Complete Streets: Promises and Proof

Abstract

The Complete Streets movement has been steadily gaining attention in the United States over the last 16 years. Adoption of policies that encourage street designers to consider the needs of all users—and not only automobile users—have become more widespread, with over 1,400 US jurisdictions formally embracing Complete Streets policies. The promised benefits of Complete Streets policies are far reaching, but rigorous studies proving these benefits are rare. This paper reviews the state of the practice of Complete Streets and some attempts to catalogue the outputs and outcomes of Complete Streets projects, and analyzes case studies to determine best practices.