Subdivision guidelines and standards for residential streets and their impact on suburban neighborhoods

Current interest in reassessing the physical form of the American suburb is heightening awareness of the impacts of street design. This research investigates social and physical issues resulting from adherence to strict subdivision guidelines and standards for residential streets. The first part investigates the historical and theoretical processes of traffic regulations and street standard development through a review of professional and technical publications. Five periods of historical shifts in the development of suburban street standards are identified. Each period is viewed through the incentives that shaped it and its significance to present street forms. The second part examines, through a nation-wide survey, existing residential street standards required by various cities. In addition traffic problems associated with residential streets and their mitigation through management programs were also surveyed. The third part of the research compares the relationship between physical street design and livability of residential sites in California. It specifically analyzes residents' perceived sense of traffic safety, street livability, and preferences of neighborhood and street layout. It also reviews both the nature and location of accident counts. Findings show that most cities are still adhering to street standards recommended by professional and federal organizations. Although some officials see the need to amend certain aspects of their regulations, most believe that the current practice is satisfactory. In contrast, the extent of residents' complaints about traffic problems on their streets indicates a conflict between the professionals' view, as manifested in street design, and the streets' actual performance. The study also indicates that cul-de-sac street patterns perform better than grids and loops in regard to traffic safety, privacy, and as an area for safe play, yet they do not necessarily promote a stronger sense of neighborhood than do through streets. This suggests a desire for a neighborhood pattern where residents attain the clustering qualities associated with a dead-end street in the immediate surroundings, and the connective qualities of the grid in a larger context of the neighborhood. The changing of street standards within the regular planning framework seems currently improbable. The only promising venue for modification can be found in the private street domain.