Our Old Planning Rules of Thumb Are "All Thumbs"

OLD RULE OF THUMB #3: WE SHOULD REQUIRE "ENOUGH" OFF-STREET PARKING FOR EVERY USE

We all know and use rules of thumb. They’re handy for simplifying otherwise difficult problems and quickly making reasonably prudent decisions. We know that we should measure twice and cut once, that a stitch in time saves nine, and that we should allow a little extra following distance when the roads are slick.

What purport to be "standards" in the worlds of transportation and land use are in many cases just elaborate rules of thumb. And while they might have made sense in some limited or original context, the cumulative effect of these rules is that we have a transportation system which is by regulation, practice, and received wisdom, "all thumbs."

By Joe Cortright via Strong Towns

Full Story: http://smartgrowth.org/our-old-planning-rules-of-thumb-are-all-thumbs/?utm_source=SGN+2016-0119&utm_campaign=sgn-news-2015-0119&utm_medium=email