Planning for Pedestrians and Cyclists

Meeting the ambitious greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets that will be required to reduce, prevent, or delay catastrophic changes to the global climate will require a dramatic shift from motorized to active modes of transportation for urban travel. The purpose of this course is to prepare students to plan transportation infrastructure for a sustainable future by creating streets that are safe and comfortable for pedestrians and cyclists. Students will learn to evaluate the adequacy of streets to meet the needs of pedestrians and cyclists at the level of individual street segments and as connected networks. They will also learn to identify locations where infrastructure improvements are likely to have the greatest impact and to create conceptual designs for potential improvements. Students will develop and demonstrate these skills through the completion of a real project for a client in the greater Boston area.