A Problem with Urban Planning: What is Missing From This Picture?
Spoiler Alert: Share your answer with me before reading the below!
In 1939 over 44 million people attended The New York Worlds’ Fair. Among its most popular exhibits was Futurama. Sponsored by the auto industry, Futurama promised its guests a sneak peak at the city of the future. And inside, they got it. A giant diorama showcased a city with wide boulevards of 8 lane highways in its center, symmetrical shaped building on either side, and vast plazas with evenly spaced out trees.
It was free of traffic. It was free of congestion. And, most interestingly, it was also free of people.
The planners for the exhibit hadn’t bothered to add people to their scale model. People weren’t important to the streetscape of the future. It would be a sign of things to come.
It turns out, when you plan a city without people in mind, you end up creating a city that people don’t like.
It also turns out, when you make the car (and not the person) the central actor in the city you plan, the resulting city isn’t all that compelling.
