RTC TrailBlog : traffic safety, urban pathways

New NYC Park Design Guidelines Emphasize Connecting Parks with Trails

Stephen Miller (RTC) — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 18:32:00 GMT

New design guidelines from New York City's Department of Parks & Recreation and the Design Trust for Public Space, brought to our attention by Streetsblog, give greenways and trails an important role in connecting Gotham's park system. The guidelines say that park facilities should "connect parks to greenways and bike routes to expand those routes, and provide easy access to parks, as well as opportunities for recreation by bicycle commuters." The benefits of using greenways to connect parks are wide ranging, as the guidelines note: "Park connectivity efforts can be planned in tandem with, and reinforce, efforts to increase tree canopy coverage, develop green infrastructure, revitalize streetscapes and commercial corridors, and bolster active modes of transportation."

The guidelines also provide details for park planners that may bring cheers from regular users of crowded greenways. Specifically, the guidelines advise designers to "separate bicycles from pedestrians whenever possible," but "when bicycles are mixed with pedestrians," it says, they should "increase sightlines at potential points of conflict such as intersections and entrances." Busy urban pathways demonstrate the demand for trails and greenways but can lead to sometimes-dangerous user conflicts. It's good to see New York taking these potential conflicts into account within the city's guidance for park and trail planners.

In some ways, the guidelines are playing catch-up to inspired efforts already under way in New York and across the nation. The Brooklyn Greenway Initiative utilizes cycle tracks and multi-use paths to connect parks along the borough's waterfront, including the acclaimed Brooklyn Bridge Park. The South Bronx Greenway connects Hunts Point Riverside Park with Barretto Point Park and numerous piers. Also in the Bronx, the Bronx River Greenway connects parks along the Bronx River watershed. In Memphis, the Shelby Farms Greenline is using a rail-trail and complete streets to connect two of that city's landmark green spaces.

These new guidelines from New York are good news for trails and greenways in urban areas, as official policy and guidelines recognize the important connection between physical activity, transportation and the built environment.

Town Connects to Regional Trail Network with Rebuilt "Green Street"

Stephen Miller (RTC) — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 15:41:00 GMT

Edmonston, Md., is a town of a little more than 1,000 people in Prince George's County, just outside Washington, D.C. Its location along the Anacostia Tributary Trail System provides access by bicycle to major destinations, including Silver Spring and the Unviersity of Maryland at College Park. In the future, two planned off-road connections in D.C. will extend the trail network south along the Anacostia River and provide an off-road route to downtown Washington via the Metropolitan Branch Trail.

Despite the town's prime location at the nexus of a growing regional trail network, its streets have been anything but friendly for active transportation. Like many towns, Edmonston is home to wide asphalt roadways prone to speeding and excessive rainwater runoff. Because it is a low point near the confluence of two tributaries running through paved-over suburban areas, the town has suffered from severe flooding. When it came time to rebuild Decatur Street, the town's main road providing access to the trail network, a consensus emerged that it was time for a change, and the concept of a Green Street was born in Edmonston.

Designed to reduce stormwater runoff and improve access for non-motorized transportation, the new Decatur Street includes bike lanes, narrowed vehicular lanes, textured crosswalks, native trees, porous pavement and LED lights. These and other road improvements will not only naturally treat 90 percent of the pollution washed into the river and reduce the total amount of runoff, but they will also provide a safer connection to the trail network along the river banks. Funded by $1.3 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the project is being completed in what the town calls an "open source" manner. As a result, planning and engineering documents are available online for advocates, officials and other professionals to use.

At the project's November 2009 groundbreaking, attended by federal Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa P. Jackson, Mayor Adam Ortiz noted the town's diversity: a third of the population is Latino, a third black and a third white. "We're diverse in every way, except we don't have rich people," he said. "And if our little working class town can build a sustainable street like this, then anybody can."

Photo: Decatur Street before its Green Street treatment. Photo courtesy the Town of Edmonston.

Watch: South Bronx Embraces a Greenway Before Pavement is on the Ground

Stephen Miller (RTC) — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 14:17:00 GMT

At the Urban Pathways to Livable Communities conference, Miquela Craytor of Sustainable South Bronx presented on her organization's efforts surrounding the South Bronx Greenway, a planned urban pathway through a neighborhood that confronts health, congestion and open space problems on a daily basis. Although pavement for the greenway has not yet been laid, Sustainable South Bronx has engaged the community through job training, trail amenity design, block parties and other events. In this video, Craytor explains the challenges her organization has faced with this project and outlines some of the greenway's initial successes.

What Can Be Done to Reduce Danger at Dallas Trail Crossings?

Stephen Miller (RTC) — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 18:43:00 GMT

The Katy Trail is a very popular rail-trail through the heart of Dallas. KDFW-TV reports on a dangerous crossing where the trail intersects Knox Street. Too often, drivers don't stop for trail users in the crosswalk, even though they are required to by law. This dangerous game of Frogger makes trail users nervous, and drivers on Knox Street have a hard time seeing the crosswalk and warning signs. According to KDFW, the city of Dallas is seeking federal funding to improve trail crossings across the city; a decision on that money is due by July. Recently, the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center hosted a webinar on treatments for unsignalized crossings like this one on the Katy Trail. A full resource guide to trail crossings can be found in our Trail-Building Toolbox.

Ask State Leaders to Improve Safety for Florida's Pedestrians

Ken Bryan (RTC) — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 19:57:00 GMT

According to "Dangerous by Design," a report released on November 9 by Transportation for America and the Surface Transportation Policy Partnership, Florida has the dubious honor of being home to the four most dangerous communities in the country for pedestrians. The communities of Orlando-Kissimmee, Tampa-St. Petersburg, Miami-Fort Lauderdale, and Jacksonville were ranked the top four communities on a list of the 52 most dangerous large metro areas for pedestrians in the nation. The "Dangerous by Design" report was the most recent such report, but other respected findings draw similar conclusions for both walkers and bicyclists.

These deaths are preventable if our state government would, like some states, fund projects that enhance our safety and give walking and bicycling more meaningful consideration. We're all pedestrians at some point, and we all deserve safe places to walk. In Florida, a pedestrian is twice as likely to be struck and killed by a vehicle, on average, as is a pedestrian in other states. You fare even worse if you are a bicyclist!

Additionally, our state governor and legislature plan on hosting a special session in December to focus on a $2 billion request for federal transportation funds to build a new high-speed rail system connecting Orlando with Tampa. Any new system must connect the places where people live, work, play and learn through trails, sidewalks and bicycle lanes, and should be included in initial planning. Trails, sidewalks and bicycle lanes must be included as intermodal links.

Please join me in sending a loud, unified message: Enough is enough. We need safe places to walk and bike, now. If you are not a Florida resident, please consider taking one of these actions to speak up for rail-trails and active transportation.

Image by Transportation for America and the Surface Transportation Policy Partnership.

RTC Partners with D.C. After-School Program for Bike Giveaway Along Rail-Trail

Stephen Miller (RTC) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 17:37:00 GMT

UPDATE: The October 29 edition of the Washington Post has an article about the event. Be sure to take a look!

On Friday, October 23, Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (RTC) partnered with Beacon House, a tutoring and mentoring organization in the Edgewood neighborhood of Washington, D.C., to give free bicycles, locks, helmets and safety instruction to 40 students enrolled in Beacon House programs. The $20,000 bicycle giveaway, which aims to encourage use of newly completed sections of the Metropolitan Branch Trail, was part of RTC's Metropolitan Grants Program, funded by the Coca-Cola Foundation.

The Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA), a long-standing advocate for the completion of the Metropolitan Branch Trail, provided bicycle safety training for the students who received bikes. RTC, WABA and Beacon House staff assisted the students with helmet fittings and bicycle adjustments prior to a ride along a newly completed section of the trail. Local bicycle shop Oasis Bike Works has committed to monthly check-ups for the next year with students receiving bikes at Beacon House to perform tune-ups and teach the students about bike maintenance.

Beacon House offers educational, cultural, recreational and athletic programs to roughly 400 children and youth, ages 5 to 18, from low-income families, per year. The bicycle giveaway is part of RTC's ongoing commitment to provide amenities, resources and opportunities to Ward 5 residents near the newly constructed Metropolitan Branch Trail.

RTC is committed to expanding the use of rail-trails in urban areas across the nation. Many neighborhoods in major urban areas face the challenges of obesity, congestion and scarcity of open space. In addition to the Metropolitan Grants Program, in 2009 RTC launched its Urban Pathways Initiative, enabling communities to become part of the solution. Rail-trails and urban pathways provide opportunities for healthier living, which in turn effect positive change in neighborhoods where the demand for improved health and community empowerment is greatest.

Photos by (L) Lindsay Martin/Rails-to-Trails Conservancy and (R) Stephen Miller/Rails-to-Trails Conservancy. Interested in the mural in the background? It's D.C.'s largest, and it's right on the Metropolitan Branch Trail. Learn more about it. More photos of the event can be found on the Facebook page of event partner Oasis Bike Works.

Chain links: Happy Labor Day

Stephen Miller (RTC) — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 20:19:00 GMT

The Washington Area Bicyclist Association held a Full Moon ride on the Capital Crescent Trail last night, followed by a barbeque at City Bikes in Chevy Chase, Md.. Click on the photo to browse more scenes from the event.
Also in the nation's capital, NPR takes a look at the D.C. Bikestation, which is almost ready to open at Union Station, the southern terminus of the Metropolitan Branch Trail.
We recently brought you the story of police enforcing stop sign laws for cyclists crossing roads on a newly-opened trail in Minnesota. Police along Maryland's Indian Head Rail Trail are taking a broader approach, by using targeted enforcement to remind both drivers and trail users of the need for safe speeds and safe crossings.
The Regional Plan Association's Alex Marshall writes in Governing Magazine that transportation policy should take into account not only the time spent traveling, but the quality of the journey - for many, a quiet ride down a rail-trail is a more pleasant experience than sitting in gridlock. Numbers are important, but not the only way to measure commute quality.
After profiling RTC and our efforts to promote active transportation, syndicated columnist Neal Peirce takes a look at RTC founder Peter Harnik and the rebirth of urban parks in America. For more on city parks, check out the City Parks Blog, a member of our Blogroll and a joint effort of the Trust for Public Land and City Parks Alliance.
The National Trust for historic preservation is offering a second round of "Helping Johnny Walk to School" sub-grants to encourage design and access for walking and bicycling to educational facilities. The application deadline is September 16.
A new study in the journal Public Health shows that urban teens who perceive their neighbrohoods to be unsafe are more likely to be overweight. Hat tip: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, via railstotrails on Twitter.

Photo: A cyclist excited for WABA's Full Moon ride along the Capital Crescent Trail. Photo by M.V. Jantzen on Flickr.