No one goes there anymore, it's too crowded

Yogi Berra said that.  I also recall someone saying at some conference on smart growth or new urbanism: the more cars sharing the road, the more people get frustrated (hence all the car ads of people driving with no other cars in sight), while the more people on a well designed sidewalk, the more we tend to like it. 

2 minute read

August 30, 2009, 6:32 AM PDT

By Ken Snyder


Yogi Berra said that.  I also recall someone saying at some conference on smart growth or new urbanism: the more cars sharing the road, the more people get frustrated (hence all the car ads of people driving with no other cars in sight), while the more people on a well designed sidewalk, the more we tend to like it. 

Creative Commons Image by James Cridland (on flickr.com)

One of my frequent complaints about 3D simulations depicting a new smart growth development or showing off a new transit technology is that they do a horrible job at including LOTS of people in the simulation.  The reason is obvious, it takes a lot of time and skill to add realistic looking moving people around the sidewalks and crosswalks of a streetscape. Futuristic transportation videos often show the highspeed train or Personal Rapid Transit void of people.  It feels like your traveling through a ghost town, and the unintended side-affect is that you end up feeling alone.   Slowly but surely animators are including people walking around simulations.  

Check out this crowd simulation: It's a real time crowd model based on continuum dynamics created by designhive. The motion of crowds is controlled by a dynamic potential field, which allows moving obstacles to begin avoiding each other well in advance without the need of explicit collision avoidance. You can also set up different degrees of discomfort zones (i.e. J walking in front of a car much higher than J walking behind a car, much higher than sticking to the sidewalks and crosswalks).  In this example, the pedestrian and traffic simulation models are combined with a 3D Studio Max model of an Oxford Circus proposal, making a very realistic finished product.  There is a paper and video by Treuille, A. Cooper, S., and Popović, Z, on using continuum dynamics for crowd simulation.

Another technique that works incredibly well (if you're good at it), is to combine video of real street scenes with 3D animation using green screen technology -- a technique now ubiquitous in the movie industry.  Jonathan Arnold with Arnold Imaging in Kansas City Missouri has put together a number of  development simulations using this technique.  Check out the one he did for Kansas City. Cool stuff.


Ken Snyder

Ken Snyder is Executive Director of PlaceMatters

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

July 2, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Aerial view of town of Wailuku in Maui, Hawaii with mountains in background against cloudy sunset sky.

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly

Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

July 1, 2025 - Honolulu Civil Beat

White and purple sign for Slow Street in San Francisco, California with people crossing crosswalk.

San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths

Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.

July 1, 2025 - KQED

Google street view of red brick multi-story power plant building in Pittsburgh, PA.

Defunct Pittsburgh Power Plant to Become Residential Tower

A decommissioned steam heat plant will be redeveloped into almost 100 affordable housing units.

July 4 - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Cyclist on protected bike lane in middle of street in Washington D.C. with Washington Monument obelisk visible in background.

Trump Prompts Restructuring of Transportation Research Board in “Unprecedented Overreach”

The TRB has eliminated more than half of its committees including those focused on climate, equity, and cities.

July 4 - Streetsblog USA

Blue and silver Amtrak train at small station.

Amtrak Rolls Out New Orleans to Alabama “Mardi Gras” Train

The new service will operate morning and evening departures between Mobile and New Orleans.

July 3 - New Orleans City Business