Highland Planning worked with Albany County, the Capital Region Transportation Council, and an interdisciplinary team to evaluate transportation corridor concepts along the Broadway/Route 32 corridor to enhance climate resiliency and multimodal access. The goal of the study was to identify and evaluate design concepts that expanded, enhanced, and connected transit, bicycle, and pedestrian infrastructure; increased the urban forest and tree cover; integrated green infrastructure treatments along the corridor to improve the resilience of transportation systems to future extreme weather events; and improved access to active transportation and quality public transit. Highland Planning conducted an inventory of all trees within the right-of-way of our 6.5 mile study corridor. The inventory collected tree species, diameter at breast height, and crown condition. We brought this inventory into the US Forest Service’s iTree application to quantify current urban forest diversity and ecosystem services as well as predict additional benefits that could be realized based on future tree planting. As part of our inventory, we also assessed physical constraints including presence of utilities, available space, and maintenance practices. Additonally, our team led public engagement, the development and evaluation of conceptual design alternatives, and the creation of an implementation plan with phasing recommendations and planning-level cost estimates.
The Broadway Study/Route 32 corridor is not only vulnerable to flooding and extreme heat, but it is also an important local northsouth corridor connecting the City of Albany, the Village of Menands, and the City of Watervliet. Importantly, the study corridor also carries a bus rapid transit line and serves many socially vulnerable communities. This Study now serves as a regional model for intermunicipal cooperation, the integration of natural systems into transportation corridors, and climate resiliency.
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