GEOG 488: Transportation Geography Seminar

Transportation Geography is a research seminar in which students conduct an individual inquiry into transportation geography, from issues of transport problems and planning to the social and environmental effects of transport.

The course emphasizes current research and planning trends, and new approaches (e.g. congestion pricing, urban growth limits) to a variety of traditional transportation problems. The course also include guest speakers and field trips. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor.

The year 2011 reflected a unique time in the Twin Cities' transportation history as construction began on the Central Corridor light rail line along University Avenue. Students in the Transportation Geography senior seminar and the Urban Social Geography course produced a baseline atlas, of the Avenue as it stood as an automobile-oriented corridor, before its transition to a transit-based corridor. The focus of the atlas is to address the question: What will the transition from an automobile-focused to a transit-based system mean for the urban economic geography and social diversity of the Avenue?

ATLAS
St. Paul's University Avenue: Before the Central Corridor

1. Front matter and Introduction

2. The Built Environment

3. Economic Impacts of the Built Environment

4. Social Impacts of the Built Environment

5. Transportation and Accessibility along University Ave.

6. Gentrification and Conclusion

Laura Smith, Associate Professor

Syllabus