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August 2, 2012

Urban Visualization and Planning Studies (Image 2)

A multifaceted, interactive real-time visualization of what activity on Main Street in downtown Buffalo, N.Y., will be like if vehicular traffic returns after an absence of more than 20 years.

Vehicular traffic was eliminated from approximately 11 blocks of Main Street in the heart of downtown Buffalo, with the creation of a light-rail rapid transit system and a pedestrian mall. The extremely detailed visualizations, developed by the Center for Computational Research (CCR) at the University at Buffalo, immerse spectators in the traffic data so that they can experience the traffic as if they were standing on a street corner, riding on a metro train, or driving along Main Street. Merchants can view the flow of automobile and pedestrian traffic from the perspective of their storefronts. The simulation was developed for DiDonato Associates for the City of Buffalo, Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority and Buffalo Place.

CCR is a member of the Coalition for Academic Scientific Computation, or CASC. The National Science Foundation is one of several federal agencies in partnership with CASC, whose members develop partnerships with federal and state government entities, as well as with private industry leaders, to contribute to strategic national goals. (Date of Image: September 2006) [Image 2 of 4 related images. See Image 3.]

Credit: Adrian Levesque, Martins Innus and Adam Koniak, Center for Computational Research IBC Digital

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