As someone who cares about making our streets healthier and safer, I’m always on the lookout for innovative practices and strategies. And as a Hoosier, I’m always eager to highlight these things when they happen in Indiana. With that in mind, let me tell you about tactical urbanism in Indianapolis.
Tactical urbanism refers to low-cost, temporary changes to the built environment to make places safer and more user-friendly. The concept sometimes goes by other names such as quick-build projects, but the idea is that many of our transportation problems can be addressed with relatively simple interventions. These projects allow everyone (e.g., community members, government officials, elected leaders), to see what alternative designs look like and how they would work. They provide crucial real-world data and can often lead to long-term changes and improvements. These initiatives may come from communities themselves, government agencies, or ideally both working together.
There have been other instances of tactical urbanism in Indianapolis, but a new Indy Department of Public Works (DPW) program has the exciting potential to scale up across the city and reach neighborhoods that have traditionally been neglected. The new DPW tactical urbanism lending library is charting an innovative new path to empower communities and aims to eliminate a major obstacle for these types of projects–the cost of materials.
Although tactical urbanism projects are far more economical than permanent infrastructure changes, they are not without costs. Materials like paint, bollards, planters, and cones must be acquired and installed. If a community or organization wants to install a project, they typically must come up with the money themselves, often through grants or other fundraising. For many communities, this puts meaningful tactical urbanism projects out of reach. Recognizing this, Indy DPW is integrating the idea of sharing materials.
Indy DPW’s lending library program
Indianapolis communities that are interested in improving mobility and street safety can complete an application via an Indy DPW website. Indy DPW evaluates each application and determines which materials and strategies are the best fit. Depending on availability of resources, they will provide materials and expertise to selected communities. This involves physical objects such as temporary speed bumps, bollards, water barriers, traffic cones, paint and rollers, and more. They also help the community collect data before and after implementation (for example measuring car speed with radar guns, conducting traffic counts, and surveys to gauge perceptions of safety).
Communities will implement their projects and collect data for approximately one month, then evaluate the impacts. The inspiration for Indy DPW came from looking at other places that were doing similar things such as Kansas City. For Indy DPW, the logic is simple, according to Daniel Stevenson, Administrator of Strategy & Technology, “The people who know the neighborhoods the best are those that live there.” So the DPW works to empower and enable them to do as much of the work as they can themselves.
The initial round of applications for this exciting new program just closed on August 30th. Indy DPW received eight applications and plans to work with as many communities as possible to implement tactical urbanism projects. It is too early to report on results, but the enthusiasm and interest the department received is encouraging.
What success could look like: Indy DPW’s previous work with Community Heights
One community that has recently worked with Indy DPW to implement a tactical urbanism project is Community Heights–a residential post-WWII streetcar suburb in the east of the city. One street in the neighborhood,10th Street, was particularly dangerous. Cars frequently sped (and raced) along this wide street, causing approximately one crash every three days and creating a hostile environment for pedestrians, cyclists, and everyone else.
Residents from Community Heights and Irvington organized to make changes. Through grants and other fundraising, they raised $150,000 for traffic calming installations in the neighborhood. The 10th Street installation cost around $80,000. They worked with Indy DPW to install around 300 water barriers (eight feet long and 18-inch wide) and street trees in the center of the street and on the sides. Leslie Schulte, former leader of the Community Heights Neighborhood Organization, describes a great partnership with Indy DPW. She says she knew almost nothing about tactical urbanism at the beginning, but Indy DPW helped them find a strategy to meet their goals. They also provided training in other aspects such as conducting surveys and speed studies.
Following implementation, the average speeds for cars traveling on 10th street reduced significantly. The feeling of safety also improved according to survey data. Prior to the project, all groups (pedestrians, bicyclists, bus riders, and drivers) felt unsafe. However, following implementation, the majority of users of all modes felt safe. Furthermore, there were 73 percent fewer crashes on 10th Street following implementation compared to the same time the previous year. Of course a common question after a project like this is what will happen long term? Will the strategies be implemented on a long-term basis? On this, Indy DPW has included improvements to 10th Street in the department’s budget request. This means the strategies and improvements that community members worked hard to implement could become permanent.
Speaking about her experience working with Indy DPW and the potential benefits of the new lending library, Schulte said that the project made her community safer, quieter, and more comfortable for everyone. She encourages other communities to be bold. “Tactical urbanism projects can be transformative. It will change minds” she added.
The idea of sharing tactical urbanism materials is great from multiple perspectives. First, it can extend the useful life of the materials, which could reduce costs and waste for the Indy DPW. On the community side, by lending materials for free, the department can reach more communities, especially those that have limited resources and would struggle to raise money on their own.
Indy DPW plans to open the next round of applications in December 2024. Any community in Indianapolis that wants to pilot test an innovative strategy to improve transportation and safety should consider applying. Other cities and towns should consider replicating the lending library approach.