Streets for Voting
A Guide For Improving the Pandemic Voting Experience
Introduction
Running an election during a global pandemic is not easy. Despite a variety of ways to vote –absentee / mail-in, curbside, early voting – millions and millions of Americans will continue to vote in person on election day in 2020. Where this occurs, physical distancing requirements and/ or indoor capacity restrictions, the reduction of available polling locations, potential poll worker shortages, and the specter of reduced United States Postal Service capacity may lead to long and uncomfortable lines. Indeed, during the 2020 primaries extended wait times were common in cities across the country. For example, Milwaukee voters endured cold temperatures and hail during a 90 minute to 2.5-hour wait at one of just five polling locations. In a normal election year, these same voters would have 180 places to vote. More than just a city-by-city issue, the State of Maryland has reduced in-person voting centers from 1,800 to just 315 for the 2020 presidential election.
If the 2020 primary and past presidential elections are used as a guide, voting could be very difficult for millions of Americans this November. Planned for or not, the spatial footprint required to conduct the 2020 presidential election is likely to grow across many urban, suburban, and even rural polling locations. Even with Americans exercising their right to use alternative voting methods, finding the available space to accommodate high turnout with physical distancing requirements while ensuring universal access and minimizing discomfort, is an essential urban design challenge.
Why This Guide
This spring/summer Street Plans worked closely with the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) and Bloomberg Associates to develop a resource called the Streets for Pandemic Response and Recovery . In the form of 2-page “cut sheets,” the document offers guidance for temporary changes to streets and public spaces as a means to deliver essential services and to move people safely and more efficiently during but also after the pandemic. Anticipating a host of election challenges, the NACTO guidance also addresses how streets may be re-purposed for voting. This initial guidance matters because thousands of municipal transportation leaders across the country now have a professionally sanctioned “permission slip” to work alongside election officials in the delivery of a more fair and safe 2020 election.
However, as transportation planners and urban designers, we recognize that practical knowledge for how to close streets to thru trafffic, where to source temporary traffic control materials, and what the spatial impacts of organizing hundreds if not thousands of voters outdoors may not be core skills in every election official’s repertoire. The Streets for Voting Guide was created to expand upon NACTO’s high-level guidance so that streets, parking lots, and other public spaces may be used for voting-related activities across urban, suburban, and urban locations. Just as streets have been repurposed for outdoor dining and physically distant graduations, so too can they be used for exercising the most fundamental of our democratic rights: voting!
As of October 2nd, 78% of states have indoor and outdoor capacity requirements due to COVID-19. Source: AARP
How to Use This Guide
This Streets for Voting Guide was created over a six week sprint with the goal of supporting election officials, departments of transportation, and voting rights advocates navigate the impact COVID-19 continues to have on our daily lives. Users of this Guide should treat this document as “emerging guidance,” which will be updated continuously as new information, regulations, and precedents emerge in the coming days, weeks, and even months ahead, as it’s our goal to ensure that this work is relevant to the democratic process beyond the immediate pandemic.
This Guide is by no means comprehensive, nor is it prescriptive. It does not provide detailed information, specific dimensions, or regulatory practices for the vast number of ways people vote in the United States. Rather, the Guide uses three schools that serve as real world voting centers to assert an overarching principle: voting in big cities is not like voting in suburbs, which is not necessarily like voting in the countryside. For example, the availability and use of open space can differ dramatically across the spectrum, as can the type of streets or land uses that surround poll locations. Similarly, various population densities served require different response mechanisms from election officials, including but not limited to the number and type of assigned poll workers, the number of voting machines, and the languages in which election materials need to be translated.
So instead of accounting for all the differences this Guide is focused on what is common across the all environments: Election officials must consider how voters access the polls safely ; determine how and where voters will queue; and assure sanitation measures are follwed to support voter health and comfort. As noted, the body of this work is organized into three sections covering the full urban to rural spectrum and visually depicts how access, queuing, and health and comfort decisions may play out at the polls. Give the format, there is no need to read this Guide in order; If you live and advocate in a rural community, go ahead skip ahead to that section.
However, this Guide also includes a Material and Human Resources documenting 27 low or moderately priced materials that can be purchased online or at other local businesses to support Streets for Voting. Each material includes the use, application(s), cost range, and sourcing information, as well as relevant tips or material alternatives if they exist. By no means exhaustive, this section also provides an overview of additional rolls poll workers and others may play to facilitate voting outdoors.
Finally, thanks to our funders we’re offering free technical assistance! All applicants are welcome, but note that our goal is to support as many minority-majority voting districts as possible and/or places where turnout may be systemically suppressed by polling place reductions or other means. If your community would benefit from a few hours of our time, please fill out the questionnaire on page 47 and return it to us ASAP. The assistance will be given on a first come, demonstrated needs basis and will be provided within 2-3 business days. We’d love to hear from you!
“The failure to operate in the context that we’re in, which is a pandemic, and proactively use your resources to address the emergence of that: That is also a form of voter suppression.”
- Leah Aden, Attorney, NAACP Legal Defense Fund
Streets for Voting, NACTO (2020)
An outdoor voter registration event in Hudson, NY.
Photo: Street Plans
Urban
Urban areas feature higher concentrations of people and a low supply of adjacent open spaces to facilitate outdoor election activities. Given physical distancing requirements and indoor capacity limitations, the temporary use of streets (sidewalks, parking lanes, travel lanes) and other available open spaces for voting may be appropriate.
Summary
Defined by density of people and proximity of goods and services, urban areas enable a variety of transportation options – walking, cycling, public transportation, ride sharing, taxis etc. – that need to be accommodated at poll locations. But with these choices comes less space available open space to facilitate outdoor election related activities. Thus, election officials serving urban zip codes should consider the temporary use of streets and sidewalks to support and enhance access, provide queuing efficiency, and allow health and comfort measures to be taken so that physical distance requirements and indoor gathering/capacity restrictions may be observed. General guidance is provided below, while more specifics may be found on the following pages.
General Spatial Strategies
Close adjacent street(s) to thru vehicular traffic, allowing only emergency vehicles, local residents, or vehicles carrying voters with physical mobility impairments or health needs.
Partially close adjacent streets(s) to thru vehicular traffic or restrict onstreet parking, allowing only one lane for thru travel.
Where partial or full street closures are difficult, utilize sidewalks, parking lanes, parking lots, or other open spaces (parks, playgrounds, schoolyards, ballfields, etc) adjacent to polling locations.
In all instances, manage pedestrian and vehicular flow so that queuing voters are provided dedicated separate space from non-voting travelers and passersby on other personal, academic, or professional business.
Key Steps
• Install temporary traffic barriers and signs along key streets and within parking lots (if they exist and are utilized).
• Empower municipal staff and/or poll workers to install, manage, and monitor barricades / queuing activity.
• Provide comfort amenities such as seating, shade, water etc. as needed.
• Maintain access for emergency and public transit vehicles, as well as those carrying voters with disabilities.
• Ensure design and operational guidance complies with overall local, state, and national health and election laws and standards.
Planning + Communications
• Create partnerships between Boards of Election and relevan Municipal/ County / State agencies to develop site plan criteria that includes sanitation, disabled voter access, weather protection, and signage for voters, poll workers, and elections observers.
• Create an expansive communication plan to broadly publicize any/all pandemic related restrictions and resulting polling protocols and election-day access, queuing, and health and comfort amenities offered to voters.
• Whenever possible, partner with cultural groups, nonpartisan civic associations, schools, etc. to promote options and logistics, and to support general election activities.
Improving Access
Develop Poll Location Access Enhancement Plans
Because some or all voting activities may take place outdoors, locations with limited footprints will require the creative use of the public right-ofway. Thus, regular voting location access plans may need to be altered to account for more pronounced changes to city streets and other means of access. If considering such changes, election boards should partner with local departments of transportation, public works, transit agencies, and / or poll location facility staff to develop a COVID-19 poll access plan. At a minimum, Each plan should focus on the following four things.
Analyze Adjacent Land Uses and Streets
All adjacent land uses and streets should be analyzed to ensure local stakeholder needs are taken into account, including deliveries, emergency services, resident access etc. Similarly, the role each street plays in the wider transportation network should be understood. Wherever possible, f ocus partial or full street closures on streets with lower volumes of traffic and optimally where public transportation routes do not travel and which do not contain hospitals, fire departments, or other essential services. Voting site parking lots, parks, playgrounds, or other public spaces may be used as needed to minimize coordination, especially among multiple government jurisdictions, e.g. City and State. Contact local stakeholders – community groups, residents, businesses, and other relevant institutions – to identify key obstacles or issues affecting design, programming, or street segment selection before implementing the voting access plan.
Accommodate All The Ways People May Arrive
Access plans should consider all the ways people may arrive and respond accordingly by highlighting available resources or enhancing opportunities for people to access the polling location safely. In urban areas this may include but is not limited to considering those who walk, wheel, bicycle, scoot, skate, take public transportation, or use ride share/ride hail services. Temporary access and safety improvements may be as simple as employing crossing guards during all polling hours, or partnering with local bicycle coalition or bike sharing company to offer valet bicycle parking or free rides. Additionally, clearly designating pick-up/drop-off area for taxi service, ride hail providers, and access-a-ride / shuttle services will help voters keep their own cars at home. Finally, the addition of tempoary wayfinding to/from bus
stops, bike share and train stations, and adjacent intersections should be provided, especially if normal voter access points have shifted in response to the pandemic.
3
Ensure ADA accessibility
Temporary street reconfigurations like partial or full street closures must be ADA accessible. This requirement impacts everything from building entrances to available sidewalk widths, to drop-off locations and sidewalk ramps. If necessary, designate secondary ADA-compliant routes or outdoor areas for voters who require universally accessible voter booths.
4
Monitor All Points and Means of Access
Allocate municipal staff and/or poll workers to monitor polling location access points so that any issues can be flagged and resolved as soon as possible.
The following two pages offer a sample access plan, detailing typical elements as well as those that might be enhanced under a streets for voting plan.
In 2014 Minneapolis’ Metro provided free rides on election day. Photo: Runner1928
Access Improvement Plan
This sample plan identifies the location of existing poll access features relevant to in-person voting as well as the location for possible enhancements that improve the voter experience. Note, most of these enhancements are concentrated along the minor and secondary streets, a nod to the relative ease of doing so on streets with less vehicular traffic, which is also more pleasant for people queued in lines. Select improvements are visualized in more detail on the following page.
Existing Access
Access Enhancements
See detail on Following Page
Major Street
Minor Street
Secondary Street
Secondary Street
Queuing Overview
Research shows that how people feel while waiting in line matters more than the time they wait. To that end, one long snaking line is often perceived to be more tolerable than many short, individual lines where advancement feels less fair and predictable to participants.
It would then seem that using more horizontal street space for queuing may reduce voter anxiety, as it allows for the overall footprint of voting activities to shrink. Reducing this footprint, along with providing average wait time information to voters, will result in a better experience for both poll workers and voters, causing less disruption to mobility, social, and economic activity on intersecting streets.
The diagrams at right depict 100 queued voters distancing themselves at six feet apart. While all three options require the same amount of total square feet, each results in very different linear footprint. Repurposing existing street space (parking and travel lanes) can reduce the queue length by 2/3rds, allowing for supplemental health and comfort programming to further improve the voter experience.
Wherever long lines are possible, election officials and their partners should pursue a more compact queuing footprint. This is especially true at poll sites that are bordered by streets with sidewalks cannot guarantee 12 feet of clear space or where sidewalks exist on only one side of the street.
Option 1
Sidewalk / Schoolyard Queue
600 linear feet
Option 2
Sidewalk + Parking Lane Queue
400 linear feet
Option 3
Sidewalk + Parking Lane + Travel Lane Queue
200 linear feet
Health + Comfort
Summary
Voting during a global pandemic mandates all local, county, and state health precautions must taken to limit the spread COVID-19. Sanitizer should be readily available; masks worn; physical distancing requirements made abundantly clear; and reporting/contract tracing practices operationalized should someone report symptons after they vote. Beyond safety, ensuring voters are not deterred by long queues will require a range of basic amenities, such as places to sit and rest, protection from the weather, water, bathrooms, and even entertainment such as music, poetry, and dance.
Finally, a key aspect of voting safely during a global pandemic is to i dentify which aspects of the voting process (e.g. registration, queuing, filing ballots, ballot dropoffs, etc.) may/shall be accommodated outside and which cannot. Beyond that, closely considering election day infrastructure needs for voters, poll workers, and election observers is paramount. The following nine elements may be used to facilitate safe, healthy, and comfortable voting. Physical
Distancing Markers
Summary
Election officials serving suburban areas may need to consider the temporary re-allocation of street and sidewalk space, as well as surface parking lots and adjacent civic spaces to facilitate some or all voting activities. General spatial and communication strategies for suburban environments are offered below, with more specific guidance for improving access, queuing, and health and comfort detailed in the pages that follow.
General Spatial Strategies
Repurpose one or more vehicular travel lanes along major or secondary streets to accomodate poll location access, and vehicular or in-person queuing;
Reconfigure adjacent streets and/or surface parking lots adjacent to the polling location to accommodate voter pick-up and drop-offs, as well as drive-thru or in-person voting.
Utilize internal or external street,sidewalks, or other available open spaces for in-person queuing; where possible utilize building breezeways, porticos, awnings or other architectural features that provide weather protection.
In all instances, manage pedestrian and vehicular flow so that queuing voters are provided dedicated separate space from non-voting travelers and passersby on other personal, academic, or professional business.
Key Steps
• Install temporary traffic barriers and signs along key streets and within parking lots.
• Empower municipal staff and/or poll workers to install, manage, and monitor barricades / queuing activity.
• Provide comfort amenities such as seating, shade, water etc. as needed.
• Maintain access for emergency and public transit vehicles, as well as those carrying voters with disabilities.
• Ensure design and operational guidance complies with overall local, state, and national health and election laws and standards.
Planning + Communications
• Create partnerships between local Board of Election and relevant Municipal /County / State agencies to develop site plan criteria that includes sanitation, disabled voter access, weather protection, signage for voters, poll workers, and elections observers.
• Create and implement an expansive communication plan to broadly publicize any/all pandemic related restrictions and resulting polling protocols and election-day access, queuing, and health and comfort amenities offered to voters.
• Partner with cultural groups, nonpartisan civic associations, schools, etc. to promote options and logistics,and to support general election activities.
Improving Access
Develop Poll Location Access Enhancement Plans
Because some or all voting activities may take place outdoors, previous voter access plans may need to be altered to account for and coordinate changes to streets, parking lots, and other means of access. If your jurisdiction has chosen to facilitate outdoor voting, the local Board of Election should partner with the local transportation department, public works, transit agencies, and / or poll location facility staff (schools, fire departments, city hall, libraries etc.) to develop a COVID-19 access plan. At a minimum, each plan should include the following four steps.
Analyze Adjacent Land Uses and Streets
All adjacent land uses and streets should be analyzed to ensure local stakeholder needs are taken into account, including deliveries, emergency services, resident access etc. To do so, be sure to contact local stakeholders – community groups, residents, businesses, and other geographically relevant institutions – to identify key obstacles or issues that may impact design, programming, or street segment selection before implementing the voting access plan. The role each street plays in the wider transportation network should also be considered. Wherever possible, f ocus vehicular lane closures streets with lower traffic volumes and optimally those without public transportation routes, hospitals, fire departments, or other essential services. On-site parking lots, playgrounds, ball fields, or other public spaces may be used as needed to minimize coordination among multiple government agencies and jurisdictions, e.g. City and State.
Accommodate All The Ways People May Arrive
Access plans should consider all the ways people may arrive and respond accordingly by highlighting available resources or enhancing opportunities for people to access the polling location safely. In suburban areas this may may primarily include motor vehicles, but should also account for those who walk, wheel, bicycle, scoot, skate, take public transportation, or use ride share/ride hail services. Temporary access and safety improvements may be as simple as employing crossing guards during all polling hours, or partnering with a local school bus contractor to offer rides for seniors or other discrete populations of voters. Additionally, clearly designating pick-up/drop-off areas for taxi service, ride hail providers, and access-a-ride / shuttle services will help voters keep their own cars at home. Finally, the addition of temporary
Democracy in the Park poll workers set up in 200 parks to register voters, answer questions about the voting process, and accept absentee ballots.
wayfinding to/from bus stops, adjacent intersections, and bike trails should be provided, especially if typical voter access points have shifted in response to the pandemic.
3
Ensure ADA accessibility
Temporary street reconfigurations like partial or full street closures must be ADA accessible. This requirement impacts everything from building entrances to available sidewalk widths, to drop-off locations and sidewalk ramps. If necessary, designate secondary ADA-compliant routes or outdoor areas for voters who require universally accessible voter booths.
4
Monitor All Points and Means of Access
Allocate municipal staff and/or poll workers to monitor polling location access points so that any issues can be flagged and resolved as soon as possible.
The following two pages include a sample access plan, detailing typical elements as well as those that might be enhanced under a streets for voting plan.
Photo: City of Madison, WI
Access Improvement Plan
This sample plan identifies the location of existing poll access features relevant to in-person and drive-thru voting, as well as possible voter experience enhancements. Note, most of the existing and proposed enhancements are concentrated along a major street, a nod to the auto-oriented realities of suburban environments where most non-residential destinations are located along busy secondary or major thoroughfares. Accommodations must be made accordingly to support non-driving voters. Select improvements are visualized in more detail on the following page.
Existing Access
Access Enhancements
See detail on Following Page
Major Street
Minor Street
Secondary Street
Access Enhancements
Temporarily enhancing access to/from and around polling locations will assure voters that their needs have been considered and that their health and welllness matter as much as their vote. Doing so for transit-dependent or populations who are too young, too old, or uninterested in owning a private automobile is of high importance, as poll access becomes more challenging for the poor where polling locations are spread further apart and owning a car is an assumption.
Pick-Up / Drop-Off / Queue Zone
Where in-person voting will occur inperson, prioritize entrances that are ADAcompliant and feature any architectural elements affording voters protection from the weather.
Traffic Management
Whether for parking, pick-up / drop-off, or drive-thru voting, facilitating safe vehicular access and requires clearly segregating pedestrians and poll workers from motor vehicles. It also means clarifying how vehicles negotiate conflict points and ensure all voters are safe as they access and depart the polling location.
Drive-Thru Voting
Streets, drive aisles, and parking lots may be reconfigured to enable drive-thru voting, ballot drop-off, and passenger pick-up / drop-off. Clear wayfinding and information signage should be placed at decision points and placed to help people walking, cycling, wheeling, and driving to safely access and participate in the election.
Queuing Recommendations
Queuing needs will vary greatly across suburban environments. State, County, and Municipal regulations combined with endless polling location, street configuration, and neighborhood characteristics will result in a wide variety of voting conditions. Below are three recommendations for improving the queuing experience for drive-thru voters.
Assess On / Off-Street Vehicular Queuing Capacity and Plan Accordingly
In order to design an effective and safe drive-thru voting experience, election officials should work closely with transportation planning and event management professionals to assess any given site’s total vehicular queuing capacity. While traditional morning and evening “peak” voting patterns may flatten in 2020, using maximum estimates will help determine any/all worst case scenarios so that election officials understand at what point queuing activities begin to not only impact the surrounding neighborhood and transportation system, but more importantly, the voter experience.
The assesmment should take into account available off-street space within parking lots, bus drop-off zones, and drive aisles, as well as available on-street space. This will determine how many cars will be able to queue along adjacent streets if /when necessary. In some instances, peak queuing activity will require re-purposing available parking or vehicular lane space for queuing activities. Finally, in some instances it may be helpful to deploy traffic control officers to help manage streets and intersections that get tied up with queuing voters.
Maximize Safety and Comfort
While those sitting in their automobiles will be comfortable and protected from the elements, it will be necessary to physically separate drive-thru voting activities from poll workers, carfree voters who may be accessing the queue on foot, and from the rest of the traveling public. Additionally, sanitation, water, and port-a-potties should be made available to poll workers and voters alike. Additionally, a dignified place to engage with walk-up voting should be provided outdoors if indoor voting is deemed too risky or logistically challenging.
Assign Workers a Clear Role in the Queue: Communication
Assigning enough poll workers to help manage the expected peak hours will ensure a smoother election process for voters and officials. Indeed, it’s not enough to station poll workers at actual voting booths. Rather, poll workers should also be tasked with walking along the vehicular queue to answer questions, field concerns, issue sanitation protocol, distribute sanitation products as needed, and to help communicate wait times to voters who may grow impatient. In some cases, this may mean sending workers off-site to help disseminate information to voters queued off-site.
Parking lots may be easily converted to drive-thru voting centers, however transportation and election officials should beware of the upstream impacts extensive queuing may have on the surrounding neighborhood, wider transportation network, and most importantly, on the voter experience.
Rural
Rural areas feature a low density of people and a high concentration of natural or cultivated open space. In many instances, rural voters must travel longer distances to vote, as poll locations are increasingly centralized into fewer locations, often within larger campus-style school and regional government complexes.
Improving Access
Develop Poll Location Access Enhancement Plans
Because some or all voting activities may take place outdoors, previous voter access plans may need to be altered to account for and coordinate changes to roadways, parking lots, and other means of access. If your jurisdiction has chosen to facilitate outdoor voting, election officals should partner with the local or county public works department and / or poll location facility staff (schools, fire departments, city hall, libraries etc.) to develop a COVID-19 access plan. At a minimum, each plan should include the following four steps.
Analyze Adjacent Land Uses and Roads
Contact local stakeholders – community organizations, residents, businesses, and other geographically relevant institutions – to identify any key obstacles or issues that may impact the design or programming of outdoor voting activities. The role any/all adjacent roads play in the wider transportation network should also be considered, although this is less of an issue in rural environments. On-site parking lots, playgrounds, ball fields, or other public spaces may be used as needed to minimize coordination among multiple government agencies and jurisdictions, e.g. Township and State.
Accommodate All The Ways People May Arrive
Access plans in rural areas may be the simplest, but they should still consider all the ways people may arrive and respond accordingly by highlighting available resources or enhancing opportunities for people to access the polling location safely. In rural areas this may may primarily include motor vehicles, but should also account for those who walk, wheel, bicycle, scoot, and even skate along bike trails or local/regional walking paths, take public transportation, or use ride share/ride hail services, or carpool . Temporary access and safety improvements may be as simple as employing crossing guards during all polling hours, or partnering with a local school bus contractor to offer rides for seniors or other discrete populations of voters. Additionally, clearly designating pick-up/drop-off areas for taxi service, ride hail providers, and access-a-ride / shuttle services will help voters keep their own cars at home. Finally, the addition of temporary wayfinding to/from bus stops, adjacent intersections, and bike trails should be provided, especially if typical voter access points have shifted in response to the pandemic.
Ensure ADA accessibility
Temporary roadway or parking lot reconfigurations must be ADA accessible. This requirement impacts everything from building entrances to available sidewalk widths, to drop-off locations, sidewalk ramps, and outdoor voter booths. If necessary, designate secondary ADA-compliant routes or outdoor areas dedicated voters who require universally accessible voter booths.
Monitor All Points and Means of Access
Allocate municipal staff and/or poll workers to monitor polling location access points so that any issues can be flagged and resolved as soon as possible.
The following two pages include a sample access plan, detailing typical elements as well as those that might be enhanced under a streets for voting plan.
3
A Lewis County (Washington) ballot drop box.
Photo: Joe Mabel
Access Enhancements
Temporarily enhancing access to/from and around polling locations will assure voters that their needs have been considered and that their health and welllness matter as much as their vote.
Wayfinding + Informational Signs
Pick-Up / Drop-Off Zone
Pick-up / drop-off zones should be designated within close proximity to the building entrance/ voting queue and may be utilized by access-a-ride vans, taxis, ride hail companies, voting shuttles, carpools etc.
Drive-Thru Voting
Streets, drive aisles, and parking lots may be reconfigured to enable drivethru voting, ballot drop-off, and passenger pick-up / dropoff. Clear wayfinding and information signage should be placed at decision points and placed to help people walking, cycling, wheeling, and driving to safely access and participate in the election.
Clear wayfinding and informational signs will help drivers and pedestrians navigate an unfamiliar set up within what otherwise may be a famiiar setting.
Queuing
Under normal circumstances, parking lots at rural poll locations are used for just that; voters park on-site and enter the queue to cast their vote inside. However, at this moment in time, the use of drive-thru or curbside voting offers an appealing, physically distant, and weather-proof option for election officials and voters alike. However, it’s important to consider the potential negative impacts of a vehicular-based voting system, especially for the 11 million American households that cannot afford or choose not to own motor vehicles.
Queuing cars are spatially inefficient when compared to people on foot or in wheelchairs. Indeed, voters arriving by car at peak voting hours may easily overwhelm a site’s queuing capacity. The average sedan is 15 feet in length so leaving just 10 feet between vehicles (front and back) yields a total of 35 feet of linear space per voting vehicle. Thus, what requires 600 linear feet for 100 voters on foot requires as much as 2500 linear feet, or 2/3rds of a mile in length, for the same number of people voting by car.
Actively planning for and managing vehicular queues will result in a better experience for both poll workers and voters alike, leading to less disruption to other roadway users, and mitigate unintentional social and economic impacts. This is especially true in locations that can offer both in-person voting as well as drivethru voting options over the voting period.
The diagrams at right depict 50 queued people, either voting in-person only, drive-thru only, or within a hybrid scenario where both options would be available. The third and final option, if feasible, would likely present the best option, so long as wait time information was provided in real-time so that voters could make decisions about what works best for them.
Option 1
In-Person Voting Only
50 Queued People | 300 Linear Feet
Option 2
Drive-Thru Voting Only
50 Queued Vehicles | 1,750 Linear Feet
Option 3
In-Person + Drive-Thru Voting
30 Queued Vehicles | 20 Queued People
1,170 linear feet
Queuing
Queuing needs will vary across rural environments. Voter turnout and State/County/and Municipal regulations, combined with the fact that no single polling location, street, or neighborhood is like another will result in a wide variety of in-person voting conditions. Below are three recommendations for improving the queuing experience for voters.
Estimate Voter Turnout: Plan For The Most
Estimate maximum turnout to determine potential spatial needs and plan accordingly. While scenario planning, identify queue overflow locations for walk/bike/drive-up voters on an individual voting site level and ensure enough poll workers, crossing guards, and traffic management capacity exists to manage the maximum condition. Wherever possible, shrink the queue footprint through the utilization of available sidewalk, street, park, parking lot, playground, or other adjacent open spaces.
Allocate Queuing Activities to Maximize Safety and Comfort
Physically separate any /all parking or pick-up drop-off areas from voters queuing on foot; enhance with additional comfort/safety, including low-cost, removable surface markings or vertical materials to delineate physical distancing; sanitation and comfort stations (port-a-potties, chairs, shade/weather protection etc. and signs to delineate physical distancing; provide sanitation stations throughout the site (bathrooms, voting machines, etc.)
Assign ‘Polling Ambassadors’ a Clear Role in the Queue:
It’s not enough to station poll workers at the entrance of the polling location, ‘ambassadors’ should be tasked with working along the queue to answer questions, field concerns, issue sanitation protocols, and most importantly to communicate wait times.
Lebanon, OH voters queue for the start of early voting.
Photo: Dean Beeler
Health + Comfort
Summary
Voting during a global pandemic mandates all local, county, and state health precautions must taken to limit the spread COVID-19. Sanitizer should be readily available; masks worn; physical distancing requirements made abundantly clear; and reporting/contract tracing practices operationalized should someone report symptons after they vote. Beyond safety, ensuring voters are not deterred by long queues will require a range of basic amenities, such as places to sit and rest, protection from the weather, access to water, bathrooms, and community-affirming entertainment such as music, poetry, and dance.
Finally, a key aspect of voting safely at this time is to i dentify which aspects of the voting process (e.g. registration, queuing, filing ballots, ballot drop-offs, etc.) may/shall be accommodated outside and which cannot. Beyond that, closely considering election day infrastructure needs for voters, poll workers, and election observers is paramount. The drawing at right depicts eight ways to facilitate safe, healthy, and comfortable voting.
Physical distancing markers
3. Material + Human Resources
Introduction
A wide range of low-cost, off-the-shelf items can be utilized to facilitate outdoor voting. This chapter includes an overview of 28 materials and 5 specific poll worker roles that support Streets for Voting activities. By no means exhaustive, the pages ahead offer some common material guidance – their use, applications, cost range, sources, and related tips – that should start as a starting point for procuring the materials election officials will need to organize safe, healthy, accessible elections.
With just weeks left until the 2020 presidential election we know those of you who have made it this far into the Guide do not have much time, and that government procurement proceses can be lengthy and burdensome for staff. Thus, the following four basic strategies for procuring materials may be considered.
Key Material Procurement Strategies
Borrow: The best procurement strategy is often one that involves no money at all. While Boards of Election are not known for having a well-spring of materials on hand, everything from traffic cones, walkie-talkies, tables and chairs, and bike racks may be obtained from other municipal departments or agencies. So go ahead and call or email your colleagues at public works, parks and recreation, education, or the library system to see what material resources they have on hand that be used for facilitating a safe and healthy election.
Partner: Non-profit and community-based organizations are great partners and often supported by funders, donors, and community members who can facilitate the procurement and use of materials. While local and state election laws must be followed closely, there certainly is a role the non-profit sector can play in helping Election Boards carry out the election.
Leverage: Municipalities usually have a roster of pre-approved, on-call contractors who may be able to not only provide technical assistance, but use materials expense budgets to support Streets for Voting efforts. Leveraging such a resource can save municipal staff time and procurement headaches
Buy: The last resort is to buy what you need. In many instances, municipalities have pre-approved vendors who offer discounts and faster procurement timelines. Hardware stores, traffic supply companies, and online catalogue’s like Grainger are often on the pre-approved list and can help get many materials to you within a matter of days.
Access and Queuing
FREE-STANDING A-FRAME SIGN
USE: Wayfinding or information
APPLICATIONS: Voter queuing (by foot or car) | bus stops | bike parking | voter check-in | intersections | entertainment |
COST: $50 - $150 per A-frame (coroplast sign not included)
SOURCE: Print centers, sign shops, event rental companies
TIPS: To ensure safety and function, anchor
A-Frames with weights, sandbags, bike locks or similar. Check in with various city departments or poll location facilities staff, as A-frame signs may be borrowed rather than rented or purchased.
VARIABLE MESSAGE BOARD SIGN
USE: Wayfinding or information
APPLICATIONS: Voter queuing (by car) | traffic management
COST: $200 per day
SOURCES: Department of transportation or public works, traffic supply stores, equipment rental companies
TIPS: Less appropriate for urban locations where most people will arrive to the poll location by foot, transit etc.
COROPLAST SIGN
USE: Wayfinding or information
APPLICATIONS: Voter queuing (by foot or car) | bus stops | bike parking | voter checkin | intersections | entertainment |
COST: $20 per sign
SOURCE: Print centers, sign shops, event rental companies
TIPS: Affix signs with zip ties to existing sign posts to ensure safety and function, as well as ease of installation and removal.
EXISTING SIGNS
USE: I nformation
APPLICATIONS: Voter queuing (by foot or car) | voter check-in
COST: $0
SOURCE: Poll location (schools, city hall, library etc.)
TIPS: Inquire to ensure enough individual letters are available to display your message; may be used as infrastructure for wrapping larger banners or other forms of signage.
TRAFFIC CONE
USE: Vehicular traffic control, pedestrian or vehicular queuing, enhanced bike access
APPLICATIONS: Partial or full street closures | sidewalk queue management
COST: $20 per cone
SOURCE: Hardware stores, construction supply companies, department of public works
TIPS: Use traffic cones to prevent, filter, or direct access and/or manage queuing at poll locations. Fewer cities keep cones on hand than you’d expect; In many parts of the country paving season will be over so contractors may be willing to donate the temporary use of their traffic cones.
FREE-STANDING DELINEATOR
USE: Vehicular traffic control, pedestrian or vehicular queuing
APPLICATIONS: Sidewalk or vehicular queue management
COST: $35 per delineator
SOURCE: Hardware stores, construction supply companies, department of public works
TIPS: Consider transport needs and capacity; delineators do not nest as easily as traffic cones. Contractors may be willing to donate the temporary use of their traffic cones.
FRENCH BARRICADE
USE: Vehicular traffic control, pedestrian or vehicular queuing
APPLICATIONS: Partial or full street closures | sidewalk queue management
COST: $75 - $110 per barricade
SOURCE: Departments of public works; police department; construction supply companies; event rental companies
TIPS: Difficult to move around in bulk; French barricades are not reflective so consider how and where they are used at night around polling locations.
TRAFFIC BARRICADE
USE: Vehicular traffic control
APPLICATIONS: Partial or full street closures; vehicular queue management
COST: $40 - $105 per barricade
SOURCE: Departments of public works or transportation; construction supply companies; road construction contractors
TIPS: Traffic barricades come in a few different sizes and may double as scaffolding for informational or wayfinding signage.
TEMPORARY CURB RAMP
USE: Accessibility
APPLICATIONS: Pedestrian or wheelchair curb ramp
COST: $50 - $200 per ramp
SOURCE: Departments of public works; construction supply companies; event rental companies
TIPS: Lightweight, easy to deploy, suitable for wheelchair, scooter users, and people on foot. Check dimensions carefully to ensure ADA-compliance. May need to be epoxied or otherwise secured to the curb to prevent being dislodged.
CHALK
BIKE RACK S
USE: Voter access
APPLICATIONS: Bicycle parking
COST: $80 - $500 per rack
SOURCE: Departments of public works or transportation; street furniture companies; bike parking suppliers
TIPS: Use existing racks wherever possible; “inverted-u” or “schoolyard” racks often come on rails and while cumbersome, can be deployed on a temporary or interim basis to meet specific poll access needs.
VALET RAIL
USE: Voter access
APPLICATIONS: Staffed bicycle parking
COST: $150- $250 per rail
SOURCE: Departments of public works or transportation; event organizers; local, regional, or state bicycle advocacy organizations.
TIPS: Use to cut down on traffic congestion and increase attendance. Assign a poll worker or facilities manager, or partner with bicycle advocacy organization to manage the bike valet service.
SPRAY CHALK
USE: Pavement or sidewalk markings
APPLICATIONS: Vehicular traffic control; pedestrian or vehicular queuing
COST: $4 - $10 per can
SOURCE: Hardware stores;
TIPS: For outdoor use only; use for temporary lane striping or 6’ physical distancing markings). 6oz. yield up to 80 linear feet; pressure wash to remove or allow to fade over time with exposure to traffic, rain, sun etc.
BIKE
DUCT TAPE
USE: Pavement or sidewalk markings
APPLICATIONS: Voter queuing (by foot)
COST: $3 - $10 per roll
SOURCE: Hardware stores
TIPS: Use duct tape to quickly and cheaply designate 6’ physical distancing markings, as well as to re-inforce the direction of pedestrian movement and / or delimitation of space.
FOIL-BACKED TRAFFIC TAPE
USE: Pavement Markings
APPLICATIONS: Voter access or queuing (by car or bike)
COST: $50 - $150 / per roll
SOURCE: Traffic supply companies
TIPS: Use foil-backed traffic tape for temporary roadway or parking lot striping. Will not hold up to vehicular traffic, especially turning vehicles for much longer than a week.
Health + Comfort
USE: Poll worker and voter seating
APPLICATIONS: Check-in desk, deputy, inspector, clerk, and ballot distribution tables | voter queue | Bike valet
COST: $8 - $50
SOURCE: Event rental companies, churches, government agencies, schools, libraries etc.
TIPS: , Use poll location facility’s existing chairs or procure from an event rental company if supply is low; facilitate routine and proper sanitation before and after each use. Folding chairs will be easiest to transport from one location to another.
CHAIR
FOLDING TABLE
USE: Support for materials and tasks
APPLICATIONS: Check-in desk, deputy, inspector, clerk, and ballot distribution tables
COST: $30 - $100
SOURCE: Event rental companies, churches, government agencies, schools, libraries etc.
TIPS: Use poll location facility’s existing tables or procure from an event rental company if supply is low; facilitate routine and proper sanitation before and after each use.
USE: Weather protection
APPLICATIONS: Voter queuing | voter check-in | voting machine protection | temporary pick-up/drop-off zones | unsheltered bus stops | bike valet | entertainment
COST: $50 - $250
SOURCE: Hardware stores, event rental companies, other municipal departments
TIPS: Tents come in various sizes, select as needed. To ensure safety and function, anchor tents with weights, sandbags, or similar; may be aligned end-to-end for continuous protection or used at discrete locations.
SUN UMBRELLA
USE: Weather protection
APPLICATIONS: Voter queuing | voter check-in | temporary pick-up/drop-off zones | unsheltered bus stops | bike valet | entertainment
COST: $50 - $300
SOURCE: Hardware stores, other municipal deprtments
TIPS: To ensure safety and function, anchor umbrella with weights, sandbags, or similar.
10’ x 10’ TENT
PLEXIGLASS SNEEZE GUARDS
USE: Transmission barrier
APPLICATIONS: Check-in desk I Voting machine administration desks
COST: $40 - $100
SOURCE: Hardware stores,
TIPS: Use freestanding sneeze guards. For outdoor applications use double side tape or similar to temporarily secure it to the table so that wind gusts do not knock it over; can be fashioned with wood and saran wrap if need be.
HAND SANITIZER STATIONS
USE: Personal sanitation - hand sanitizer, paper towels, disposable gloves, face masks etc.
APPLICATIONS: Voter queuing (by foot or car) | voter check-in | poll worker health and comfort station
COST: $50 - $250
SOURCE: Stores, government agencies, non-profit organizations, schools etc.
TIPS: Proper and consistent use of sanitation products reduces the chance of spreading infectious bacteria and viruses. Assign a poll worker or facilities manager to monitor sanitizer stations so they can be re-stocked as needed.
TRASH CAN
USE: Trash disposal and / or recycling
APPLICATIONS: Voter queuing (by foot or car) | bus stops | voter check-in | sanitation stations
COST: $15 - $60
SOURCE: Hardware stores, government agencies, schools etc.
TIPS: Trash and recycling cans or bins should be borrowed from existing sources wherever possible; for in-person voting, place cans at regular intervals for trash disposal and assign a poll worker or facilities manager the task of monitoring and removing trash as needed.
RECYCLING STATION
USE: Recycling paper, glass, plastic etc.
APPLICATIONS: Voter queuing (by foot or car) | bus stops | pick-up / drop-off zones | voter check-in | sanitation stations
COST: $50 - $250
SOURCE: Hardware stores, government agencies, non-profit organizations, schools etc.
TIPS: Recycling stations or bins should be borrowed from existing sources wherever possible; for in-person voting, place stations at regular intervals and assign a poll worker or facilities manager the task of monitoring and removing as needed.
PORT-A-POTTIES
USE: Portable bathroom
APPLICATIONS: Voter queuing (by foot or car) |
COST: $40 - $100
SOURCE: Event organizers, Waste Service, government agencies, non-profit organizations, schools etc.
TIPS: Use when facility bathrooms are not available or close.
WALKIE TALKIES
USE: Communication between poll workers and / or facilities managers
APPLICATIONS: Any poll worker roles where communication to others will be required ( queue management, poll watchers, traffic management etc.)
COST: $20 - $60
SOURCE: Hardware stores, electronic stores, police departments, other municipal departments
TIPS: Borrow existing walkie talkies from other municipal departments wherever possible; Ensure a clear poll worker communications plan and protocol is in place prior to the election.
Human Resources
22 MIN
POLL WORKER: WAIT-TIME MANAGER
USE: Voter information
APPLICATIONS: Voter queuing (by foot or car)
COST: $5 (dry erase board)
SOURCE: Volunteer poll workers
TIPS: Communicating expected wait-times to queued voters will ease tension and set clear expectations, providing a smoother experience for all.
POLL WORKER: ACCESS AND QUEUING MONITOR
USE: Voter logistics
APPLICATIONS: Voter queuing (by foot or car) | Voter access
COST: N/A
SOURCE: Volunteer poll workers
TIPS: Deploy access and queuing monitors to help manage logistics and report key issues to help maintain a smooth voting experience for all.
POLL WORKER: INSPECTOR / ASSISTANT CLERK ETC.
USE: Voter check-in and assistance
APPLICATIONS: Check-in desk I Polling stations, Deputy, Inspector, Cleck, and Ballot distribution tables
COST: N/A
SOURCE: Volunteer poll workers
TIPS: Prepare all poll workers for dynamics associated with managing election activities that are partially or fully outdoors (weather, vehicular queuing logistics etc.) and establish a clear protocol for troubleshooting potential issues.
Photo: Flickr User Michael Fleshman
4. We’re Here For You!
Technical Assistance Application
Instructions: Download, fill out, and return to aren@streetplans.org. Or, simply access the survey online here:
Identify your role in your community
Election Official
Municipal/Public Works/Transportation Official
Voting Rights Advocate
Other (please specify)
Have the number of polling locations in your community been reduced due to COVID-19?
Yes
No, but polling locations have recently been reduced in our community for other reasons
No
I’m not sure Zip Code Email
Is your community of concern minority-majority?
Yes
No
I’m not sure
Our community could use technical assistance with:
Voter Access Plans
Voter Queuing
Health and Comfort
All or some of the above
Other (please specify)
Sources
Smith Island Residents Won’t Have To Travel To Mainland To Vote, Lawmaker Says, Maryland Matters, https://www. marylandmatters.org/blog/smith-island-residents-wonthave-to-travel-to-mainland-to-vote-lawmaker-says/, Accessed October 4th, 2020.
List of Coronavirus-Related Restrictions in Every State, Dena Rough, AARP, https://www.aarp.org/politics-society/ government-elections/info-2020/coronavirus-staterestrictions.html#:~:text=People%20are%20encouraged%20 to%20maintain,encouraged%20to%20stay%20at%20home, Accessed October 2nd, 2020.
ADA Checklist for Polling Place, US Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, https://www.ada.gov/votingchecklist. pdf, Accessed October 3rd, 2020
Haynes: Wisconsin’s election may have been ‘ridiculous’ but those who braved coronavirus to vote were anything but, David D. Haynes, Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, https://www. jsonline.com/story/news/solutions/2020/04/08/wisconsinelection-ridiculous-voters-who-braved-coronavirus-linesinspiring-vote-primary/2966298001/, Accessed September 25th, 2020.
Recommendation: Keep using schools as polling places, Mike Kennedy, American School & University, https:// www.asumag.com/facilities-management/maintenanceoperations/article/20851548/recommendation-keep-usingschools-as-polling-places, Accessed September 29th, 2020.
What really drives you crazy about waiting in line (it actually isn’t the wait at all), Ana Swanson, The Washington Post, https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/ wp/2015/11/27/what-you-hate-about-waiting-in-line-isntthe-wait-at-all/, Accessed October 4th, 2020.
Worlds Apart: Urban and Rural Voting, Michael D. Hernandez, The Canvass: States and Election Reform, https://www.ncsl. org/Documents/legismgt/elect/Canvass_Oct_2014_No_52. pdf, Accessed October 5th 2020.
The 2018 Voter Experience, The Bipartisan Policy Center, https://bipartisanpolicy.org/report/the-2018-votingexperience/, Accessed October 2nd 2020
Streets for Pandemic Response and Recovery, NACTO, https:// nacto.org/publication/streets-for-pandemic-responserecovery/, Accessed October 4th 2020
20 Ways Cities Can Promote Safe and Effective Elections in November, Danielle Root, Center for American Progress, https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/democracy/ reports/2020/08/17/489534/20-ways-cities-can-promotesafe-effective-elections-november/, Accessed October 5th, 2020.
The Voting Disaster Ahead Intentional voter suppression and unintentional suppression of the vote will collide in November, Adam Harris, The Atlantic, https://www. theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/06/voter-suppressionnovembers-looming-election-crisis/613408/, Accessed September 24th, 2020.
Democrats are twice as likely to fear voting in person as Republicans during the coronavirus pandemic, Nicole Lyn Pesce, Market Watch, https://www.marketwatch.com/story/ democrats-are-twice-as-likely-to-fear-in-person-voting-asrepublicans-during-the-coronavirus-pandemic-2020-08-04, Accessed September 30, 2020.
