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Global Street Design Guide Streets Neighborhood Streets Neighborhood Main Streets Example 3: 30 m
Global Street Design Guide Index

Global Street Design Guide

Example 3: 30 m

8.3.1_Neighborhood-Main-32m_after
8.3.1_Neighborhood-Main-32m_before

Existing Conditions

The illustration depicts a neighborhood main street with a very wide roadbed and unregulated parking on both sides. This street connects the outskirts with the city center, serving primarily as a vehicular thoroughfare.

Angled parking increases the turning radius at the intersection, encouraging fast turns and reducing visibility. Pedestrian crossings are not marked or signalized.

Motorists often fail to yield to pedestrian crossings. These conditions expose vulnerable users to conflicts.

Cars moving in and out of parking spaces block travel lanes and create dangerous conditions for cyclists. This is also a common cause of rear-end collisions.

Transit riders are forced to disembark into the road because parked cars block the bus from accessing the bus stop.

Sidewalks are inaccessible and often blocked or interrupted by parked cars, utility poles, street vendors, and other furnishings.

Some ground floor uses, such as loading, spill out onto the sidewalk, obstructing the clear path.


Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Charleston, USA

Design Guidance

Redesign the street to better serve the needs of all users. Protected cycle tracks, curb extensions, transit stops, and widened sidewalks distribute the space more equitably to encourage walking, cycling, and transit use.

Reduce the roadbed to one travel lane in each direction and convert angled parking into parallel parking.

 Allow transit vehicles to share the travel lanes with cars and provide island stops for fast, accessible boarding.

 Mark protected cycle tracks at conflict zones such as mid-block crossings, curb cuts, and through intersections.

 Alternate parking spaces with other services and uses such as refuge islands, sheltered transit stops, cycle-share stations, rain gardens, and wider loading bays for trucks.

Add a raised, mid-block crossing to increase permeability and support a safer pedestrian environment.

 Widen sidewalks to allow multiple activities to take place on the street without obstructing the clear path. Plant trees, install street furniture, and create an improved public realm that supports local businesses.

Install ramps and tactile strips to make sidewalks and crossings accessible.

 Adopt green infrastructure strategies, including rain gardens and permeable paving, to improve water management and reduce water stagnation in low-lying areas. See: Green Infrastructure.


Copenhagen, Denmark

Adapted by Global Street Design Guide published by Island Press.

References