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“Seventy years of a car-only approach—not car-centric, it’s
car-only—is actually not just non-driver hostile, it’s driver
hostile. No one benefits.” —Beth Osborne, Director,
Transportation for America The car-only approach in transportation
planning and engineering has led to the construction of roadways
that have torn apart and devalued communities, especially Black and
Brown communities. Forging a new path to repair this damage
requires a community solutions-based approach to planning,
designing, and building our roadways. When Lynn Peterson began
working as a transportation engineer, she was taught to evaluate
roadway projects based only on metrics related to driver safety,
allowable speed for the highest number of cars, project schedule,
and budget. Involving the community and collaborating with peers
were never part of the discussion. Today, Peterson is a recognized
leader in transportation planning and engineering, known for her
approach that is rooted in racial equity, guided by a process of
community engagement, and includes collaboration with other
professionals. In Roadways for People, Lynn Peterson draws from her
personal experience and interviews with leaders in the field to
showcase new possibilities within transportation engineering and
planning. She incorporated a community-solutions based approach in
her work at Metro, TriMet, and while running the Washington State
Department of Transportation, where she played an instrumental role
in the largest transportation bill in that state’s history. The
community solutions-based approach moves away from the narrow
standards of traditional transportation design and focuses instead
on a process that involves consistent feedback, learning loops, and
meaningful and regular community engagement. This approach seeks to
address the transportation needs of the most historically
marginalized members of the community. Roadways for People is
written to empower professionals and policymakers to create
transportation solutions that serve people rather than cars.
Examples across the U.S.—from Portland, Oregon to Baltimore,
Maryland—show what is possible with a community-centered
approach. As traditional highway expansions are put on pause around
the country, professionals and policymakers have an opportunity to
move forward with a better approach. Peterson shows them how.
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