When the COVID-19 pandemic first hit, city governments and transit agencies were on the front lines: Around the world, they responded to the direct threat and constantly-evolving challenges posed by the global public health crisis. Whether rapidly building transit priority lanes to keep essential workers moving or temporarily widening sidewalks to promote social distancing, city transportation staff rapidly developed policies and projects to promote public health and livelihoods during this emergency.

Throughout the pandemic, NACTO has strived to support this essential work. The Transportation Response Center is a clearinghouse of our efforts to connect cities and provide relevant, actionable resources and guidance to the people who help shape our streets — and with it, our pandemic response and recovery. Have any questions? Email us at [email protected].

In the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, planners, engineers, and policymakers around the world quickly implemented new street design and management tools to keep our cities moving and respond in-time to the crisis.  These street management strategies helped people access medical services, grocery stores, vote, get outside for fresh air, and express their first amendment rights. How we use and manage our streets will continue to evolve as we continue to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and transition to long-term recovery.

Streets for Pandemic Response and Recovery

Emerging practices from around the world, with implementation resources for cities and their partners. Recognizing the rapidly changing nature of this pandemic, Streets for Pandemic Response and Recovery has been continually revised and expanded to include new strategies, address changing conditions, and provide the latest lessons learned on each design practice.

In March 2021, Congress passed the American Rescue Plan, which will help American cities and their residents get back on their feet, ensure transit continues to run as an essential service, and forestall catastrophic cuts to city services at the time that they’re most needed. For the first time since the COVID-19 crisis started, smaller cities, many of which have had to lay off staff even with increased demands for their services, will have access to relief funding.

The historic relief package smartly gets red tape out of the way, allowing cities to flexibly spend funds in the ways that most benefit their residents–a precedent for future legislation that aims to have the most impact with limited federal dollars. Getting federal funding directly and flexibly into the hands of entities most responsive to their residents–local governments–is key to a complete and just recovery from the worst disaster in decades.

If you would like to further support NACTO’s ongoing federal policy efforts, please read more here and email [email protected].

From the outset of the pandemic, NACTO documented pandemic rapid response strategies and emerging practices from cities and transit agencies around the world. These resources were produced, reviewed, and collected to provide timely, thorough information about how city transportation staff were addressing specific needs in their communities.

Now, with transmission of COVID-19 better understood, and emerging practices more firmly established, many of these resources capture a point in time in our collective efforts to address the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. They also offer a set of actions and approaches to guide reflection and future response strategies for battling a widespread public health crisis.

 
NACTO’s resources on COVID-19 response are supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies.
Sign up for Bloomberg Philanthropies’ City Hall Coronavirus Daily Update for actions cities are taking in response to the coronavirus crisis.