International Projects
CHS has participated in more than 50 international projects in Latin America and Asia. These projects include bank-grade investment studies for the Asian Development Bank and master planning projects in China, Korea, Malaysia, and the Philippines.
Two recent projects in China have received multiple awards:
The Tianjin Financial City Vision Plan won an Atheneum International Architecture Award and an AIA California Chapter Urban Design Merit Award
The Guangzhou Baietan Area Master Plan won an AIA International Region Urban Design Merit Award and an AIA San Francisco Urban Design Merit Award.
Areas of Expertise
Master Transportation Plans (MTPs)
Bank-Grade Major Investment Studies
Transit Feasibility Studies
Site Circulation Studies
Chengdu Aerotropolis Master Plan
Project Overview
The Chengdu Aerotropolis project is located approximately 50 kilometers southeast of Chengdu City. The project is part of the city’s strategy to decentralize and expand eastward. It includes the Tianfu International Airport with a planned capacity of 90 million annual passengers. The project site has a unique topography with the Jianxi River, two dams, and Longquan Mountain on the east side. One key objective is to develop this project as a model for sustainable urban growth . At full build-out, the greenfield site of 200 square kilometers will feature almost 200 million gross square meters of development; housing for 1.9 million people; and commercial, cultural, educational, industrial, medical, and other land uses.
CHS Role
The project began with an overall concept master plan developed by SOM. During this phase, CHS Consulting Group introduced the idea of focusing on mobility and accessibility, not roadway length per development area (a matrix typically used in China). CHS further developed an extensive transit and active transportation network, introduced new performance metrics, and recommended demonstration projects for the first phase development. CHS recommended transit-focused strategies to reduce travel demand such as job and housing balance in each subarea, higher density and mixed-use developments near transit stations, first- and last-mile connections, and parking supply and pricing strategies. CHS also recommended technological innovations such as various intelligent transportation systems and connected and driverless vehicle technologies. For the first phase of development, CHS also recommended street design guidelines, including small-grid concepts, narrower streets and intersection treatments, and parking and transit investments.
Awards
2018 Spark Design Award; 2019 International Architecture Award from the Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design
Guangzhou Baietan Area Master Plan
Project Overview
Baietan is located across the Pearl River in the southwest part of Guangzhou’s Old Town. It contains several urban villages and two major industrial uses (a steel mill and a shipyard) that will be relocated. The City of Guangzhou wishes to create a green development that will set an example for sustainability throughout China. The project included assessing strategic market needs; establishing sustainable goals, principles, and urban design objectives; and developing an overall master plan and transportation plan that will enable the development to achieve sustainability goals. The master plan established a vision for the 35 square kilometer project site (22 square miles) and provided a detailed plan for the four square kilometer Phase I project area.
CHS Role
CHS Consulting Group, working closely with the SOM design team, was responsible for developing a multi-modal transportation plan. CHS worked with the Guangzhou Transportation Research Institute on a future travel demand forecast and used the data to develop overall roadway and transit networks. Based on the estimated traffic volumes and transit ridership, CHS suggested changes to the City’s proposed subway network, extending additional transit lines to serve Baietan, creating a bus rapid transit (BRT) network including roadway cross-sections appropriate for BRT operations, and bus stop spacing for BRT and non-BRT buses. CHS developed a pedestrian and bicycle network designed to minimize traffic generation. CHS also provided suggestions on the appropriate level of parking supply to support sustainable development goals.
Awards
2011 AIA San Francisco Chapter Urban Design Merit Award and the 2012 First Prize for Urban and Rural Planning Design from Guangzhou Municipality
