:rotate(0)/yesmg8mim9kpadi9eg5c155ms1hv)
Inclusive Micromobility Systems
Noelle Aminoff and 8 OthersJade VincentCharlie Peterson
Charlie Miller
Finn Mayeux
Coffy lessig
Ari Sinert
Noelle Aminoff
Zahra Desautels + Privacy: Public
Inclusive Micro-Mobility Systems
- Site research and analysis
- Collected Data analysis and visualization
- Design proposal master plan
- Site model
Things to Look Forward for..
Horatio Yuxin Han
Senior Industrial Designer @ Superpedestrian
Guest Speaker
Friday 9/8 @1pm
Roslindale Arboretum Gateway Path
Field Trip
Monday 9/11 @10:30 am
What makes good Micromobility?
Boston Common
1.Site Selection
- Who it will be serving
- Diversity, population age/income
- Opportunities for placemaking
- Accessibility
Site SWOT Analysis
South Boston
Old Colony & South Hampton St
Strengths
Old Colony
Southampton
- 8 ft wide sidewalks
- 90 ft wide street
- 12 ft wide sidewalk
- 80 ft wide street
Weakness
Old Colony
Southampton
- High Traffic area
- Poor street condition
- No Natural Greenery
- Nearby Highway
- Lack of attraction
- Few crosswalks
Opportunity
Old Colony
Southampton
Can be connected to the Green Way, an already existing piece of infrastructure connecting many places in Boston through micromobility
- Open Space that can be used for bike lanes/greenery
- Area to add attraction and increase foot traffic
Threats (both)
Violent Crime is +30% national average
High Traffic Area
2. Feasibility Study
B.Understanding the site context
Traffic Map - Red is slower traffic, Green is faster traffic
Green and purple are public spaces
- Low population per acre generally
- Mixed incomes
- Younger population (around 34 years old)
- no English isolation
- Limited public spaces/parks
- High noise levels due to traffic and I-93
- Not many community activites
- Industrial feel to the area
- Not a mixed use area (doesnt encourage activites aside from driving)
Map Analysis
Clients Research
Community
The City
End Users
Cyclist
Blue Bikes/E-scooters Companies
The general vibe and layout of the location must safely facilitate the coexistence of trucks, bicycles, and pedestrians, without disrupting core industrial business activity.
Green links are missing bike and pedestrian connections. When completed, they will create a seamless network of greenway paths connected to every neighborhood.
Bike lanes are an essential part of modern-day traffic systems, especially in busy cities like Boston.
Usage rules for BlueBikes are defined by Bluebikes Bicycle Rental Agreement including return policies and safety rules while riding.
3. Proposed Master Plan
What do we know? What information is missing?
We Have:
- I-93 highway runs through the area
- Andrew Station is in the area
- Bad road quality
- MBTA parking garage
We Need:
- Where is green space?
- Where there's construction currently?
- Talk to local businesses
- Scout out bus maintenance garage/see how a bus goes in and out and how it will affect bikers/pedestrians
Southampton
Old Colony
Information We Have
Information We Need
- Measurements (Road, Sidewalk)
- There's constant fast-moving traffic
- There is little pedestrian accommodations
- Business owner's opinions about implementing a green way
Site visit summary (Southampton)
What We Learned (Southampton)
- Sidewalks and lanes are rather large
- Sidewalks and lanes are run down and in need of maintenance
- Some crosswalks have intersections have ADA pads, but not all of the intersection
- Safety is a big issue
- More bikers than we thought (many in the middle of the road not abiding by laws)
- Hostile architecture
- Loud area due to I-93 highway
- Quite industrial
Site Visit Summary (Old Colony)
Sidewalks are in disrepair and have no disability accommodations
- Barely any crosswalks, forcing people to jaywalk to get the the other side of the street
- Over the course of five minutes, 90 cars passed through the road with only 7 pedestrians
- There was an average noise level of 60 decibels with highs in the 90s
Site Visit Summary
Whose voices need to be heard?
While the road structure in South Boston may be practical for automobiles, it's not very accessible or easy to travel along for those who use other means of transportation. That's why we're focusing on the biker's and pedestrian's perspectives when designing our project. In South Boston, many main street sidewalks are shabby or deteriorating, making it difficult to travel on if you're a pedestrian. On top of this fact, there's quite a lack of crosswalks in the area, and existing crosswalks have faded lines which makes them very difficult to see. We also discovered that there are not any bike lanes along Southampton Street, forcing bikers to move onto the sidewalk or road. Also, the businesses along the street would also be heavily affected by traffic changes, therefore, the main voices that need to be heard are from are the pedestrians, bikers, and those who run local businesses located along the site.
Pedestrian Accessibility
By increasing the width of sidewalks as well as implementing crossing islands, we can allow pedestrians to safely travel across the street.
Crosswalks
Disabled accessibility can be massively improved by repaving sidewalks and installing ADA warning pads on all crosswalks and drive ways.
Sidewalk Repair and ADA Pads
Cyclist Accessibility
Separated bike lanes may also be designed as raised facilities, either at sidewalk grade or at an intermediate grade. If designed at the sidewalk level, the use of different pavement types, markings, or buffers may be necessary to keep bicyclists and pedestrians separated.
Separated bike lanes allow a safer option for cyclists while still remaining at street level protecting pedestrians.
Goals of Proposed Path
Our main goals are to make Southampton Street more accessible for bikers and pedestrians, reduce noise levels, create greenspace, and decrease traffic flow. We will accomplish this by:
- Taking a bit of space from the road as well as the sidewalks to make space for narrow bike lanes (1 lane per side)
- Moving the road's lane markings since the lanes will be smaller after this change
- Adding greenery/greenspace at the transit police and/or the public storage place (greenway creation)
- Repainting crosswalks that have faded
- Fixing up sidewalks
FDR Drive
West 46th Street
Examples of Completed project transformations:
Final Old Colony Diagram
Proposed master plan southampton
2m
4m each lane
2m
One way
4m to curb
3.5m path
6m to curb
2.75m each side
4m each lane
2m sidewalk
Two way
- Talk to the city
- Get more Client Research
- Gain more community input
- Add Streetlamps
- Account for temperature/lighting variation
- Research low maintenance greenery
Charlie Peterson Summary:
Our project was about micro-mobility, which concerns transportation, wayfinding, placemaking, etc. However, we have mainly been focusing on accessibility in South Boston. We went through a large process which started with selecting a site, then conducting a SWOT Analysis on the site, creating sketches/maps of designs we could implement and also maps of the area, and much more. At the end, we compiled all the information we gathered into one presentation which we presented to classmates. Overall, it was an extremely interesting and educational project and I felt as though it was very important to learn about micro-mobility and how it plays a role in our world today.
Jade Vincent Summary:
Inclusive Micro Mobility Systems is dedicated to create proposals for infrastructure development in South Boston to encourage greater pedestrian and cyclists utilization of the roadways. The current focus of these proposals is greenway development on South Hampton Street and Old Colony Ave. Primary conclusions of proposal development includes a focus on well maintained sidewalks and crossing infrastructure, greenway based separation for bike lanes from the roadway, and removing un-utilized lanes from roadways to make space for pedestrian infrastructure.