INFRASTRUCTURE: Using the Grid to Create a more Self-Sustaining Downtown. Studio Spring 2013

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Bartholomew McGee
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EMERGENT FUTURES The San Diego Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) released a new report, the 2012 San Diego County Infrastructure Report Card.

1 EMERGENT FUTURES The San Diego Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) released a new report, the 2012 San Diego County Infrastructure Report Card. Since the last San Diego Report Card was released in 2005, the County s overall grade has declined from a C+ to a C. This overall grade of C mirrors the grade for the state of California (C), but is actually higher than the overall grade ASCE gave the nation s infrastructure in the 2009 Report Card for America s Infrastructure (D). The 2012 Report Card grades are: Aviation C+ Bridges C+ Land and Sea Ports of Entry C- Levees/ Flood Control/ Urban Drainage C- Parks/ Recreation/ Environment C School Facilities C Solid Waste B Surface Transportation D+ Wastewater/ Collection Systems B Wastewater/ Treatment B+ Water Supply B View of Downtown from Interstate 5 Although San Diego s infrastructure is doing better on average, this steady decline is significant as many of San Diego County s infrastructure systems are approaching, or have passed, their 50-year life expectancy. The report explains that continued investment in San Diego s infrastructure is necessary to reverse the slide in grades and protect the quality of life of the community. San Diego s development began to boom in the beginning of the 20th Century relying heavily on the automobile as a form of transportation and as a way to transport goods. The network of freeway systems and the public transportation system is designed to quickly move people in and out of downtown. This leaves us with downtown Sanb Diego being another bedroom-neighborhood with the residents commuting to other parts of the county for work and leisure. How can redefining the infrastructure of San Diego create a more self-sustaining downtown?

EMERGENT FUTURES Case Studies of Cities with the Excellent Infrastructure: Atlanta, GA

electricity supply, water availability, telephone and mail services, public

2 EMERGENT FUTURES Case Studies of Cities with the Excellent Infrastructure: Atlanta, GA Chicago, IL Portland, OR The qualities that define good infrastructure is based on electricity supply, water availability, telephone and mail services, public transportation, traffic congestion and the range of international flights from local airports. Looking at the infrastructure maps above shows the successful layout of public transportation moving the citizens not only in and out of downtown but also circling through the surrounding neighborhoods.

3 EMERGENT FUTURES Exploded Axonometric Drawing of the layers of Infrastructure Downtown San Diego Air Traffic San Diego Trolley Bus Routes and Bike Paths Automobile Traffic and Parking San Diego Urban Fabric Water Lines and Drain System

4 EMERGENT FUTURES In the early 20th century, the SDERy's routes would operate throughout the greater San Diego area over some 165 miles of track. Steadily declining ridership, due in large part to the phenomenal rise in popularity of the automobile, ultimately led the company to discontinue all streetcar service in favor of bus routes in The demise of some streetcar companies in the United States has been tied by some to the General Motors streetcar conspiracy, in which a consortium of General Motors, Standard Oil, and others formed a front company, National City Lines, in order to buy streetcar lines, shut them down, and replace them with buses. San Diego Streetcar 1925 Planned San Diego Literail 2050 San Diego Trolley 2013 Currently our light rail system is limited to the San Diego Trolley, which moves too slowly to be a popular commute option. The 2050 plan hopw to address this by keeping the trolley in the downtown area, adding a streetcar system to reach the surrounding neighborhoods, and high-speed building a commuter rail to reach the neighboring towns.

EMERGENT FUTURES Public Transportation in Downtown in relation to housing density. San Diego's roadway system provides an extensive network of routes for travel by bicycle.

5 EMERGENT FUTURES Public Transportation in Downtown in relation to housing density. San Diego's roadway system provides an extensive network of routes for travel by bicycle. The dry and mild climate of San Diego makes cycling a convenient and pleasant year-round option. Older and denser neighborhoods around the downtown tend to be utility cycling oriented. This is partly because of the grid street patterns now absent in newer developments farther from the urban core, where suburban style arterial roads are much more common. As a result, a vast majority of cycling-related activities are recreational. Testament to San Diego's cycling efforts, in 2006, San Diego was rated as the best city for cycling for U.S. cities with a population over 1 million. The bus routes run the streets that house civic programs, commercial districts, and education hubs in downtown. The routes then carry the passengers to the surrounding neighborhoods. However, the frequancy of stops and inconsistancy of run times makes the current bus route an inconsistant and time consuming mode of transportation. Bike lanes have been constructed to make San Diego a safer place to travel by bicycle.

This includes Interstate 5, which runs south to Tijuana and runs north to Los Angeles; Interstate 8, which runs east to Imperial County and the Arizona Sun Corridor; Interstate 15, which runs

6 EMERGENT FUTURES Roadnetwork laid over housing density. With the automobile being the primary means of transportation for 90 percent of its residents, San Diego is served by a network of freeways and highways. This includes Interstate 5, which runs south to Tijuana and runs north to Los Angeles; Interstate 8, which runs east to Imperial County and the Arizona Sun Corridor; Interstate 15, which runs northeast through the Inland Empire to Las Vegas; and Interstate 805, which splits from I-5 near the Mexican border and rejoins I-5 at Sorrento Valley. Most San Diego workers drive by themselves to work: 94 % of the 1.4 million workers in San Diego commute to work 90 % of these use a truck, car or van to get to work How much time do workers spend in San Diego traffic?: 6 % drive more than 60 minutes or more to work 6 % drive between minutes 21 % take minutes to commute 24 % have a commute time of minutes 32 % take minutes to get to work 12 % have a drive time of 9 minutes or less San Diego is home to 2.6 Million Cars and the average person spends 27 Minutes commuting to work by car. Taking public transit, carpooling, or cycling just once a week would reduce traffic congestion by 20%.

EMERGENT FUTURES SANDAG 2050 Planned Capital Investments $$$ $ Increase Transit Frequency More Transit Routes Improve/Expand Freeways More Carpool Lanes Improved Freight Network Add Toll Lanes Biking

Much of the polluted water that currently runs to the bay can be captured and purified to water the green belts and trees within the city.

7 EMERGENT FUTURES SANDAG 2050 Planned Capital Investments $$$ $ Increase Transit Frequency More Transit Routes Improve/Expand Freeways More Carpool Lanes Improved Freight Network Add Toll Lanes Biking and Walking Improvements Carpool Incentives New Technologies Steps are being taken to capture and reuse rainwater and stormwater runoff in downtown. Much of the polluted water that currently runs to the bay can be captured and purified to water the green belts and trees within the city. Most of the City s existing water supply is imported water from the Colorado River and the California State Water Project. Because of this, the City has long recognized the need to develop local water supplies to balance and reduce the dependence on imported water. The need for local water supply development has been echoed by the San Diego County Water Authority (SDCWA), and their 2009 Annual Water Supply Report s hows plans to increase local supplies (including recycled water) for 40 percent of regional demands by In order to support this goal, the SDCWA offers grant funding to its member agencies to study the development of local resources. Increasing recycled water usage over 2002 levels by one million AFY by 2020 and by at least two million AFY by 2030 Increasing stormwater usage by at least half a million AFY by 2020 and at least one million AFY by 2030 Increasing water conservation in industrial and urban uses by 20% by 2020 SANDAG Priorities for the Future of San Diego Current and Planned Public Transit Service Miles

EMERGENT FUTURES Reclaiming the center median and one traffic lane on the Pacific Highway and Broadway can house a localized light rail system, a flexible outdoor market space for people riding

8 EMERGENT FUTURES Reclaiming the center median and one traffic lane on the Pacific Highway and Broadway can house a localized light rail system, a flexible outdoor market space for people riding the light rail, and a bike lane. This improvement of infrastructure will make downtown more accesible to locals and improve the desirability for local buisinisses to develop along the waterfront.

Arnold Hinojosa

Policy Analysis of the Mass Transit Challenges Facing Rapidly Growing Southern and Western Cities and How These Challenges Can Be Addressed Using the Model Set by Chicago Arnold Hinojosa ahinojosa@kentlaw.edu