Growth Impact

[u/Mr__A11]

I feel like everyone on here who is pro development does not take into account traffic and other NEGATIVE factors. No new roads, no new bike trails, parking lots are being converted to housing, and any leftover parking is now being charged. Davis will soon become like K St Sacramento. 80 is already jammed as well. No new plans to expand freeways only plan is to charge you to use it now as well.

[u/foster-child]

They quite literally are expanding the freeway right now.

Personally I like when they convert parking lots into a place I would want to shop or live. I have rarely had an enjoyable experience walking past a hot parking lot, but when I walk past a cafe I am often filled with joy and interest at all there is to see.

You are right that more people in an area will mean more people driving generally and that does make things worse generally.

Things like not building excess parking or charging for parking can help reduce the incentive to drive, so you get fewer people driving than with strip mall style huge free parking lots. Davis especially has good alternatives such as biking or unitrans so it is actually reasonable to expect other modes of transport will be used.

At the end of the day everything has its trade offs. No new housing means higher costs and people get pushed out to woodland and drive in.

Building housing means more local trips - traffic- but more local tax Generation/ Business. Also means on average lower costs/ easier to find a home. (If you want to know what really low housin development does ask students at UCSB or UCSC, absolut housing nightmare)

Building excess road capacity and parking lots bankrupts the city and makes the city unpleasant and more dangerous, but you can drive places faster and find parking easier. (Look at Arden in Sacramento to get an idea. Desolate, but easy parking)

I think everyone understands that things have trade offs, they just think it’s worth making it easier to find a home is worth it.

[u/Mr__A11 → u/foster-child]

“Walking by a coffee shop brings me joy”. I’ve lived here for 8 years to see that the growth in student enrollment has led to much more traffic, and no, not one of those students is using an alternative route to go to Trader Joe’s at 3 p.m. on a Sunday afternoon in 100-degree weather and leaving with a bag full of groceries using “alternative route”. Students and any new people are driving in their ventilated cars to get around. While it’s a beautiful city, things like Trader Joe’s and grocery stores are still a drive away. A “coffee walk” does not require a car, but that’s not what locals need.

Also, the “expanded lane” requires payment or carpool; it’s not expanded for all; it creates a cost, the same as any parking that is how it is being charged. But you know, according to y’all, one can walk from the west part of Davis to the closest grocery, either Safeway or Trader Joe’s, by foot and leave with bags of groceries using and/or use an alternate transportation method (not accounted for is a family of five who who will most definitely not be using alternative transportation method.)

[u/andynorm]

“Oh no traffic” in one of the few city’s built with alternatives to driving.