Land Use in a World of New Transportation Technologies

Project Description

To prepare for the arrival of autonomous vehicles, the Los Angeles Department of City Planning is exploring land use strategies to optimize the potential safety and the environmental and access benefits of this new technology. In this study, I draw on academic literature, analysis of city General and Comprehensive Plans, and phone interviews with planners to analyze the potential impact of autonomous vehicles on local land use.

From the research, I find that cities use different strategies to tackle the potential land use and travel behavior impacts of autonomous vehicles. These strategies, both broad and specific, include building relationships with policymakers at all levels of government in order to exchange knowledge, adapting existing infrastructure and zoning regulations to address concerns related to sprawl and congestion, using the dialogue around autonomous vehicles as a tool to achieve other city goals such as equity and sustainability, and reexamining the city’s parking supply to identify opportunities for land reclamation.

The Los Angeles Department of City Planning is beginning to develop a longer-term strategy for addressing autonomous vehicles. Based on the findings from this research, I recommend that the City implement the following strategies:
1) The creation of a citywide task force in partnership with other city agencies to exchange knowledge and different perspectives on how to address the impending adoption of autonomous vehicles.
2) The incorporation of policies to reduce or eliminate parking requirements for new development in certain areas as part of its efforts to update the city’s development code.
3) The inclusion of shared on-demand mobility options as potential programmatic measures in their efforts to update the existing TDM Ordinance to encourage the use of sustainable transportation modes and the shared use of autonomous vehicles.