Sustainable Manhattan 2050: master plan and multimodal transportation system

Abstract

Transportation is both the skeletal structure and the circulatory system of a city. It is the foundation upon which all development happens. Currently, Manhattan’s transportation options are centered on the tyranny of the automobile; its development options are based on the suburban result. Progress in Manhattan’s future will depend on having a transportation system that can weather the storm of peak oil and provide expanded travel options. The master plan provides for densification within an urban growth boundary, to help support the emergence of a finely-grained multimodal transportation system. The system, centered on a new “Union Station” transit hub near the original Union Pacific Depot, will include buses, streetcars, intercity rail, and bicycles. Citizens of the future Manhattan will be able to walk or bike to the nearest transit stop, and seamlessly travel from any point in the city to any other, and connect to interurban streetcars to Keats and Riley, or Ogden and Junction City, or intercity rail to places such as Kansas City, Denver, and beyond. Moving people will only be one part of the equation, however. The master plan will also include locating a regional intermodal freight facility with easy hybrid or electrically powered truck access to the denser core of the city. The interurban streetcar lines will be fundamental in bringing the agricultural bounty of outlying Eco-Villages into the city for consumption and processing. With a sustainable, low-energy and varied transport system in place, Manhattan will continue to be a prospering and growing city to 2050 and beyond.