Urban Oasis: Guideways and Greenways in the Human Environment

Abstract

Fixed guideway systems must, of necessity, be associated with densities of development that are sufficiently high to justify their installation. Where private automobiles are dominant, however, high densities are typically identified with environmental blight and traffic congestion, which are, in turn, instrumental in the exodus of the population to outlying areas and away from public transport. Residential development is key to the greater use of public transit, since it is at the home that the majority of all kinds of trips begin or end, and for residential development, environmental considerations are paramount. A synthesis of four elements is advocated: new, basically residential pedestrian zones of high to medium densities, with abundant landscaping throughout each zone and with linkage to peripheral parking and regional transit via short-range automated people movers.