Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Excellent Feature on LOS Reform

LOS stands for Level Of Service. It's a metric that transportation and environmental planners use to evaluate the impact of new construction under CEQA (the California Environmental Quality Act). But it's a bad one, and LOS reform has become a buzzword among local transportation equity activists. I first heard about it from the SF Bay Guardian's Stephen T. Jones, and it's been gaining visibility as the transit advocacy community has diversified and become more robust in the Bay Area.

Well, Streetsblog has a great three-part feature post summarizing the history of this 'tool,' its faults, and options for abolishing it in the future. Check it out:

Paradise LOSt (Part I): How Long Will the City Keep Us Stuck in Our Cars?
Paradise LOSt (Part II): Turning Automobility on Its Head
Paradise LOSt (Part III): California’s Revolutionary Plan to Overhaul Transportation Analysis

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