INTERSTATE 105: DESIGN TEAM CONCEPTS /ABRIDGEMENT/

THE CALIFORNIA DIVISION OF HIGHWAYS BROUGHT TOGETHER A DESIGN TEAM TO IDENTIFY, ANALYZE, AND MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS ON OPPORTUNITIES TO INCREASE BENEFITS AND MINIMIZE DISRUPTIVE EFFECTS ON COMMUNITIES, NEIGHBORHOODS, AND SPECIFIC FACILITIES ADJACENT TO THE PROPOSED INTERSTATE 105, CENTURY FREEWAY. TIME AND TIME AGAIN THE DESIGN TEAM CAME TO UNBRIDGED GAPS SEPARATING THE ART OF FREEWAY PLANNING, WHICH IS WELL ADVANCED, FROM THAT OF FREEWAY-RELATED IMPLEMENTATION PROGRAMS AND LEGISLATIVE TOOLS, WHICH LAG FAR BEHIND. THE INTRODUCTION OF THE MULTIDISCIPLINARY CONSULTANTS INTO THE PROCESS, WHILE ADVANCING THE ART OF FREEWAY PLANNING, HAS SIMULTANEOUSLY TENDED TO RAISE THE LEVEL OF EXPECTATIONS AND, CONSEQUENTLY, FURTHER WIDEN THE GAP THAT ALREADY EXISTED BETWEEN WHAT CAN BE DONE AND WHAT SHOULD BE DONE. THE BASIC PROBLEMS AND OPPORTUNITIES ENCOUNTERED THROUGHOUT THE STUDY OF THE FREEWAY CORRIDOR HAD GREAT SIMILARITIES FROM ONE COMMUNITY TO ANOTHER. THE TREATMENT OF THE PROBLEMS AND THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE OPPORTUNITIES, HOWEVER, REQUIRED SOLUTIONS TAILORED TO EACH COMMUNITY'S OBJECTIVES AND PLANS. THE EXPERIENCE OF THIS DESIGN TEAM BROUGHT INTO QUESTION THE VALIDITY OF SOME WIDELY ACCEPTED BELIEFS ABOUT FREEWAY DEVELOPMENT. AMONG THESE WAS THE BELIEF THAT COMMUNITY BENEFITS AND COSTS CAN BE LUMPED TOGETHER AND BALANCED OFF. IT WAS FOUND THAT COST- BENEFIT TRADE-OFFS ARE EFFECTIVE ONLY IF THE BENEFITS ARE AT LEAST EQUAL TO THE COSTS AND IF THE BENEFITS GO TO THE SAME PERSON OR GROUP PAYING THE COSTS. EXPERIENCE ALSO SHOWED THAT REGIONAL COSTS-BENEFITS CANNOT REASONABLY BE TRADED OFF AGAINST LOCAL ONES, NOR COMMUNITY-WIDE ONES AGAINST INDIVIDUAL ONES. BY THE SAME TOKEN, LONG-RANGE COSTS AND BENEFITS ARE NOT ALWAYS BALANCED BY THEIR SHORT-RANGE OPPOSITES. THOSE IN THE PATH OF A FREEWAY ARE NOT INTERESTED IN LONG-RANGE BENEFITS PURCHASED AT THEIR SHORT-TERM EXPENSE. NOR DO NEIGHBORHOODS THAT WILL SUFFER FROM FREEWAY IMPACTS FIND PROMISES OF COMMUNITY-WIDE BENEFITS COMPELLING. TO BRING ABOUT ACTIVE AND CONSTRUCTIVE COMMUNITY INVOLVMENT REQUIRES THAT A LOCAL JURISDICTION BE VIEWED AS A COMPOSITE OF MANY INTEREST GROUPS RATHER THAT SEPARATELY AS A SINGLE ENTITY. IT WAS FOUND THAT THESE VARIOUS INTEREST GROUPS ARE NOT ALL AFFECTED TO THE SAME DEGREE BY THE FREEWAY AND ITS IMPACT. THE DESIGN TEAM CONCEPT, NO MATTER HOW SUCCESSFUL IN FULFILLING ITS OBJECTIVES, CANNOT BE CONSIDERED A PANACEA FOR ALL OF THE PROBLEMS ATTENDING FREEWAY DEVELOPMENT. THE SCALE CONSITING OF PROBLEMS AND OPPORTUNITIES AT ONE END AND RESOURCES AND TOOLS AT THE OTHER IS UNBALANCED AND LEANING TOWARD THE FORMER. FOR THE EFFORTS OF A DESIGN CONCEPT TEAM TO BE MOST EFFECTIVE, THERE MUST BE A BETTER BALANCE OF IMPLEMENTATION RESOURCES AND LEGISLATIVE TOOLS. /AUTHOR/

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    • Sponsored by Committee on Social, Economic, and Environmental Factors of Transportation. Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
  • Authors:
    • Graff, Donald
  • Publication Date: 1971

Media Info

  • Media Type: Digital/other
  • Pagination: pp 171-172
  • Monograph Title: Social, Economic, and Environmental Factors of Transportation
  • Serial:

Subject/Index Terms

Filing Info

  • Accession Number: 00200503
  • Record Type: Publication
  • ISBN: 0309019692
  • Files: TRIS, TRB
  • Created Date: Mar 7 1972 12:00AM