Landscape Architecture has great breadth as a design profession, with significant impacts on communities and quality of life. Alta’s design group includes a collaborative team of landscape architects and landscape designers who understand that truly successful projects are a reflection of their communities. As landscape architects, we have the instincts to shore up the attributes […]
Well-crafted wayfinding systems encourage people walking and bicycling to go that extra mile, explore new areas, and foster a sense of place. Wayfinding systems can also encourage increased rates of active transportation by creating a clear and attractive network that is easy to understand and navigate. Places that are arranged intuitively so that we can […]
Rethinking Streets by Lisa Nisenson and Kate Whitfield This post is adapted from our original article for the Ontario Professional Planners Institute’s Ontario Planning Journal — “Integrating Resilience Within Planning”: Technology is already changing mobility in our communities. Emerging technology, especially autonomous vehicles, is expected to radically change systems, vehicles, employment, and investment decisions. Like any change, […]
Despite being used successfully for decades in Europe, Advisory Bike Lanes (also known as advisory shoulders), are an emerging facility type in North America and can be an effective tool for communities to provide bicycle lanes on streets that are otherwise too narrow to accommodate them. Alta’s Innovation Lab has produced a white paper that […]
All Ages and Abilities Crossing of a Major Arterial from Atlanta Regional Commission Bike to Ride. Creating a Low Stress Bicycle Network We like to think that all people could potentially become bicyclists. A bicycle network will attract a large portion of the population if it is designed to reduce stress associated with potential motor vehicle conflicts […]
Improving our communities for active transportation requires change. This change must occur at a political level, continue to be supported at the staff level, and be accepted by the public in order to achieve success. This change is frightening for many as it represents extra effort, unknown consequences, and fears of liability, and it requires […]
Photo credit: City of Fort Collins By Joe Gilpin and Tom Natwick, Alta Planning + Design How do cities better serve residents in providing bikeways that will appeal to a wider spectrum of their residents, be safer and induce more use? The vast majority of bicycle involved crashes occur at intersections along collector and arterial streets; […]
If you visit downtown Durham, you will hear the sounds of a booming place, with high-rises under construction and the occasional train that continues through to Raleigh or Charlotte. In the summer, you will hear the cheer of the Durham Bulls crowd. Walk into the 110-year old building at E. Chapel Hill Street and you […]
Alta and University of Washington Students Collaborate on a Health Impact Assessment By Chris Saleeba and Cailin Henley, Alta Planning + Design Wide lanes, fast cars, anxiety-inducing street noise, expansive parking lots and unsafe crossings afflict the 1.25 mile Commercial Avenue south of Anacortes, WA, a small coastal city north of Seattle. To improve safety […]
By Katie Mangle, Principal, Alta Planning + Design The City of Portland’s newly adopted Comprehensive Plan includes the six-mile Green Loop as part of the armature for the tremendous growth the City anticipates in the next 20 years. In response to the University of Oregon’s John Yeon Center for Architecture’s Loop PDX design competition, Alta […]
