Feb 2024
One of the best things cities can do is a road diet, where we judiciously reduce the lanes on a road in places where they are no longer needed.
In my city, we have a multitude of four lane roads which never even approach their capacity, amounting to tens of millions of dollars of tax money tied up in roads which never get used.
But these diets never seem to get done and are often met with political pushback. How can we get them done?
The word “diet” is a problem.
A diet is something I put off until next month. A diet means months of pain for an improvement that probably never comes. There’s a reason that healthy eating apps don’t use the word – It’s the four-letter word of self improvement.
Instead, let's call it a road rebalance. This makes sense...a rebalance is something I periodically need to do to my car to keep it running well...and I wouldn’t want my roads to be out of balance.
As people who want to see our community improve in walkability, it's important to cast a positive vision for that improvement, especially for people who currently never walk, jog, or ride a bike. The vast majority of people in our communities have no idea how much better their lives could be with more balanced transportation. They've simply never experienced a walkable neighborhood outside of Disney World or their college campus and it feels like an implausible dream.
When we – walkability advocates – communicate with the public, it's vital to help them understand why a road rebalance is beneficial for them, now.
The good news is that a road rebalance can help someone who has no intention of ever stepping foot on a sidewalk.
With fewer miles of maintained roads, we get...
A vote for a road rebalance is a vote for lower taxes and better roads.
I've never met anyone – even the most ardent car-enthusiast – who didn't want lower taxes and better roads.