Posts about Netherlands

A school bus is powered by the kids pedaling to get to school, and has a backup motor for when the kids aren't on board.

It's not the only pedal-powered bus, either. They've sold 25 of the $15,000 bus/bikes, thus far all in the Netherlands.

Meanwhile, BeyondDC recently linked to a 2009 UK Daily Mail article about a stroller (or "buggy" in British) called Taga which converts to and from a bicycle, so that a "yummy mummy" can "pedal to shops," getting exercise and saving "petrol," and then turn the unit back into a "pushchair" to walk around with the child.

We could use these here in the "States," too! In early 2010 it looked like these were coming to America, but now the Taga store locator webpage just says they are out of stock.

Did these turn out to be too expensive for a mass market? Can some major manufacturer get on this, work out a licensing deal, mass-produce some more cheaply and merchandise them at major baby stores?

TIMEMAPS lets you distort a map of the country based on how long it takes to reach any point from a starting location. It also animates how that map changes over the course of the day.

The animation begins at 1:23. Note how regions not accessible in the middle of the night become accessible as the animation gets toward the morning. Meanwhile, the map steadily shrinks, as transit options become more frequent into the daytime.

If someone did the same for a US city, it might be interesting to do the same for driving times, and see how space actually grows during rush periods, as more people traveling and more congestion makes places effectively farther away.

A similar site we've discussed before, the Travel Time Tube Map, similarly distorts the iconic London Underground diagram to reflect the actual time to reach each station from a chosen starting point.

The "national government's policy of building housing for poor people stacked all together, sociologically and culturally" has not worked, according to Ward 8 Councilmember Marion Barry, who was subdued as he addressed the group.

Originally settled by emancipated former slaves, Barry Farm is a hilly 25 acres that holds 432 public housing units, more than two dozen of which were boarded up on the recent walk through. The neighborhood was selected as one of four New Communities during Mayor Anthony Williams' administration, making it the focus of a proposed public-private development partnership. But Barry Farm activists rejected the Fenty administration's effort to begin the redevelopment process.

The first phase of the $550 million development plan is now underway. A total of 60 replacement units are planned to come online at Sheridan Station on Sheridan Road SE, and Matthews Memorial Terrace on Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue SE, within the next 6 months for Barry Farm residents.

Eventually each existing home will be replaced, with current residents of Barry Farm guaranteed the right to return, because "they have nowhere else to go," according to Bishop Matthew Hudson of Matthews Memorial Baptist Church. The redevelopment of Barry Farm is expected to deliver 1500 mixed-income units, according to Reyna Alorro, Project Manager for Barry Farm within the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development.

"Cities are continually interchangeable, because of the whole concept of cities changing," said Arie Vooburg. His native Rotterdam is similar to DC with its poor separated and "isolated on the southside" due to a waterway. "If you want to have a dynamic city, a city that can adapt to change, you must do it in a physical structure but also in its people."

"One of the biggest challenges is the training of our people," Hudson said. This past Sunday he welcomed members of the Consortium to his church. He praised the group and told members of his congregation they "are here to work with you, not for you." Barry Farm residents embraced the planners at church, giving them hugs, and greeted the planners with pats on the back as they toured the neighborhood on foot Monday.

"How do you say? Ah, yes, merry-go-round," said Vooburg. "Each program on its own is good, but together they don't work." The Consortium seeks to maximize the triple bottom line in redeveloping Barry Farm. To do this, there must be a human capital program, a physical revitalization plan, and a redevelopment and finance strategy that can withstand fluctuations in the credit market and changes in administrations.

These problems have undermined the redevelopment of not just public housing in the United States but "social housing" communities across the world. For new urbanism to evolve and succeed, there must be a degree of certainty in planning that is repellent to political or market pressures.

Behind the United Kingdom and Japan, the Netherlands is the third largest investor in the United States and fourth largest investor in DC with $350 million in total investment, said Renée Jones-Bos, the Dutch Ambassador to the US. The city is not paying the Consortium; it has paid its own way, offering its services and expertise in an attempt to establish stronger connections with the city.

It's also no coincidence that Portland is both America's top cycling city and home to our country's streetcar renaissance. The same city that most agree is the best urban cycling experience in the country is also home to the largest modern streetcar network.

To be sure, integrating bikes and streetcars takes a bit of extra planning. Amsterdam and Portland both have extensive bikeway networks so that mixing is less necessary. That extra planning is important, and is needed to build the sort of sustainable city that Portland, Amsterdam, and Washington aspire to be.

Nevertheless, the point is clear: Streetcars and bikes are not enemies. They work together all over the world, and they can work together here.

Cross-posted at BeyondDC.

Tip: Veronica Davis. GOOD LA writes,

Kim thinks that creating better environments for transit riders is certainly a missed opportunity for the city. "People wait for a while at these stops, 15 to 20 minutes," she says. "This is an opportunity for the city to engage them." Included in her growing ideas of creating "surreal, out-of-place" situations, is the idea of building exercise equipment at stops, so people could squeeze a few pull-ups in.

Sadly, she's got her work cut out for her, since most corners in L.A. offer the same ugly, uncomfortable bus benches, and not much else. "Many neighborhoods in L.A. still lack built features that stimulate the senses and elicit interest at pedestrian scale," she says. "Perhaps the coffee table filled that role momentarily."

This isn't the first time someone has tried making ordinarily utilitarian public spaces around transit facilities fun. Designers have added swings to bus stops or made stairways musical.

A Utrecht station installed a slide, which they call a "transfer accelerator," at a train station. Previously, Volkswagen had done the same, but more temporarily, in Berlin.

The MTA told Gothamist they're pretty sure New Yorkers won't be getting anything like this. Does any US city do more creative things with its public spaces beyond the rare creative bus stop? Can we ever surmount the risk of theft and fear of liability to make public spaces and transit facilities a little more engaging and enjoyable?

• Automatic Public Toilets (APT): These are self-cleaning units. The cleaning process takes about 50 seconds: the toilet bowl swivels and is disinfected. The floor of the unit is jet sprayed and the seat is dried with a big blower. Doors are times to open after 10 minutes to limit extended use.

  Many cities across the world use APTs, including Singapore, London, and Athens. Units are currently being tested in several US cities: Seattle, San Francisco, Boston, New York, San Antonio, Atlanta, San Diego, and Pittsburgh.

• Open Space Comfort Stations: This type of facility is typically a freestanding building with separate washrooms for men and women. Traditional comfort stations are made of bricks and mortar can still be found in historic sections of Portland, New Orleans, and Cincinnati. Instead of building a freestanding restroom from scratch, several companies now offer prefabricated "brick & mortar" restrooms. They are often the least expensive public restroom solution and are designed against vandalism.
  
  Women's restroom at MLK Library. Photo by Lynda Laughlin.
• Restrooms in Public Buildings: No doubt a number of us rely on bathrooms in publicly owned buildings such as libraries, museums, etc. I have more than once used the bathrooms at MLK library or the American Portrait Museum National Portrait Gallery largely because the access to other restrooms in the Chinatown area is largely limited to restaurants. However, access is generally limited and other public buildings such as court houses, police and fire stations typically restrict public access for security reasons.

  As an experiment, Portland, Oregon opened city hall to the public for 24 hours. The experiment produced mixed results. Many residents appreciated the increased access, but objected to the increased security costs relative to the low volume of users.

  
  Porta-potties. Photo by ghbrett.
• Portable Sanitation Units (PSUs): Using a porta-potty, porta-john, or a porta-loo is not what must of us would consider a satisfactory bathroom experience. Their main appeal is that they are low cost because they do not need to be connected to a sewer system and they are easy to install and move around at a moments notice. Many Washingtonians became more familiar with porta-potties back in January when 5,000 were placed along Pennsylvania Avenue and the National Mall for the Presidential Inauguration.

  However, porta-potties do not necessarily have to be restricted to large public events (or construction sites). PSUs are ideal for cyclists, walkers and joggers in park areas. It is rare to find PSUs in retail areas because of their unattractiveness and well, smell. In the Netherlands, in retail areas, four-urinal portable units are often used to meet restroom needs. My guess is that DC is not ready for such a public display of personal needs. Still, it's better than using the alley.

What's available in DC? What's possible?

In the District, public restroom options are limited. If you are at the National Mall, your best chance of finding a restroom is to pop into one of the many museums. There are free standing restroom facilities located on the west end of the National Mall maintained by the National Park Service.

Public restrooms are also available in a number of public parks across the District. However, safety and cleanliness are often a concern as well as the lack of access at certain hours and times of the year. The redeveloped public park at 14th and Girard, NW will include two freestanding restrooms, adding to the list of options besides in the area.

While I have yet to actually see one, there are about 78 restrooms in the Metro rail system. According the American Restroom Association, access to restrooms in Metro rail stations has been an ongoing battle. Citing security concerns, Metro has often kept restrooms in stations closed to customers. It wasn't until recently that Metro put up signs notifying customers that restrooms are available, but only upon request.

Another source of restrooms in the District is retail stores. The bathrooms at the Target in Columbia Heights are easy to access and usually clean. However, businesses typically restrict their restrooms to paying customers. In areas with heavy pedestrian traffic like Columbia Heights, Dupont Circle or Gallery Place, if restaurants and other businesses welcome one person to use their restroom they will most likely soon be welcoming everyone, creating a steady parade of people walking through to use the facilities and most likely creating an unpleasant atmosphere for customers.

Advocating for Public Restrooms

Planners should pay more attention to ways public restrooms can enhance urban livability. However planning for restrooms in public areas in most American cities has not received that attention that it deserves. PHLUSH, an advocacy group for public restrooms in Portland, Oregon has led the charge for public restrooms, increasing access to restrooms in downtown Portland as well as honoring local toilet innovators.

Advocating for more public restrooms can be tricky. People are often too embarrassed to report difficulties finding a restroom, even though it is a common problem for all of us. The increased availability of public restrooms would benefit property owners, retailers, social service providers, health officials, tourism boards, mass transit authorities, pedestrian and cycling advocates and downtown workers and residents, it's just a matter of getting all them all to realize that public toilets are in their own best interest.

As residents of the District, it is time that we reflect on our shared need for comfort and dignity and think of practical ways to improve access to and availability of public restrooms.