A design for people, driven by data about people
When a downtown street crosses into a university campus, pedestrians and cyclists suddenly rule. But where downtown Eugene meets the University of Oregon, Thirteenth Avenue had never been redesigned with people in mind — leaving legacy car infrastructure out of step with daily campus use. Bikes, scooters, cars and pedestrians jostle for space at the campus front door, creating a confusing first impression. The University of Oregon engaged Gehl and landscape architects Walker Macy to study how students, faculty and staff move throughout this key axis of the campus in order to guide a long-range redesign of Thirteenth Avenue, to be built in pieces as new buildings and other capital improvements come online.
Gehl designed and led an extensive Public Space & Public Life study, training students in the planning and architecture schools to conduct the survey, and analyzing data to draw out insights that would inform the redesign. This work became a key community engagement activity during the project, tying the transformation of the campus to the academic curriculum and mission of the school.
The survey uncovered critical insights: Thirteenth Avenue saw pedestrian movements during class passing periods that rivaled the busiest streets of Manhattan — for a few minutes, several times a day. And the street itself was designed for a hierarchy of uses that didn’t exist, prioritizing automobiles and giving less room to students.
With a clear understanding of the behavior, usage and rhythms that the new promenade needed to accommodate, Gehl and Walker Macy collaborated to shape a conceptual promenade design that matched the needs of the campus today and for the future.
