Hillsborough St.
1. Put Cars in Their Place
Hillsborough St. is very traffic centric. It is a major thoroughfare to downtown Raleigh and Cary. However, there are frequent traffic lights and an above average amount of crosswalks. This does go against Speck's advice of eliminating pedestrian zones because there are only very specific places pedestrians can walk on the street.
2. Mix the Uses
On the portion of Hillsborough St. that runs through campus there are no mixed use buildings, towards the downtown end there are more mixed use buildings, typically different businesses on different floors of a building, there are a few businesses with residences above them as well.
3. Get the Parking Right
Hillsborough St. is really bad when it comes to parking. There are odd parking lots behind stores with varying fees. There is also parallel parking along the street with a flat rate price and is free after a certain time. This is bad for walkability because it is free to park during prime time.
4. Let Transit Work
All of Raleigh's transit systems have at least one stop on Hillsborough St., there are very frequent stops on some lines that are well within walking distance of each other so in that sense the transit system actually discourages walkability. There is essentially a bus stop every half block so the routes are meant to convenience you no matter where you are rather than encourage walking. The large number of stops on this portion of Hillsborough also contributes to the large of amount of traffic congestion that can be found at pretty much any time.
5. Protect the Pedestrian
The vast amount of parallel parking on Hillsborough aids in protecting the pedestrian, large raised medians also prevent accidents involving driving in the wrong lane. However, the large number of traffic lights also encourage some drivers to speed down the street in order to make the lights which puts pedestrians at risk.
6. Welcome Bikes
Hillsborough St. is probably one of the least safe streets for bikes on campus, I see people commute through the University on bikes rather than using Hillsborough. The street is always teeming with traffic and the lanes are barely wide enough for buses to get through much less a bus and a bike with safe distances between the two. Some bikers even choose to use the sidewalk as their pathway which causes pedestrians to feel unsafe due to the speed of the bikers.
7. Shape the Spaces
Hillsborough St. seems very unorganized with regard to planning. It seems like the planning of the street was very unintentional. There is sporadic landscaping and a lack of sense of enclosure. The businesses located along Hillsborough don't offer much variety to the people who walk down the street. The only businesses located on the main drag are restaurants, a textbook store, and one boutique style store.
8. Plant Trees
Hillsborough St. has random placement of trees, some areas have quite a bit of trees while there are some stretches that have none. The area with the least amount of trees is also the area where there is the most foot traffic, contributing to the street looking old and rundown.
9. Make Friendly and Unique Faces
Hillsborough St. embodies everything that Speck says is poor architecture in terms of walkability. There are a lot of abandoned storefronts and others are poorly decorated. There is no interaction with the pedestrian and the buildings. Even though there are numerous restaurants located along Hillsborough the only one with outdoor is McDaids and even their setting is fenced off and doesn't extend into the sidewalk which goes against specs ideals of a walkable community.
10. Pick Your Winners
I think that given the revitalization plan for Hillsborough the City is picking its winners and making changes that will have optimal impact but at this date it doesn't seem like much has been invested in improving Hillsborough. Currently the only construction going on along Hillsborough is the construction of a new hotel and a recently deconstructed building. Right now, the construction of the new hotel will only add to the traffic congestion along the street, if improvements such as adding park-lets, diverting some of the traffic, and mixing the uses where to be put into place then this hotel could be a positive addition that would increase the economy of Hillsborough street.
Hillsborough St. is very traffic centric. It is a major thoroughfare to downtown Raleigh and Cary. However, there are frequent traffic lights and an above average amount of crosswalks. This does go against Speck's advice of eliminating pedestrian zones because there are only very specific places pedestrians can walk on the street.
2. Mix the Uses
On the portion of Hillsborough St. that runs through campus there are no mixed use buildings, towards the downtown end there are more mixed use buildings, typically different businesses on different floors of a building, there are a few businesses with residences above them as well.
3. Get the Parking Right
Hillsborough St. is really bad when it comes to parking. There are odd parking lots behind stores with varying fees. There is also parallel parking along the street with a flat rate price and is free after a certain time. This is bad for walkability because it is free to park during prime time.
4. Let Transit Work
All of Raleigh's transit systems have at least one stop on Hillsborough St., there are very frequent stops on some lines that are well within walking distance of each other so in that sense the transit system actually discourages walkability. There is essentially a bus stop every half block so the routes are meant to convenience you no matter where you are rather than encourage walking. The large number of stops on this portion of Hillsborough also contributes to the large of amount of traffic congestion that can be found at pretty much any time.
5. Protect the Pedestrian
The vast amount of parallel parking on Hillsborough aids in protecting the pedestrian, large raised medians also prevent accidents involving driving in the wrong lane. However, the large number of traffic lights also encourage some drivers to speed down the street in order to make the lights which puts pedestrians at risk.
6. Welcome Bikes
Hillsborough St. is probably one of the least safe streets for bikes on campus, I see people commute through the University on bikes rather than using Hillsborough. The street is always teeming with traffic and the lanes are barely wide enough for buses to get through much less a bus and a bike with safe distances between the two. Some bikers even choose to use the sidewalk as their pathway which causes pedestrians to feel unsafe due to the speed of the bikers.
7. Shape the Spaces
Hillsborough St. seems very unorganized with regard to planning. It seems like the planning of the street was very unintentional. There is sporadic landscaping and a lack of sense of enclosure. The businesses located along Hillsborough don't offer much variety to the people who walk down the street. The only businesses located on the main drag are restaurants, a textbook store, and one boutique style store.
8. Plant Trees
Hillsborough St. has random placement of trees, some areas have quite a bit of trees while there are some stretches that have none. The area with the least amount of trees is also the area where there is the most foot traffic, contributing to the street looking old and rundown.
9. Make Friendly and Unique Faces
Hillsborough St. embodies everything that Speck says is poor architecture in terms of walkability. There are a lot of abandoned storefronts and others are poorly decorated. There is no interaction with the pedestrian and the buildings. Even though there are numerous restaurants located along Hillsborough the only one with outdoor is McDaids and even their setting is fenced off and doesn't extend into the sidewalk which goes against specs ideals of a walkable community.
10. Pick Your Winners
I think that given the revitalization plan for Hillsborough the City is picking its winners and making changes that will have optimal impact but at this date it doesn't seem like much has been invested in improving Hillsborough. Currently the only construction going on along Hillsborough is the construction of a new hotel and a recently deconstructed building. Right now, the construction of the new hotel will only add to the traffic congestion along the street, if improvements such as adding park-lets, diverting some of the traffic, and mixing the uses where to be put into place then this hotel could be a positive addition that would increase the economy of Hillsborough street.
One positive aspect of the stretch of Hillsborough street along NC States campus is Packapalooza. Each year, during the start of the fall term, Hillsborough street is shut down to traffic and local vendors and many organizations from NC State set up tents and booths to get the word out about who/what they are. In addition, this is a great time for the businesses along Hillsborough to let people know that they are here and open for business. This weekend builds a great sense of community for those who attend NC State and live in and around Raleigh which could be an encouraging factor to get more people out and about in this part of Raleigh.