The Federal Reserve & Locust Street

A street grid can be very effective at moving people on foot, bike car or even wheelchair. But then traffic engineers were let lose on the grid and in cities all over the country the grid has been butchered beyond recognition. We’ve got one-way streets and closed streets everywhere which forces many onto just a few roads.

Pedestrians are generally allowed to continue in the path of the old grid unless a big building was built where the street used to exist, such as the convention center. Often streets were taken with the intent of constructing an “urban Oasis” – a pedestrian mall. When you’ve got hundreds and even thousands of pedestrians passing a single point in an hour then turning over the entire right of way to them can make sense. Otherwise it simply makes the pedestrian feel more isolated.

The Federal Reserve of St Louis is finishing up a major expansion to their facility in downtown St Louis. Earlier in the project they turn Locust Street from 4th to Broadway (5th) into a block-long pedestrian mall which enabled the to expand their entry and very likely better secure the facility. All in all the space is well done with good lighting, nice plantings, and plenty of seating.

Yesterday I was driving North on 4th and wanted to make a left and head West to my place at 16th & Locust. Obviously Locust would be a logical choice. Or would have been. My choices were then Pine or Washington. Decades ago I would have had twice that many choices. I picked Washington.

This is not the first time this one-block closure has gotten under my skin.

I guess someone forgot to tell the Federal Reserve about the ADA? Let’s see, I could go right and up onto the sidewalk at the parking garage exit. Hmmm, that doesn’t sound like the safest option. What about crossing from the other side of Locust?

So instead of multiple options a single truck has taken away my only place to cross the street on this block.
I was forced to go to the next block South to cross Broadway. Had the Federal Reserve designed the mall to be more accessible the truck blocking one ramp still would have left me another to use.

The street closure and the provision of only one ramp have the same effect — forcing people to go around what should be a normal straight shot.

Of course someone will come along and recognize the next block of Locust to the West (Broadway to 6th) gets very little traffic. This is because the only cars that can use that block are those headed South on Broadway. Once you go around to the next through street it is just easier to stay on that street. So closing one little block impacts adjacent blocks as well — increasing traffic on some while reducing traffic on others.

Personally I’d never close another street or alley in the city. But when we do we need to keep access for all on both sides of the street in an effort to afford the maximum benefit for the wheeled pedestrian. This includes the young ones seen more often being pushed in strollers downtown.