The technology on display this week for CRP 456 is Google’s MyMaps. MyMaps is a free system that enables users to create basic map layers using the already incredibly comprehensive Google Maps as a base. Users can add points, lines, and polygons to create each layer, as well as being able to import data from outside sources. In addition, the marking icons for points can be customized in both appearance and color by the user, and driving, walking, or biking directions can be added from Google Maps. This tool can be used in planning to create easily readable and shareable maps of current or potential future aspects of the city.
For this project, I decided to create a map studying the location of rail service in the Denver area and its relation to major spots in the region. An often heard complaint about rail in the region is that it seems to “go nowhere” or miss the most important places it could be going – I was interested to see whether this was a true issue or whether it was more a case of people being annoyed that it didn’t come right to them individually.
The map below uses adapted partial versions of two data sets available from the
DRCOG Regional Data Catalog (license CC BY 3.0): Rapid Transit System 2040 and Urban Centers. Due to slight simplifications made by the Google MyMaps programming, the data also had to be slightly altered in Google Earth before it could be imported. Station location data was placed by me, with assistance in some areas from preexisting markers in Google Maps.
The map shows correlation between urban centers and rail stops in some areas, but not all. When viewing this map, it’s important to consider that the urban centers “are locally identified and regionally designated as a part of the Metro Vision plan,” a plan for 2035 which focuses on improvement of the metro area as a whole. This means that some (but by no means all) data for centers surrounding stations are simply early phases of transit-oriented development projects, however, others indicate the major areas of urban life in the area. This map does, unfortunately, make clear that there are multiple neglected important areas, most prominently much of the eastern part of the city and southwestern portions of the metro area. Additionally, it’s unfortunate to see the upcoming northern N line miss so many important areas just to the west of it, although it remains to be seen whether park-‘n’-rides and bus service at these stations can help them still reach the communities and businesses it doesn’t stop near directly.
This assignment also required a picture to be placed in the description of one item. There is an image in the description for the Union Station light rail platform – near the bottom of the list in the ‘current rail stations’ layer – describing the connection between this platform and the main Union Station building.
Abe Lamontagne 