“Abundant Access: Public Transit as an Instrument of Freedom” w/ Jarrett Walker

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Schedule

4:45 pm: Light appetizers & drinks w/ no host bar

5:30 – 6:45 pm: Presentation and Q & A

About the Program

Our community has questions about if, where and how to invest in EmX bus rapid transit and other transit enhancements. Join Better Eugene-Springfield Transit (BEST) and many local co-sponsors to learn how transit consultant Jarrett Walker has helped other communities determine what kind of transit system best fits their needs—and what might be done here in Lane County.

Jarrett Walker is one of the most innovative planners and advocates for public transit in North America today. He believes that transit can be simple, if we focus first on the underlying geometry that all transit technologies share, and that the forces that cause transit to succeed or fail often go unexamined in today’s transit debates. For architects, urban designers, housing and development professionals, transit is key to building successful cities, yet its essential task and the keys to its success are not always clear.

In this engaging presentation, Walker leads us beyond the distractions that sometimes dominate transit debates, and focuses on understanding public transit’s core power: to give people freedom and opportunity as a city grows denser. He will discuss many of the recent transit network studies he’s worked on around the world, including the huge redesign of Houston’s bus network implemented in 2015.

This program is part of the American Institute of Architects Southwestern Oregon’s Design Excellence Lecture Series and the LiveMove Speaker Series.

About Jarrett Walker

Walker is an international consultant in public transit network design and policy, with over 20 years of experience in projects across North America, Australia, and New Zealand. He is the president of Jarrett Walker + Associates in North America and also serves as Principal Consultant with MRCagney in Australia. He is a well-known innovator in the redesign of transit networks, in describing transit issues to the public, in building values-based policies and standards, and in running fun, interactive design processes for transit plans.

His book, Human Transit: How Clearer Thinking about Public Transit Can Enrich Our Communities and Our Lives, was published by Island Press. It offers an introduction to transit issues for the average reader, designed to help anyone form clearer views that reflect their own values. In addition to his consulting, teaching, and speaking, he writes about public transit issues on his blog, HumanTransit.org.

Walker has worked with many North American cities, including:

• Houston, TX: How Houston’s Bus Network Got Its Groove Back: A short documentary gets viewers up to speed on the system’s overnight transformation
• Raleigh, VA: How Jarrett Walker and Associates will show us the future of mass transit in Richmond
• Raleigh, NC: Raleigh: Four (or 36) alternatives for Wake County’s transit future
• Spokane, WA: Transit Expert Gets Spokane Leaders Moving
• Cleveland, OH: Planner Jarrett Walker equates transit with freedom, individual liberty
• Toronto, ON: Public Transit as an Instrument of Freedom
• Saskatoon, SK: Expert weighs in on Saskatoon transit plan

Sponsors

This program is proudly co-sponsored by these local organizations:

• AARP Oregon
• American Institute of Architects Southwestern Oregon (AIA-SWO)
• Architects Building Community (ABC)
• Better Eugene-Springfield Transit (BEST)
• Eugene Area Chamber of Commerce
• Land, Air, Water (at University of Oregon)
• League of Women Voters of Lane County
• LiveMove (at University of Oregon)
• Springfield Chamber of Commerce
• Walkable Eugene Citizens Advisory Network (WE CAN)