Disparate Approaches to Maintaining Roads and Sidewalks: An Interview Study of 16 U.S. Cities

America’s “crumbling roads” currently headline the infrastructure zeitgeist, but deteriorating sidewalks are also in desperate need. Sidewalks can be vibrant, social conduits in cities that, when safe and well-maintained, enhance public health and enable accessible passage for all residents, particularly the most vulnerable. The scant but burgeoning research on pedestrian infrastructure has largely focused on data collection technologies and spatial analysis. This research instead seeks to uncover the similarities and differences in how American cities treat their road versus sidewalk networks by asking: are these two indispensable assets of daily urban public life repaired, maintained, and funded disparately? The research was structured around interviews with employees of 16 U.S. cities about their road and sidewalk policies and procedures. We found multiple disparities between roads and sidewalks in and among American cities, including: municipality responsibility, repair timeliness, data availability, and condition assessment. We also discuss cities’ pressing concerns for these assets and directions for future research. The implications of this study could affect several themes across transportation infrastructure, including project prioritization, equity, and efficient government spending.

• Record URL:
  https://doi.org/10.1177/03611981221087239
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/03611981
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Peyton Jane Gibson https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5211-565X © National Academy of Sciences: Transportation Research Board 2022.
• Authors:
  • Jane Gibson, Peyton
  • 0000-0001-5211-565X
  • Marshall, Wesley E
  • 0000-0002-3106-7342
• Publication Date: 2022-9

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Web
• Features: References;
• Pagination: pp 553-567
• Serial:
  • Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board
  • Volume: 2676
  • Issue Number: 9
  • Publisher: Sage Publications, Incorporated
  • ISSN: 0361-1981
  • EISSN: 2169-4052
  • Serial URL: http://journals.sagepub.com/home/trr

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Asset management; Cities; Highways; Maintenance management; Pedestrian areas; Sidewalks
• Geographic Terms: United States
• Subject Areas: Highways; Maintenance and Preservation; Pedestrians and Bicyclists;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01844642
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS, TRB, ATRI
• Created Date: May 3 2022 11:30AM