not fully discussed, there or elsewhere. In particular, recommendations regarding the enhancement of the City's "core," such as treating the area as a "bowl" and "gateway" (1965/85 Policies), must be evaluated against such an assumption. Route Studies It is extremely difficult to agree on standards by which to judge the aesthetic effects of freeways. For example, some people feel that their effects can be positive--adding open spaces, adding well-designed, unifying structures, removing blighted buildings, and stimulating renewal. Others claim any visible freeway, no matter how pleasingly designed, is bad, no matter what it replaces. Without attempting to settle this dispute, the review of studies indicates that in only three of the route studies has sufficient attention been given to aesthetics. The proposal to locate the South Leg in a tunnel resulted primarily from aesthetic concerns, as did the PAC recommendation for the North Leg. The Three Sisters Bridge report considered possible visual effects of different solutions. Many people have objected to the aesthetic effect of a major freeway on the Georgetown waterfront. Insufficient data was given in the studies on the Center and East Legs, apparently because freeways were seen as a way of inhibiting blight in declining neighborhoods. No consideration of aesthetics was reported in the Northeast route recommendations. Accident Rates and Travel Convenience (VI) General System Planning Documents The This impact went virtually untreated in the documents. single exception was the 1962 NCTA proposals, which expected the provision of commuter rail service to effect a decline in accident rates. It pointed the markedly lower rate of accidents on railroads as opposed to streets. Route Studies Only in the Northeast was an analysis of accident rates prepared. Two studies claimed, without discussion, that freeways would reduce accidents and improve convenience to users. Other studies made no mention of either consideration. Parking (VII) General System Planning Documents The documents (especially 1962 NCTA) considered parking needs in their recommended plans. It is less certain that the impacts, particularly on downtown parking, were fully treated in the 1959 MTS documents. The assumption was made in the latter plan that downtown parking is needed to maintain the present level of economic activity in the core area. This may be in conflict with certain ideas regarding the advantage of downtown subway transit expressed in the other documents. The 1959 MTS proposals suggested expansion of the core area to accommodate more parking; this appears to conflict with a number of policy statements in other documents recommending a more compact or stable core. Other policies do not appear to be in controversy-provision of station parking at transit stops, reduction of on-street and free parking downtown, On the whole, parking needs were not sufficiently considered. Route Studies All studies of routes failed to discuss parking needs adequately. Independent studies of parking have been done without regard for route alignment. It is not too significant, therefore, that no discussion appeared in the route studies. Only three studies mentioned parking at all, always in the context of enumerating the parking spaces taken for freeways. No recommendation or provision was ever made for replacement of spaces taken, nor was there any apparent discussion of the problems of accommodating automobiles at their destinations. Tax Base (VIII) General System Planning Documents There was little consideration of this impact in the documents with the exception of the 1962 NCTA proposals, which estimated total loss of assessed values, and consequently of property taxes, under the 1962 plan and the 1959 MTS. Route Studies It is customary in the route studies to claim that tax-base losses by direct takings are short-term and that they will be more than exceeded by the long-term gain in property values and improvements induced by the freeways. The studies (Northeast Freeway and Three Sisters Bridge) that explicitly consider both the direct and indirect effect are sufficient in our view. In the Center, North and East Leg studies, gross figures of land takings were calculated, but little regard was paid to relocation, longterm effects, available alternative sites, or freeway impact on remaining firms and properties. These studies do not sufficiently consider the effects of freeways on the City. Retail and Other Trade (IX) General System Planning Documents All of the materials appear to have assumed continued dominance of the Central Business District (CBD), yet all recognized a relative decline in its share of total retail sales in the region. No clear-cut spatial comparison of impacts upon retail trade appears to have been provided. A comparison of impacts upon total retail sales under the alternative plans proposed was made in the 1965 Cost Estimates, and no appreciable difference was noted. The 1959 MTS appears to accept a trend toward dispersal of business out from the center, whereas other proposals assume that a certain measure of control is possible. Though a shift outward has been recognized, its distribution remains in some doubt; public policy may have some effect in shaping these trends. A conflict seems to exist regarding the detrimental nature of car traffic downtown. This is certainly a question of degree, and is somewhat mixed with assumptions regarding accessibility. The 1962 NCTA proposals assumed that only public transit would improve accessibility significantly, and that only through this improvement will the CBD be able to hold its own in view of general trends. The 1965/85 Policies report noted the functional obsolescence of the CBD, although recognizing its continuing dominance. The Year 2000 Plan proposed the policy of "compacting" the outward dispersal of retail establishments into new "planned centers" on transit stops, together with new dispersed government centers in keeping with the radial-corridor concept. The Year 2000 Plan recommended holding or reducing the horizontal extension of the central area and an increase in floor area ratio (Note conflict mentioned in (VII) above). None of the documents considered the impact on tax revenues from retail sales. Route Studies Only two route studies have given adequate and sufficient consideration to retail and other kinds of trade-the Northeast and Three Sisters. The Inner Loop segment studies (North, South, East and Center Legs) have not raised this issue. The accuracy of some of the predictions contained in the studies is uncertain, but the range of error cannot be fully explored without more information. This might settle the question of what effect additional freeways have on downtown sales. It is clear some other kinds of trade are aided by more rapid highway transportation facilities, but none of the reports dealt with the question of how important such activities are to Washington. It is not enough merely to claim benefits to trade without viewing them in the larger context of the Metropolitan economy; in this sense not even the studies called "sufficient" meet this standard. Tourism (X) General System Planning Documents The 1962 NCTA proposals have treated this item only briefly. There, it was simply indicated that tourists would use the proposed subway; therefore it was recommended as useful to the visitor in Washington. No mention of benefits or impacts upon the convention industry occurred in the documents. Route Studies Only one route study considered highways in conjunction with the major monumental or other attractions of the city. The South Leg was of necessity concerned with this question. All others did not consider tourism in determining route locations. Migration of Business (XI) General System Planning Documents See "Retail and Other Trade (IX)." Route Studies Displacement of businesses out of the District has important effects on employment and tax base. It appears that very little consideration has been given to the effects of displacement of firms except in the Three Sisters Study. Most studies ignore the problems of finding alternative sites within the District by regarding displaced firms as small or local; others do not consider the problem at all. The large question of the total effect of improved access is not discussed. It would appear implicitly that some firms would find better space at lower cost outside the District; improving their access to the District could actually stimulate their relocation even if they are not physically displaced by the freeway. In none of the route studies was this question considered. Improved Access for Commerce, Public Safety and Emergencies (XII) General System Planning Documents Benefits from improved accessibility were claimed by all of the different proposals. The 1962 NCTA Plan appears to have been somewhat better documented. The marginal benefits from improved accessibility were particularly unclear in the 1959 MTS proposal. There is an inherent conflict between proposals on the amount of accessibility that should be provided throughout the region. The studies differ on the spatial extent and scale of the CBD and the effect of large numbers of cars downtown. The NCTA proposals claimed a saving in time and cost from rail commuter and rail-transit plans. The NCTA proposals assume higher demand for transit than the 1959 MTS; they further claimed that the 1959 MTS did not have a workable downtown distribution system; did not consider existing railroad rights-of-way, and assumed the highway system that was needed. The policy stated in the 1959 MTS Plan was to improve accessibility by routing traffic around rather than through neighborhoods. The 1965/85 Policies assumed that a transit system was necessary to achieve the desired form of regional development. The NCTA proposals stressed an underground system as essential to higher accessibility for jobs and shoppers--and that the system be built so that 77% of jobs are within 5 minutes walking distance of subway stops. The only mention of benefits to fire and police accessibility occurs in the 1965/85 Policies, where the policy of decentralizing police facilities and consolidating and regrouping fire stations to accord with freeway access was recommended. This subject was not treated elsewhere, nor was the subject of emergencies and military defense. In general, the policy that land uses should be arranged to minimize travel was agreed upon. |