Gravel > a short lesson from Munich
(research. work.) For me, every work trip and family vacation becomes a field investigation into how people live and the physical conditions that make their best lives possible – or impossible. This […]
FAQ > “how are we supposed to walk to brunch?”
(faq.) “Can’t people disagree with you?” I’m answering those and all your top questions about transit and the Atlanta Beltline to the best of my ability. The purpose of this […]
Gravel > there’s something MAGA about this new anti-transit group
This post has been deleted. For a more constructive response, please see FAQ > “how are we supposed to walk to brunch?”
FAQ > “how do we ensure Beltline transit delivers?”
Q: Now that it looks like Beltline transit might finally happen, how do we make sure it delivers on its promise? A: (faq.) If there was no transit planned for […]
ABC > “It won’t really work without it.”
(press.research) In “Charlotte Rail-Trail gives glimpse of Atlanta BeltLine’s potential,” the Atlanta Business Chronicle’s Tyler Wilkins pitches a trip to Charlotte for all the doubters to get a glimpse of what Beltline transit is capable of. The success of their light rail in building a more sustainable future is news […]
Gravel > Six Things I Hate About This Town
(ideas.work.) Thanks in advance for forgiving this six-minute vent. It’s been a rough few years for me personally and I’m working through my shit. > Ryan Gravel The Atlanta Beltline […]
FAQ > “are you giving up on transit?”
Q: The SSD prioritizes the Beltline’s trail – are you giving up on transit? (faq.press.) A: Back in January, I wrote an op-ed in the AJC supporting the SSD, […]
WABE > transit week
(press.) It was transit week and WABE’s Rose Scott was out on the Atlanta Beltline for a special edition of A Closer Look called “From The Northside Trail To The […]
WFAE > “yes in my back yard”
[press.] Charlotte’s NPR Station came searching for YIMBY advocates – Yes In My Back Yard – people fighting FOR density in their community as a critical approach to addressing the escalating costs of housing. David Boraks found some YIMBYs planning the future of Hulsey Yard on the Atlanta Beltline. “Finding […]
Atlanta Business Chronicle > “Gravel [called] it a sham.”
(press.) It’s a time-tested strategy to make sure community engagement delivers the recommendations you want. MARTA’s project evaluation, handful of meetings, and unscientific online survey were designed to do exactly that, and it worked. Amy Wenk captured my initial reaction in this story for the Atlanta Business Chronicle: “As vote […]
FAQ > “does transit fit?”
Q: It looks too tight – how does transit even fit on the Atlanta Beltline? (faq.) A: Transit has always been central to this concept. In most places, transit is […]
Reporter Newspapers > “Another reason Buckhead Beltline rail matters”
[press.] People talk about the Atlanta Beltline like it’s a single project impacting a single community – but it’s a much larger project than that. The Atlanta Beltline’s northside stands […]
Gravel > Beltline Means Business.
This article was first posted as an op-ed in the Atlanta Business Chronicle: Ryan Gravel Viewpoint: Speak up now if you want transit on all of the Beltline (ideas.) I travel all over the world to talk about the Atlanta Beltline. From Singapore to Sandy Springs, the broad vision that frames […]
Gravel > Connect-The-Dots Transportation Planning Will Not Work.
(ideas.) With advance apologies and love for my hard-working brothers and sisters in transportation planning, the more I look at the More MARTA plan, the madder and sicker I get. […]
Gravel > Two Thirds Not Served.
(ideas.) This was never the plan, but two thirds of the Beltline may forever move forward without transit. That’s because MARTA is only committed to one third of the long-promised […]
FAQ > “how does Beltline transit advance equity?”
Q: How does transit on the Atlanta Beltline advance equity in Atlanta communities? (faq. ideas.) This is the question that frustrates me the most. For the physical project to be […]
Gravel > Our Moral Imperative.
(ideas.) Dear City Hall, Dear MARTA. Dear decision makers, dear agency staffers, dear community organizers, dear ordinary citizens who may not have been around when we got started in 2001. […]
FAQ > “what do you think about the More MARTA plan?”
Q: What do you think about the More MARTA plan? (faq.) A year and a half after the November 2016 referendum, MARTA released its draft plan for how to spend $2.5 billion of City of Atlanta taxpayer money on transit – a plan dubbed “More MARTA.” I guess since I was […]
Gravel > Beltline Call to Action
(ideas.) This call isn’t only about transit. It’s a much wider call-to-action because without transit – soon and urgently – we won’t get the Beltline we’ve been talking about all […]
FAQ > “can you remind me the history of Beltline transit?”
Q: Can you remind me the history of transit on the Atlanta Beltline? (faq.) Our collective memory of the Atlanta Beltline’s story is important – especially regarding its more […]
Gravel > A New Threat to Beltline Transit.
(ideas.) Maybe I shouldn’t be surprised that we need to make our case for transit again, but I am. Honestly – we’ve been putting colored dots on maps, hand-writing community […]
FAQ > “why not just put BRT on the Beltline?”
Q: Why not just put BRT on the Atlanta Beltline? Wouldn’t that be cheaper? (faq.) Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) is a high-capacity mode of transit that employs many train-like features to improve service efficiency and passenger experience. These include traffic signal priority, off-board fare collection, multiple-door boarding, platform-level boarding, […]
Gravel (live on the TED stage) > We Are the Lives That We’re Talking About.
(ideas.) Here’s the TED talk I did in New York in October 2016. > “When we look today in wonder and disgust at the metropolis sprawled before us, we wonder […]
Gravel > Vote down-ballot for Atlanta transit – literally – all the way down at the end.
UPDATE > GREAT NEWS! Both ballot referenda passed on election day. While there remains a lot of uncertainty about our national politics, at least locally we will have solid resources […]
BOOK LAUNCH SAVE-THE-DATE & LINKS TO BUY MY BOOK.
(work.) We’re counting down the days. After many years, “Where We Want to Live – Reclaiming Infrastructure for a New Generation of Cities,” launches March 15! Your first chance to get a signed copy is at the launch event the very next day. On MARCH 16 at 7:00 pm, A […]
Gravel > “I learned how to be a pedestrian.”
(ideas.) This text first appeared as a letter in the Terminus issue of Art Papers, (January/February 2016), for which I was a guest co-editor. The original, along with a letter by Art Papers Editor and Artistic Director Victoria Camblin, can be found here. Also check out the entire Terminus issue […]
City-Stitching with the ERC.
(research.) Deb Eddy came to town in the summer of 2015 just to check out the Atlanta Beltline. By her account she was inspired – and she went home to […]
Blast from the Past.
(videos.) A few weeks ago, as I was digging through a decade and a half of Atlanta Beltline memories, I came across a digital memory of our early movement in […]
Coca Cola Journey > “messing with people’s expectations.”
(press.) Our story is recounted for Coca-Cola’s internal media, “Inside the Beltline: How a Grad School Thesis Became an Engine for Urban Revitalization and Economic Growth in Atlanta,” by Jay Croft. Excerpt: “Atlanta prides itself on being known as the home of Martin Luther King, Jr., the 1996 Olympic Games […]
USA Today > “on the verge of a renaissance.”
(press.) Nice article by OZY writer Sanjena Sathian – USA Today picked up her story, “The transit makeover of Atlanta” at the close of 2014. Excerpt: “Everyone, from my mother to the mayor to environmentalists to the White House, proclaims that this unlikely city, with its long history of segregation […]
Georgia Trend Magazine > “the small sights stick in your mind.”
(press.) In its December 2014 cover story, “Unbroken Circle” by Susan Percy, the case is made for the Atlanta Beltline as “a unifying force, built on the very railroads that […]
Gravel > Learning From Sprawl
(idea.videos.) Here’s a short video (00:03:04) that my colleagues and I put together called “Learning From Sprawl.” It explores the cultural motivations for today’s sprawl, then connects the dots to […]
Gravel > “Our 22-Mile Thanksgiving Table.”
(ideas.) With the undeniable success of the Atlanta Beltline’s Eastside Trail and this November’s groundbreaking of the long-anticipated Westside Trail, we have much to be thankful for. Of course behind […]
Gravel > “if we learn to see equity as our goal…”
(ideas.) This text first appeared in ideas+buildings. “Equity Through Sports + Art: A Design Dialogue in Atlanta.” Read the whole thing here and watch short video of excerpts from the event. Excerpt: “I think this kind of thoughtful and inclusive transition toward a better decision-making process – beyond just sports […]
FAQ > “why is everybody going in circles?”
Q: Where is everybody going? Where’s the there there? (faq.) A: Some people seem to always be missing the point with the Atlanta Beltline. That’s fine, I guess. It […]
AJC Atlanta Forward > “one of the boldest public health experiments.”
(press.) Nice perspective on the role of the Atlanta Beltline in rethinking the relationship between our health and the world around us. Author Michael Eriksen is the Dean of the School of Public Health at Georgia State University. He wrote this for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Atlanta Forward blog, “Project provides civic […]
FAQ > “is transit so important?”
Q: Is transit really necessary? With so many people crowding the trail, why don’t we forget transit and just widen the trail? (faq.) A: This common question has at least […]
Spacing > “we should consider these projects from a city systems perspective.”
(press.) Insightful story by Claire Nelischer of the Centre for City Ecology in Spacing. Link: “The Atlanta BeltLine: Catalyst infrastructure and city systems.” Excerpt: “The positive impact of parks investments […]
Riding the Railpath
(research.) I joined the bikeshare in Toronto and made a beeline for the first phase of the West Toronto Railpath, a multi-use trail alongside active railroad tracks just west of the center city. It was cool to see commuter trains passing and then discover a new station under construction along […]
Sweet Sugar House
(research.videos.) I was in Salt Lake City to speak at the Public Interest Design Institute and took a couple of hours to check out a section of the old Denver […]
Atlantic Cities > “it was something they could fight for instead of against.”
(press.) Great update by Rebecca Burns in Atlantic Cities. Link: “Can Atlanta Go All In on the BeltLine?” Excerpt: “I was immediately taken by it; not because I am brilliant but because Ryan’s idea was brilliant,” recalls Woolard. At the time, constituents would call her “constantly” to complain about the […]
Sidewalk Radio > “not a museum, not a theme park.”
(press.) My friend Gene Kansas invited me to his studio at Sidewalk Radio in 2012 to talk about the future of “Sweet Auburn” Avenue and the coming of Atlanta’s first modern streetcar. Link: “Episode #17: Auburn Avenue.”
Model in Minneapolis.
(research.) Since the Midtown Greenway is an early conversion of a railroad corridor that has reserved space for a future transit line, we used it a lot in the early days of the Atlanta Beltline’s grassroots effort as our most relevant case study. Crossing below nearly 40 streets as it […]
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