Jackson Heights Neighborhood Transportation Study, New York City: New Approach in Community-Based Planning

Abstract

The comprehensive Jackson Heights Neighborhood Transportation Study addressed the safety and mobility of pedestrians, transit, and vehicles, as well as quality of life issues in Jackson Heights, Queens, New York. The study was a community-driven process that saw the implementation (1 year within the year of the study's completion) of short-term problem-solving transportation treatments such as simplifying intersection layouts, reversing travel directions, and improving pedestrian crossings. The study continually reinforced a commitment to the neighborhood by monitoring these treatments and making adjustments as necessary. This paper describes how that approach invigorated the traditional elements of a transportation study by lending gravity and immediacy to data collection, development of improvements, and public outreach. New strategies were used to keep all stakeholders, including the New York City Department of Transportation, other transportation agencies, elected officials, and the community at large informed and involved. The study demonstrated that typically controversial changes such as street closures and performance-based parking pricing for vehicles and trucks were feasible if the community understood the issues to be addressed and was involved in the development of solutions.