Hello there, 

From Curb to Kerb and Back Again

As I conclude a year-long stint in UK kerb practice and return to the US curb practice where I previously spent 15 years, I am in good position to notice what each side of the pond is doing best in kerb/curb planning – and what they can learn from the other. What the US can learn from the UK:

• Strong national road data documentation laws have put UK local authorities far ahead of US cities on kerb data asset management - creating a natural strength in generating the ideal “digital twin.”
  

• At least one recent UK kerb strategy is taking a refreshingly clear and directive approach to allocating kerb space. My fellow Americans, let’s not be afraid to set clear outcome metrics and hold ourselves accountable toward reaching them. It’s not all our fault.
  

• US curb planners often must set typologies or frameworks for how to make decisions as a first step due to wide variations in land use context and street function prioritization decisions. But ultimately, each street’s curbside does need to have some basic minimum functions that we can agree on no matter what.
  

• I heard reference to the climate crisis and resiliency measures much more often in my UK kerb meetings. The prominent and scaled deployment of stormwater run-off features at the kerbside is moving faster than at most American curbs. Let’s take note.

What the UK can learn from the US:

• UK planning authorities have better kerb asset data, but US planners sometimes have more confidence in collecting and leveraging broad data sources quickly at the start of each project, large and small, to attempt data-driven decision making.
  

• Maybe it’s the inevitable influence of the booming US tech industry, but there seems to be a stronger emphasis on user experience in some parts of the curb industry.
  

• While London local authorities are ahead on preparing climate resiliency measures, US planners seem a bit more comfortable with Transportation Demand Management data sources for quantifying vehicle kilometers/miles travelled. This is partly necessity – our high vehicle mode share and air quality regulation history make the math(s) simpler – and urgent!

We have many similarities as well – such as the need to operationalize a “single source of truth” for curb/kerb data and our collective learning curve on curb technology adoptions. Returning now to the US with the launch of my new planning firm, Journey, I’m excited to keep funneling lessons learned both ways. I’ll be very pleased if my US clients achieve such robust digital kerb mapping as I’ve observed here in the UK.

Lauren Mattern is a longtime US curb expert and mobility planner who recently completed a fellowship with Transport for London. She entered curb planning in 2009 as part of the seminal SFpark pilot projects and has spent equal time as a consultant and public sector curb manager. Her firm Journey specializes in curbside management, transportation demand management, transit planning and public engagement (i.e., consultation).

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