MODERN RAIL HUBS
HUDSON YARDS serves as New York City’s No. 7 line
subway, which was extended 1.5 miles a few years
ago. WSP USA led conceptual, preliminary and final
design of the extension and assisted the MTA in
development of the overall construction program.
Hudson Yards has a heavy TOD component
designed to transform Manhattan’s Far West Side.
JULY/AUGUST 2018 | MassTransitmag.com | Mass Transit | 29
Making TODs work
for everyone
Funding continues to be the major
challenge for transit-oriented
development. “It’s important to
engage new funding partners,”
Holak reminded.
Another challenge is infrastructure.
Water, sewer, electrical
and HVAC systems oft en need to
be upgraded. “Th ese systems are
really old in some cities,” Holak
pointed out. “Th is can open up a
can of worms and an enormous
set of costs nobody really contemplated.”
Another thing to contemplate
is the scope of the TOD. Th is is
largely driven by population density.
In major cities, it’s common
for the TOD to extend one or two
blocks in each direction. “In the
case of Phoenix, for instance, the
rail went through some underserved
communities,” Petroski
said. “Huge development ensued
within a four-block radius of every
station.”
In the past, designers typically
came in with a vision for a TOD.
“Now we are more like adept tailors,”
Advani related. “Before we
even get on a project today, there
are oft en TOD studies already
completed. Th ere are bits and pieces
of a vision already in place. We
must sew together those bits and
pieces into a formal vision that
suits many diff erent stakeholders.”
“Listening is very important,”
Pasterak added. “Each community
is diff erent, as are the various
partners involved. Finding design
solutions that meet everybody’s
goals depends on understanding
what those goals are.”
Gregg Wartgow is a freelance writer from
Milton, Wisconsin, for Mass Transit.
For more information, visit www.MassTransitmag.com/10065105
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