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A “complete street” is one that “safely accommodate pedestrians, bicyclists, transit, trucks and cars,” says Transportation Alternatives, and we don’t have many of them. So they challenged folks in their competition “Designing the 21st Century Street” to reinvent the corner of 9th Street and 4th Avenue, “a crossing that exemplifies car-first design by encouraging speeding and reckless driving while all but ignoring the walking and biking environment.” The result: over 100 submissions from 13 countries, and these three winners. “Shared Space” by Steven Miller of Somerville, MA, with a big ole bike lane and adequate bike parking; “Streets for Everyone” by Rogers Marvel Architects of NYC, which seems to have an express and local lane of traffic, interrupted by a plant-filled boardwalk; and “Streets Come Alive” by team LEVON, Philadelphia, PA, which turns the median strip into a park (notice only one car rumbles down 4th in this picture).


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  1. SnarkSlope, I missed that; I was too distracted by the pimpmobile to the left of the faceless guy on the bike and the poor stroke victim to his right.

    But when did they invent see-through fruit stands and cars as shown in rendering #3?

  2. I was hoping for a mixed race gay couple. Biff you can try for those two women in the foreground with their backs to us.

    I guess this is the point where the thread has been hijacked. I think BRG started it.

  3. The lack of helmets is certainly disturbing, but will somebody please get some faces for those poor people in rendering #1?

    I’ll go ahead and third the ocean parkway recreation comment.

  4. How about the guy on the bike in the last picture on the far left with one child riding on the handlebars and another on the back; none with helmets? Someone please call the Children’s Aid Society!

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