The Safe Routes to School National Partnership (SRTSNP) released the “Safe Routes to School Local Policy Guide.” The Local Policy Guide was developed to help local communities and schools create, enact, and implement policies which support active, healthy environments that encourage safe walking, bicycling and physical activity by children.  It does this through what it calls a "Health in All Policies" approach. The guide was funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the American Public Health Association (APHA).

The Guide highlights strategies to advance policy change and includes more than twenty real-life policy change examples.

The American Public Health Association (APHA) developed several new resources to help public health and transportation professionals understand the connection between health and transportation.  One is an on-line toolkit with fact sheets, communications and outreach materials, and background data and resources; another is the four-part webinar series on "What Healthy Communities Need from their Transportation Networks" (archived online); and a third is the report entitled “The Hidden Health Costs of Transportation,” which addresses the ways in which transportation systems can contribute to or hinder progress toward improving public health.

In 2010, the Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals  (APBP) posted an online survey designed to gather information about women’s cycling experiences and preferences.  The survey collected more than 13,000 responses.  While in no way a scientific survey, the large number of responses do offer useful information for planners, policy development, and advocates.  APBP has created a webpage with summaries in report format of comments received for three of the survey questions:

• Why do you use your bicycle for trips?(Survey question #8)
• What reaction do you get when cycling for transportation?(Survey question #10)
• What would cause you to start or increase your cycling?(Survey question #27)

The Safe Routes to School National Partnership (SRTSNP), with funding from the SRAM Cycling Fund, presents the third in their six webinar series: “Bike Parking, Storage and Security at Schools.”  The webinar will address common issues that schools face, present information on common solutions and highlight communities that have creatively faced this issue and as a result have more students bicycling to school daily.

The webinar will take place Thursday, July 14 at 2 p.m. CDT.  The webinar is free, but advance registration is required.

The State of Illinois created permanent, year-round “Share the Road” specialty license plates.  While a small portion of the proceeds derived from the supplementary fees for these license plates goes to the Secretary of State, the majority will go the League of Illinois Bicyclists’ “Share the Road” fund for statewide educational campaigns to teach both cyclists and motorists how to share the roads more respectfully, lawfully, and safely.

For more information or to reserve a plate, visit the League of Illinois Bicyclists website.

The Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals (APBP) and America Walks have created an online National Walking Survey to help planners and advocates understand more about what motivates people to walk and what keeps others from walking more.

The online survey takes approximately five minutes to complete and the results are anonymous.

The Transportation Research Board (TRB) will co-sponsor a web briefing on current issues, best practices, and additional training opportunities in connection with crossing signals for blind pedestrians.  The webinar will present information and findings from the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) report on accessible pedestrian signals (see previous blog post, “Report on accessible pedestrian signals”).

The webinar will be July 20, 2011, from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. central time.  The webinar is free, but requires advance registration by July 15 with Easter Seals Project ACTION.  Space is limited.

The Transportation Research Board’s (TRB) National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) published a new report, “Accessible Pedestrian Signals: A Guide to Best Practices (Workshop Edition 2010).”   The report provides an introduction to accessible pedestrian signals (APS) and highlights issues related to the design, installation, operation, and maintenance of APS.

The report also addresses public education, issues related to travel by pedestrians who are blind or who have low vision, traffic signals, and modern intersection design.

The report is a web-only document.  A companion document, appendix (including a tool for intersection prioritization for installation of APS), and documentation of the research used to develop the training course and tool are available on TRB’s website.

Suburban multifamily housing is the fastest growing housing type in the U.S.  Although areas with this type of housing tend to be near local commercial areas (LCAs), the combination of an absence of pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure with a site design practice that lacks access or connectivity makes trips using these modes difficult.

A new study by the Oregon Transportation Research Education Consortium (OTREC)explores pedestrian connectivity in suburban multifamily housing and investigates the link between mode choice and connectivity in these developments.

The study shows that, while suburban multifamily development sites are very often designed and built for access by automobile only,  there is a substantial amount of walking in and around these areas, and that better connected sites/infrastructure result in more walking.  The author concludes that creating better pedestrian connections has the potential to save residents money, provide environmental benefits, and increase residents’ health and sociability.

According to the project blog, construction of the segment of the Techny Trail, in Glenview, IL, running along Lehigh/Harlem Ave. between Glenview Rd. and Chestnut Ave. is nearing completion.  The project was funded through a CMAQ grant.  The project blog states that the only work remaining to be completed is tree planting, pavement patching, striping, signing, and punch-list work.  Completion is expected by the end of this month.

It’s Bike to Work Week in metropolitan Chicago.  As a finale to the week’s events and activities -- like Active Transportation Alliances’ Bike Commuter Challenge -- there will be a rally celebrating the area’s successes in making bicycling safe and popular.  The rally will take place Friday morning in Daley Plaza from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m.  Join thousands of fellow cyclists on the Plaza for speeches, a free t-shirt, breakfast, and more.

Transportation for America (T4 America) has published a 2011 update of the report, Dangerous by Design.  The report ranks the country's large metro areas according to a "pedestrian danger index," and offers recommendations on how communities can alleviate what the authors call the “epidemic” of preventable pedestrian deaths across the county.

According to the Chicago Tribune, the City will set up its first protected bikeway or “cycle track” on a short section of Kinzie Street in the 42^nd Ward.  The half-mile stretch between Milwaukee Ave. and Wells St., which crosses the Chicago River and terminates at the Merchandise Mart Brown Line “El” station, is used by cyclists commuting in Chicago’s central area.  According to Alderman Reilly’s 42^nd Ward newsletter, construction is set to begin next week and scheduled to be completed by Friday, June 17, the final day of Bike-to-Work Week.

[Photo courtesy of the CDOT.]

 The third Safe Routes to School National Conference will take place August 16-18 in Minneapolis, MN. The conference is an opportunity for participants to share experiences, challenges, and successes in implementing Safe Routes to School projects and programs.  Early registration, at the rate of $300, is available until June 17, 2011.

James L. Oberstar, former Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, and the Congressional leader of the Safe Routes to School movement, will be recognized at the conference for his leadership and vision, and will address conference attendees.

Conference participants may also attend the Safe Routes to School National Partnership's free Annual Meeting, which will take place on August 15 from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. in conjunction with the conference. The meeting’s theme is "Building the Movement".  Register for the Annual Meeting as part of registration for the National Conference.

The Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center (PBIC) recently announced winners in the first round of the Walk Friendly Communities encouragement program. Out of 35 applications from around the country, 11 communities were recognized for their commitment to improving walkability and pedestrian safety. The next round of applications is open through June 15, 2011. Interested communities should visit http://www.walkfriendly.org/ to learn more about the program.

The National Complete Streets Coalition released the report, "Complete Streets Policy Analysis 2010: A story of growing strength," which documents the fact that states and local governments around the nation are adopting Complete Streets policies.  These policies are designed to ensure that future transportation infrastructure investments provide safe options for all roadway users.  The report rates the strength of extant written policies and highlights policies that do a particularly good job covering individual policy elements.

The Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center (PBIC) has announced 11 inaugural Walk Friendly Communities(WFC).  Walk Friendly Communities is a national recognition program -- modeled on the League of American Bicyclists’ Bike Friendly Communities -- to encourage towns and cities across the U.S. to establish, or recommit to, a high priority for safe walking.

After evaluating applicant communities in several categories related to walking, including safety, mobility, access, and comfort, PBIC recognized 11 communities for their commitment to improving walkability and pedestrian safety.

The next round of applications has begun.  To apply, see “How to get started.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced its Community Transformation Grants, authorized under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010. These grants will provide a total of $900 million for applicants in up to 75 jurisdictions, tribes, and territories.  The program focuses on improving public health and reducing death and disability through policy, environmental, programmatic, and infrastructure changes related to weight, proper nutrition, physical activity, tobacco use, and emotional well-being and mental health.

Letters of Intent (LOIs) must be received by June 6, and applications are due on July 15. To provide assistance in applying, the CDC is hosting a series of three pre-LOI submission conference calls on May 25 and another series of three post-LOI submission conference calls on June 14.

The Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals (APBP) will offer a free webinar on the recently published Urban Bikeway Design Guidefrom the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO).  The webinar will introduce the guide and demonstrate how it may be applied.  The overview will be followed by a series of shorter presentations on how the principles of the guide are being applied in cities nationwide. Presenters will include Mia Birk, Joe Gilpin, Robert Burchfield, Hayes Lord, and representatives from other NACTO cities.

The webinar will take place on Wednesday, May 25, 2011 from 2:00 to 3:30 pm CDT.  The webinar is free but requires advance registration.

May is both National Bike Month (as we announced in an earlier post) and National Bike Safety Month.  In order to promote cycling safety, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the American Automobile Association (AAA) have partnered to launch "Roll Model," a campaign designed to remind adults to set positive examples that encourage children and teens to ride safely.