Transit-oriented Development: Understanding the Nuances and Intricacies in its Implementation

Abstract

Transit-oriented development (TOD) is a high rise, mixed land use development that is concentrated around transit nodes to promote walkability and reduce the use of cars. This paper investigates some of the key aspects that are involved in the implementation of TODs like stakeholder management, context-specific planning, and various funding mechanisms. The study finds out that strong governance and actor relationships will result in efficient planning wherein all information and updates are shared on one common platform. Moreover, for seamless coordination and decision making between the stakeholders, the study discusses methods that can be adopted to establish criteria to reach a consensus between the actors. With different geographical conditions and variations in the urban character of TODs, flexible context-specific planning policies should be adopted with stakeholder meetings and public participation to understand the perspective of users. Keeping flexible policies in mind, this paper also argues that pre-planned finance models are more likely to lead to inclusive TOD such as balance market incentives, compulsory inclusionary zoning, specific-purpose planning automobiles, and land banking bodies. Without public consultation, stakeholder management, neighborhood specific panning and guidelines, and pre-planning funding mechanisms, TODs can do more harm than good. However, working with the community to research innovative financing methods and incorporating lessons learned from best practices can produce comprehensive results in the TOD space.