces and freeways have been unusually empty due to the spread of COVID-19 in accordance with public health experts’ recommendations to stay home and practice social distancing. Wachs expressed hope that this temporary situation will have positive long-term effects, including lowering the volume of cars on the road even after the crisis passes if workers are able to permanently switch to telecommuting. Instead of spending billions of dollars on transportation projects that take years to complete, Wachs recommends “using [that money] to incentivize companies and people to allow more telecommuting.” While some employers don’t trust the efficiency of telecommuting and some workers, such as restaurant employees, are unable to telecommute, Wachs explained that even “small changes in traffic volumes can make large changes in travel times.”

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Taylor Expresses Concern About Eliminating Transit Fares

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Brian Taylor, professor of urban planning and public policy,  spoke to Public Source about the prospect of universal free public transportation. In December, Kansas City, Missouri, became the first major U.S. city to eliminate all public transit fares. Proponents of the move argue that doing so increases ridership, simplifies the experience of riding and benefits low-income riders. However, experts worry that eliminating transit fares is not a universal solution, especially for cities like Pittsburgh, which dwarfs Kansas City in ridership and fare revenue. “By offering free transit service for all trips, you run the risk of actually incurring a very high marginal cost to accommodate where your peak demand is,” Taylor said. He argued that there are better ways to increase ridership and serve the needs of those dependent on transit. Instead of eliminating fares, Taylor recommended spending fare revenue on services and programs that make transit more reliable and accessible.

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Taylor on Creating a New Generation of Public Transit Users

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In a CalMatters article, Brian Taylor, professor of urban planning and public policy and director of the Institute of Transportation Studies, weighed in on the prospect of offering free public transportation to youth to boost ridership across the state. Student ridership and overall ridership have increased dramatically in Sacramento following the implementation of a transit program that allows students in pre-kindergarten to high school to ride the region’s buses and light rail for free year-round. In an effort to emulate the Sacramento program at the state level, Assembly Bill 1350 would require all California transit agencies to offer free passes to anyone 18 and under in order to get state funding. Taylor said AB 1350 is a “small step in the right direction that could have positive effects,” although he believes “it would be best as part of a broader package to improve transit.”

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