Less Commuter Traffic Could Change the Look of Cities

Remote will have a ripple effect throughout urban markets. While physical offices and multifamily will bear the brunt of the impact, reduced commuter traffic could have a positive effect on urban centers. The DCBID in Downtown Los Angeles is looking closely at the effect of reduced commuter traffic and how it could change the dynamic and culture of the urban core—potentially for the better.

“A reduction in commuter traffic and parking [could] also potentially have positive impacts on the Downtown lifestyle,” Nick Griffin, executive director of the Downtown Center Business Improvement District, tells GlobeSt.com. “One of the things we have been examining is that if fewer people need to be Downtown, it could create more space for those who want to be Downtown, whether that is workers, residents, or visitors.”

Retail activity will be front and center in this change, particularly in the beginning. Griffin predicts that it could lead to higher vacancy rates. “How this plays out in the retail sector will be interesting, as well,” he says. “Brick-and-mortar retail was already facing headwinds and change, and this crisis has turbo-charged that. Marginal players probably will not survive, and we may end up with a much higher rate of vacant ground floor spaces, as was already the case in many major cities.”

However, this could again lead to a surge in repositioning or new retail lease structures that could ultimately have a positive impact on the urban core. “What could that mean for the vibrancy of the streetscape and the community more broadly? We don’t have the answers to any of this, but it brings me to my two main points. First, city centers have innate, fundamental value and appeal, and second, they are inherently creative and adaptable, which allows them to not only survive through these changes, they will thrive coming out of them.”

Downtown Los Angeles will certainly face new challenges and changes in the next year, and a lot of these questions will be answered in that time. “DTLA will be Exhibit A over the next 12-18 months, and we at the Downtown Center BID are poised to play a key role,” says Griffin. “Throughout 2020 we pivoted our programming and resources to help stabilize local businesses and the community at large, and to support their recovery. In 2021, hopefully with the crisis beginning to recede, we will turn our focus to revitalization.”