The Rethinking Streets guidebook series have been used by hundreds of practitioners across the country. The latest in the series, Rethinking Streets for Physical Distancing, looks at how we use our streetscapes for community connection, placemaking, or active transportation and public health while navigating the restrictions of COVID-19 pandemic. The book offers 25 case studies from a broad swath of U.S. cities with a handful of international examples of streets that were redesigned to better accommodate people during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Re-allocating space on streets to accommodate new uses – particularly for walking, biking, and being – is not new. However, COVID-era needs have accelerated the process that most communities use to make such street transitions. Over the course of 2020, many communities quickly understood that the street is actually a public place and a public good that serves broader public needs – needs that may be more urgent than the free flow or the storage of private vehicles. This guidebook from University of Oregon looks at some of these quick changes to city streets and demonstrates how the street – a public resource – can be used differently and change can be implemented quickly. The book is divided into five sections looking at bikeways, slow streets, streets for dining, public promenades, and flexing the curb space.

Learn more and download the Rethinking Streets for Physical Distancing led by Marc Schlossberg of University of Oregon.