A new study has determined that the local construction rate of new apartments, offices, stores and cafes has officially reached a point that makes standing a faster way to get where you need to go in Seattle.
“I was standing at the Capitol Hill intersection of Broadway and Madison one day wondering how long it would take me to get to the Westlake Whole Foods,” said Seattle University Urban Studies Professor Sarah Dennings. “By the time I assessed whether Lyft, public transit, my car, my bike or walking would be faster, a whole new Whole Foods appeared before me, no transit required.”
Inspired to investigate if other Seattle residents could also travel places faster by standing, Dennings launched a study.
“The answer was ‘yes,’” said Dennings’ study co-author Henry Pascal. “People interested moving to another neighborhood, commuting to a tech company office, and working out at a yoga, cycle or barre class all found the fastest way to get there was standing exactly in the same spot until their desired destination appeared.”
Seattle residents who used standing as a way to travel to affordable housing, a sandwich that costs less than $15, and a public school teaching job with a remotely respectable living wage were not as lucky, Pascal said.
“We’ll likely have to travel out-of-state if not out-of-country to see if standing can get you to any of those places.”
