Before + After Street Designs on CityLab

Urb-i / Daum Maps

CityLab featuresd a remarkable new photo archive of urban street transformations by Brazilian urban design collective Urb-i.  These before-and-after street design collections directly relate to a great streets research project Rowell Brokaw has been a part of over the past few years through its Student Research Program, (a program which funds two University of Oregon graduate students per term to conduct research of the built environment related to practice). 

Rowell Brokaw principal John Rowell was one of four UO faculty members and students who collaborated on a book about transforming streets that were originally designed more to accommodate motor vehicles rather than pedestrians and bicyclists. This publication, Rethinking Streets: An Evidence-Based Guide to 25 Complete Street Transformations, documents twenty-five case studies from around the country that helped facilitate more walking, biking, and transit use while enhancing commercial activity, with minimal to no negative impact on automobile access. This book uses evidence from completed street projects from around the United States in order to help communities imagine alternative futures for their streets. The book does not show hypothetical street re-designs, but actual examples from typical communities to show how they did what they did and see what resulted from the change.