Urban Studies and Planning Commons^™

Impartiality, Social Network Effects And Collective Memory: Three Essays On Trust In Police., Matthew Robert Fischer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is an historical and empirical examination of police organizational efforts at influencing public perceptions of trust in police. It begins with an historical overview of police organizational reform, focusing on the various strategies employed by police reformers have attempted to influence public perceptions of police trustworthiness and legitimacy. It uses Rothstein’s impartiality as Quality of Government thesis and the theory of collective memory to argue for an understanding of the importance of the normative context in which police tactics and strategies are deployed for garnering trust in police and how the presence of social network effects for trust …

Municipal Annexation Reform In Texas: How A Victory For Property Rights Jeopardizes The State’S Financial Health, Julie Polansky Bell

St. Mary's Law Journal

Municipal annexation is the expansion of city boundaries. The greatest motivator behind municipal annexation is maintaining and improving economic prosperity of the annexing authority. The issue of annexation involves a balance of rights between property owners and municipalities of the state. Historically, Texas cities had broad annexation authority under an involuntary annexation scheme. However, in recent years the power has shifted as lawmakers have given property owners greater control over the annexation process. This trend culminated in the passage of the Municipal Annexation Right to Vote Act (MARVA) by the 85th Texas Legislature, which severely limits annexation authority.

Texas municipalities …

Electronic Wayfinding For Visually Impaired Travelers: Limitations And Opportunities, Martin Swobodzinski, Amy T. Parker

TREC Project Briefs

In this project, we distilled an inventory of smartphone-based electronic travel aid technology for the wayfinding of visually impaired travelers in an urban environment based on a thorough review of software marketplaces and the academic literature. Subsequently, we solicited structured input from domain experts and visually impaired individuals on their experiences and evaluations pertaining to personal telecommunication technology for safe and efficient wayfinding. The insights gained from this project are instrumental for the conceptualization and development of integrated route planning and guidance application that address the distinct information needs and expectations of individuals with a vision-related functional impairment. The very …

Enhanced Transit Corridors In Portland's Central City, Gabe Graff, Kelly Betteridge

PSU Transportation Seminars

Over the past two years, the Portland Bureau of Transportation and TriMet have joined forces to identify, design and build capital and operational treatments to help buses move more quickly and reliably through Portland’s increasingly congested Central City. Already the densest concentration of people and jobs in Oregon, Portland’s Central City is growing fast and increasing the speed and reliability of transit is key to achieving our City and region’s transportation, climate and livability goals. Working in partnership on PBOT’s Central City in Motion plan and TriMet and Metro’s Enhanced Transit Corridor program, the two agencies have identified a series …

Minimodal: Dimensional Domain Of Miniature Shipping Containers For Intermodal Freight Transportation, Lee Stapley

Ursidae: The Undergraduate Research Journal at the University of Northern Colorado

This study explores the feasibility of miniature shipping container usage within existing intermodal transportation (IT) supply chains. Smaller intermodal container shipments may help realign freight shipments with the most efficient transportation mode, rail. These containers embolden the dimensional domain (DD) of shipping. The shipping container dimensional domain (container size variation and modal fluidity) is widespread and results in shipments that are often larger or more infrequent than needed. The DD impacts transport mode, shipping frequency, shipment velocity, intermodal supply chain accessibility, and regional shipping networks. This study suggests that container size impacts the DD and, therefore, mode choice. As miniature …

Factors In Refugee Resilience Building During Humanitarian Response, Rachel Starner

Capstone Collection

If countries hosting refugees want to build resiliency and reduce dependency on foreign relief, humanitarian response and local development need to be addressed simultaneously, and collaboration at all levels of stakeholders needs to take place in planning and decision making. Additionally, innovation and strong leadership are strong factors in creating and leading new ideas as funding and world leadership dynamics change, especially with traditional leaders such as the US and the UN losing influence. Observations made at the Mahama Refugee Camp in Rwanda as well as existing document analysis reflect these traits by active efforts of camp administrators and humanitarian …

Age Of Concrete : Housing And The Shape Of Aspiration In The Capital Of Mozambique, David Morton

Ohio University Press Open Access Books

Age of Concrete is a history of the making of houses and homes in the subúrbios of Maputo (Lourenço Marques), Mozambique, from the late 1940s to the present. Often dismissed as undifferentiated, ahistorical “slums,” these neighborhoods are in fact an open-air archive that reveals some of people’s highest aspirations. At first people built in reeds. Then they built in wood and zinc panels. And finally, even when it was illegal, they risked building in concrete block, making permanent homes in a place where their presence was often excruciatingly precarious.

Unlike many histories of the built environment in African cities, Age …

Making A Case For Equity Planning In Transportation Development: Identifying Indicators And Building A Framework For Hillsborough County, Fl, Dayna J. Lazarus

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The idea that planners should work toward an equitable society has been part of the profession since the 1960s, largely based on the work of planning theorists like Paul Davidoff, Sherry Arnstein and Norman Krumholz. Transportation planning, however, has been slower than other sectors of the profession, such as housing, to embrace equity planning concepts. That has begun to change as concerns about income inequality, environmental justice and climate change have become more salient. This thesis makes the case that in order to improve social equity outcomes, transportation planners must make social equity an explicit goal and add social equity …

Leveraging Twitter And Machine Learning For Real-Time Transit Network Evaluation, Xiaoyue Cathy Liu, Qian Zuo, Shenruoyang Na, Ran Wei, Aaron Golub, Liming Wang, Jake Davis

TREC Project Briefs

With today’s profusion of open data sources and real-time feeds, transit agencies have an unparalleled opportunity to leverage large amounts of data to improve transit service. Thanks to NITC researchers, there is now an open-source tool for that.

The new Social-Transportation Analytic Toolbox (STAT) for Transit Networks, developed by researchers at the University of Utah and Portland State University, is a dynamic platform that combines Twitter, general transit feed specification (GTFS), and census transportation planning products (CTPP)—in this case, job density data—to help agencies evaluate overall system performance and identify connectivity gaps. It can also act as a decision support …

Social-Transportation Analytic Toolbox (Stat) For Transit Networks, Xiaoyue Cathy Liu, Qian Zuo, Shenruoyang Na, Ran Wei, Aaron Golub, Liming Wang, Jake Davis

TREC Final Reports

This project builds an open-source, socio-transportation analytic (STAT) toolbox for public transit system planning in an effort to integrate social media and general transit feed specification (GTFS) data for transit agencies in evaluating and enhancing the performance of public transit systems. This toolbox is novel and essential to transit agencies in two aspects. First, it enables the integration, analysis and visualization of two major, new open transportation data, social media and GTFS data, to support transit decision-making. Second, it allows transit agencies to evaluate service network efficiency and access equity of transit systems in a cohesive manner, and identify areas …

Bicycle Planning Gis Tool, Joseph Broach

TREC Final Reports

Although currently only about one percent of US trips are done by bicycle, there is significant geographic variation. Differences across communities, along with much higher cycling rates observed in other places around the world, indicates large potential bicycling demand for daily travel in the US. In response, many communities are developing and implementing bicycle master plans that include a range of bikeway infrastructure aimed at making riding more appealing, including separated paths, protected (or separated) bike lanes, striped bike lanes, bicycle boulevards, sharrows, route signage, and intersection crossing aids. Given limited resources, planners and engineers need tools to estimate the …

Characterizing The Trip Generation Profiles Of Multifamily Housing, Kelly Clifton, Kristina M. Currans

TREC Final Reports

Cities are increasingly wanting to assess the impacts new development has on all modes in the transportation system. Many communities are requiring site-level transportation impact analysis to examine travel outcomes. The historical focus on developing data and methods exclusively for the automobile, such as the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) Trip Generation Handbook, has left planners with little guidance for these new challenges. This study aims to examine the limitations in the dominant approaches to understand how they may misguide the planning process for multifamily housing development. Specifically, we aim to examine the vehicle and person trip generation rates associated …

How Equitable Is The Education Finance System In New York State?, John Yinger

Center for Policy Research

This policy brief provides an overview and evaluation of the education finance system in New York State. The brief addresses four broad topics: student performance disparities in New York State, the nature of the New York State education finance system, the contributions of the New York foundation aid formula to educational equity, and the benefits to all taxpayers in New York State from education finance reform.

The Resilient City: A Platform For Informed Decision-Making Process, Jarutpong Vasuthanasub

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Theses & Dissertations

As over half of the world’s population lives in cities, the rapid growth in urbanization has made cities become more and more exposed and vulnerable to a broad spectrum of threats and hazards. In order to respond to such difficulties, a concept of resilience is considered a significant component for the long-term planning and sustainable development of cities. “Resilient City” is a new paradigm that challenges the idealistic principle of stability and resistance to change implicitly in sustainable development and long-term success. However, building a resilient city requires a holistic approach, as well as the appropriate adoption of knowledge and …

National Scan Of Bike Share Equity Programs: Approaches And Best Practices For Promoting Equity In Bike Share, Nathan Mcneil, John Macarthur, Joseph Broach, Austin Cummings, Rae-Leigh Stark, Rebecca Sanders, Adrian Witte

TREC Final Reports

As bike share systems around the United States have grown in number and size in recent years, there has been an increasing effort to ensure that those systems are accessible to all residents, particularly those who have the fewest resources or have been underserved in the past. The mobility landscape in 2019 is rapidly changing, with scooter and e-bike systems along with ride-hailing and ride-sharing companies contributing to a new and uncharted urban transportation scene. Meanwhile, bike share is still relatively new and changing quickly. In order to compete and excel in this changing landscape, particularly with regard to providing …

Pathways To Planning: A Field Guide For Long Range Planning, Sally Bernstein, Adrienne Chaille, Jake Davis, Theresa Huang, Rhey Haggerty, Emily Scott

Master of Urban and Regional Planning Workshop Projects

In 2017, the City of Monroe Planning Commission decided to update its Comprehensive Plan, last amended in 1986 and sought technical support. In addition to developing a Buildable Lands Inventory, Housing Needs Analysis, and Economic Assessment to support the comprehensive plan update process, Constellation Planning created a Field Guide as an interactive resource to be used for long range planning processes in Monroe, recognizing an opportunity to increase planning capacity.

The Field Guide includes educational appendices and usable worksheets that are intended for a diverse audience, including community members, commissioners, elected officials, city staff, planning partners, and consultants. Using a …

Municipal Diverging From “Bureaucracy:” A Case Study Of Organizational Image In Housing Services, Shawn T. Flanigan Ph.D.

Journal of Public Management & Social Policy

This article presents a case study of efforts of a workforce development unit within a local public housing authority to recraft its image as separate from the larger housing authority, in order to better attract participants to its optional supportive services. Using qualitative interview data with Section 8 voucher recipients and public housing authority staff, and descriptive quantitative data from a larger dataset, and drawing on theories of street-level bureaucracies and agency-client interactions, the case study finds that service recipients perceive the housing authority as a largely compliance-oriented organization that is overly bureaucratic, excessively regulating of private spheres of family …

Housing, Medicaid Expansion, And Cultural Competence In Policing And Public Service Delivery, Andrew Ewoh

Journal of Public Management & Social Policy

No abstract provided.

Small Towns With Big City Problems: Mobility Challenges And Solutions In Our Natural Areas, Danya Rumore, Philip Stoker, Zacharia Levine, Lindsey Romaniello

TREC Project Briefs

Western North America boasts an abundance of scenic mountains, ski areas, stunning desert landscapes and national parks. Living near these natural amenities are small communities, many of which are becoming increasingly popular places to live and visit. The influx of visitors creates unique transportation and mobility challenges for these small towns and cities, such as seasonal spikes in severe roadway congestion and a desire for e-bike share programs in communities of less than 1,000 people. These challenges often in turn affect community character and wellbeing.

Given their proximity to these impacted communities, NITC researchers Danya Rumore of the University of …

Defining And Measuring Equitable Access To Washington Park In Portland, Oregon, Marisa Zapata, Joseph Broach, Kara Boden, Qingyang Xie

TREC Final Reports

Explore Washington Park (EWP) is a 501c3 non-profit that serves as the Transportation Management Association for Washington Park. At 410 acres, Washington Park receives over 3 million visitors each year and is home to some of Portland’s most popular attractions including the International Rose Test Garden, Portland Japanese Garden, Oregon Zoo, Portland Children’s Museum, World Forestry, and Hoyt Arboretum. EWP, in partnership with Portland Parks & Recreation, provides transportation management and guest services to the park and its cultural institutions with the goal of decreasing the number of vehicle trips to the park. Since beginning its work in 2014, transit …

Land Value Tax Analysis: Simulating The Tax In Multnomah County, Peter Hulseman, Adam Rovang, Devin Bales, Hoang The Nguyen

Northwest Economic Research Center Publications and Reports

This report, produced with support from Common Ground OR-WA, examines the impacts of a land value tax system in Multnomah County through a two-step modeling process that first eliminates the tax policy that has caused market assessed value and real market value to diverge, and subsequently simulates a split-rate tax on a) land value and b) improvement value. The report is accopanied by a technical summary document.

Aesthetic Perception Of Urban Spaces: New York, Timur Pozhidaev

Theses and Dissertations

Aesthetic perception is an important field of interest in many aspects of everyday human life. It affects individual and social unconscious behavior and is strongly related to the decision-making processes in the human mind. The current study can serve as an important prototype for planning purposes and social and environmental justice among the regional units of New York City. With the current scientific sphere lacking a comprehensive methodology for assessing social superstructure, an aesthetic framework has the potential for success in evaluating the aspects of sustainable and resilient urban development.

Living Streets: A Pathway Toward Inclusive, Equitable, And Accessible Pedestrian Streets, Eavan Moore, Kevin Tracy, Jason Nolin, Zoie Wesenberg, Oscar Saucedo-Andrade, Kate Wihtol

Master of Urban and Regional Planning Workshop Projects

Since 2009, the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) has aimed to prioritize pedestrians above all other transportation modes. By putting pedestrians first, cities can improve outcomes for communities and transform streets into welcoming public spaces. Pedestrian streets help achieve this goal by reallocating space that was once dedicated to the movement and storage of cars to spaces for people to interact, socialize, and recreate. By developing a typology and an evaluation framework for pedestrian streets, this document attempts to answer the question, what could pedestrian streets look like in Portland’s Central City?

Planning In Gateway And Natural Amenity Region Communities: Understanding The Unique Challenges Associated With Transportation, Mobility, And Livability, Danya Rumore, Philip Stoker, Zacharia Levine, Lindsey Romaniello

TREC Final Reports

Communities outside of major public lands and other natural amenities throughout the western United States face a variety of transportation and planning-related concerns associated with rapid growth and increases in tourism. Surprisingly, while the unique transportation and planning-related challenges of these western gateway and amenity region (GNAR) communities have, to some extent, been documented in recreation and tourism research, these concerns have largely been overlooked in planning scholarship. To begin to address this gap, this report presents key descriptive findings from a study aimed at examining the unique transportation, mobility, and access to opportunity-related challenges being experienced by GNAR communities …

Income Inequality In Nevada And The Southwest Megapolitan Triangle, Yanneli Llamas, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown

Economic Development & Workforce

This Fact Sheet highlights income inequality in Nevada at both the county and metropolitan level. The Tables that follow report disparities in income across 16 Nevada counties, as well as 9 metropolitan areas in the state, as identified by the Economic Policy Institute. To offer a complete comparison, we also present income disparities between the components of the Southwest Megapolitan Triangle: Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV; Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA; and Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ.

Life-Space Mobility: How Transportation And Policy Can Support Aging In Place For Older Adults, Ivis Garcia Zambrana, Alan Kenneth Delatorre

TREC Project Briefs

Research on older adults frequently explores the notion of "aging in place"—providing older adults the opportunity to continue to live in their own homes and communities. However one’s ability to stay or leave, particularly in old age, often depends on the built environment. An accessible neighborhood that prioritizes mobility affords the ability to meet basic needs like goods, services, and social activities.

This life-space mobility is rarely applied in the field of urban planning and architecture. A NITC project led by Ivis Garcia Zambrana of the University of Utah and Alan DeLaTorre of Portland State University sought to operationalize this …

Can Ridehailing Deliver Equity? Lessons For New Mobility Planning, Anne Brown

PSU Transportation Seminars

Modes including ridehailing, bikeshare, and e-scooters offer the potential to revolutionize how people travel. But as cities and agencies work to integrate these new services into the existing transportation landscape, the equity implications of these modes remain murky.

This talk presents research on ridehail travel and equity from Los Angeles and compares the equity outcomes of ridehailing to the previous status quo embodied by taxis. The research highlights both the promise of new mobility services and the remaining obstacles to delivering equitable access. Findings yields implications for policies that cities and planners can advance to ensure that new travel modes …

Life-Space Mobility And Aging In Place, Ivis Garcia Zambrana, Alan Kenneth Delatorre, Ja Young Kim, Julianne Reno, Keith Diaz Moore, Jordan Pieper, Jason Wheeler, Nicole Zinnanti, Brenda Jose

TREC Final Reports

Research on older adults explores the notion of “aging in place”—providing older adults the opportunity to continue to occupy familiar surroundings, to live in their own homes and communities. But oftentimes one’s ability to stay or leave, particularly in old age, depends on the built environment. Mobility is the ability to meet the basic needs to access goods, activities, services, and social interactions as they relate to quality of life. Thus, mobility is essential to older adults due to their limited, or gradually reducing, physical and cognitive abilities. In transportation research, mobility is often regarded in terms of travel behavior …

Webinar: Engaging Youth To Choose Car-Free Mobility, Autumn Shafer

TREC Webinar Series

Today’s youth are tomorrow’s riders, bikers, walkers, voters, and transportation planners. As more transit agencies begin to offer free fare passes to public middle and high school students, it is important to have good communication strategy in place to encourage transit usage so they don't miss out on the potential to affect behavior change.

Thus, transit agencies need to develop age-appropriate messaging strategies and tactics that promote youth car-free mobility.

This webinar will present results from a NITC research project that sought to create and evaluate communication messaging that fosters more positive attitudes, intentions, and behaviors related to transit and …

Making The Seemingly Impossible Project Real Through Local Improvement Districts, Andrew H. Aebi

PSU Transportation Seminars

The planning process identifies community needs but often needs the creative use of financial leverage to make those projects a reality on the ground. Timing is important on Local Improvement District (LIDs), and the window of opportunity is often short.

For Portland's Bureau of Transportation, managing the public's desire for streets in good condition with room to walk and bike safely and accommodating freight movement and population growth can be a tall order. Add in the need to work with water, sewer and underground utilities, and things get complicated.

When needs exceed resources, smart strategies can help fill the gap. …