The Northeastern Illinois Regional Greenways and Trails Plan 2009 Update sets out a vision for an interconnected network of stream- and land-based green corridors and 2,700 miles of multi-use trails throughout the seven-county region. It consists of both a map and document (click for a copy of the map, the high resolution copy of the back of the map, the low resolution copy of the back of the map, and the plan document) and was developed in coordination with CMAP partners. It serves as a basis for planning and programming funding, as a framework and guide for making connections between communities and to regional greenways and trails, and as a consideration in major infrastructure investments. To request a copy, contact CMAP's Curtis Kelley (312-386-8636 or ckelley@cmap.illinois.gov).

The City of Chicago has published Central Area pedestrian counts for 2007. The counts are available in a report format on the Chicago Department of Transportation’s pedestrian count study website, or as a layer in the City of Chicago’s interactive traffic map service. The interactive service allows users to click on the count for details. Many pedestrian counts in the Central Area are available down to the block-face level. The data facilitates a more complete picture of how people get about in central Chicago, including on foot. The data will be useful not only for traffic and transit planners, but also for businesses and real estate professionals wishing to assess foot traffic in location decisions.

A 2009 Journal of Public Transportation article, “Integrating Bicycling and Public Transport in North America,” presents an analysis of ‘bike-and-ride’ policy trends in North America, with extensive case studies from eight cities: San Francisco, Portland, Minneapolis, Chicago, Washington, New York, Vancouver, and Toronto. The League of American Bicyclists put together atrivia quiz based on the article’s findings.

An article entitled “Infrastructure, programs, and policies to increase bicycling: An international review” was published in January 2010 in the journal Preventive Medicine. The article assesses “existing research on the effects of various interventions on levels of bicycling. Interventions include infrastructure (e.g., bike lanes and parking), integration with public Transport, education and marketing programs, bicycle access programs, and legal issues.” The study concludes that there is a “crucial role [for] public policy in encouraging bicycling. Substantial increases in bicycling require an integrated package of many different, complementary interventions, including infrastructure provision and pro-bicycle programs, supportive land use planning, and restrictions on car use.”

New ITE / CNU urban roadway design manual

The Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) and the Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU) have issued a new manual for recommend urban roadway design practice, Designing Walkable Urban Thoroughfares: A Context Sensitive Approach. The manual advances the successful use of Context Sensitive Solutions (CSS) in the planning and design of major urban thoroughfares for walkable communities. The manual provides guidance and demonstrates for practitioners how CSS concepts and principles may be applied in roadway improvement projects that are consistent with their physical settings. The report's chapters are focused on applying the principles of CSS in Transportation planning and in the design of roadway improvement projects in places where community objectives support liveable, walkable communities – compact development, mixed land uses, and support for pedestrians and bicyclists.

The American Planning Association (APA), in partnership with the National Complete Streets Coalition and Public Health Law and Policy, has released a new Planning Advisory Service (PAS) report, Complete Streets: Best Policy and Implementation Practices (PAS 559).

Complete streets accommodate pedestrians, bicyclists, transit, and cars, creating multimodal Transportation networks. But how do communities achieve complete streets? What are the policies and programs that need to be put into place? What are the best practices?

Drawing on lessons learned from more than 30 communities around the country, this report provides insight into successful policy and implementation practices that have resulted in complete streets. Readers will learn how to build support for complete streets, adopt a policy, and integrate complete street concepts into plans, processes, and standards. This report also provides insight into design issues, handling costs, and ways of working with various stakeholders. Case studies highlight communities that have adopted and implemented complete streets, as well as model policy language that provides guidance to communities interested in writing and adopting a complete streets policy.

CMAP has posted a memorandum briefing the region’s Council of Mayors Executive Committee on the proposed implementation process for “Complete Streets.” CMAP created this review to assist councils and local communities in preparing comments on the proposed policy. Councils and local communities may submit their comments to IDOT for consideration.

The Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center (PBIC) has announced the next webinar in its Livable Communities Webinar Series, “Impact of the New MUTCD on Pedestrians and Bicyclists.” The webinar will review the significant revisions to traffic control that affect pedestrians and bicyclists. These changes appear in the most recent update to the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), released by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in December 2009.

Traffic control devices are the signs, traffic signals, and pavement markings that guide motorists, pedestrians, and bicyclists. The MUTCD defines the standards used by road managers in the U.S. to install and maintain traffic control devices on all streets and highways.

The webinar will be held Thursday, April 15, 2010, from 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. CDT.  Presenters include Bruce Friedman, a Transportation specialist, and Scott Wainwright, a highway engineer, both of whom work for FHWA.

For more information and to register, please visit www2.gotomeeting.com/register/529240787.

Active design can support broader goals of sustainability while also playing a crucial role in combating the rapidly growing public health issue of obesity and its impact on related chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, and some cancers.

New York City has recently published Active Design Guidelines: Promoting Physical Activity and Health in Design. The manual provide planners, architects, engineers, and urban designers with strategies for creating neighborhoods, streets, and outdoor spaces that encourage walking, bicycling, and active Transportation and recreation.

The manual can be downloaded for free on New York City’s Department of Design and Construction website.

CMAP staff prepared a report on vehicle availability and related data for the Chicago region through 2007.  The report reviews data trends for household vehicle availability, driver licensing, and vehicle registrations, and compares counties and large communities over time.  Data used in the report indicates that household vehicle availability in the Chicago region recently increased from 1.54 vehicles per household in 2000 to 1.62 vehicles per household in 2007. In 2007, the number of vehicles per household was lower in the City of Chicago (1.15) than in the remainder of Cook County (1.69).  In the collar counties, there were nearly 2 vehicles per household as of 2007.

The report also looks at vehicle registration and driver licensing data.  Passenger vehicle registrations rose 4.2 percent from 2000 to 2007, slower than the 5.5 percent rate of population growth for the same time period. The rate of driver licensing, calculated using FHWA estimates, has been falling, particularly among young adults and 16-year-olds now subject to the new graduated driver license system.  Only one-third of 16-year-olds had driver licenses in 2008.  Lower licensing rates for 16- and 17- year olds points to the need to provide safe routes not just to primary schools, but to high schools as well.

Bicycle parking programs are essential for communities striving to encourage bicycling for Transportation as well as recreation. Convenient, easy to use, and secure bicycle parking encourages people to bike and helps legitimize cycling as a Transportation mode by providing parking opportunities equal to motorized modes.

On April 21, from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m., the Association of Bicycle and Pedestrian Professionals (APBP) is offering a webinar on bicycle parking best practices.  APBP board member Eric Anderson will present APBP’s newly updated Bicycle Parking Guidelines, with special emphasis on two hot topics: in-street bicycle parking and implementing bicycle parking programs.

The registration cost for the webinar is $50 per site for APBP members, $75 per site for non-APBP members. Each registration includes one complimentary download of the Bicycle Parking Guidelines (priced at $20 for APBP members, $45 for non-APBP members).

To register, visit the APBP website. For questions, contact Debra Goeks (262-228-7025 or info@apbp.org).

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced the launch of a new web-based resource for law enforcement officials. The Safe Routes to School for Law Enforcement website provides tips, tools, and other materials to help law enforcement officers get involved in Safe Routes to School (SRTS).

The website is designed to aid officers and law enforcement agencies in local SRTS efforts and programs. It includes a wide variety of tools, such as:

• Tips on walking and bicycling safety.

• Take home materials for students, parents, school staff, and others.

• Talking points on bicycle and pedestrian safety.

• Tips on addressing parental concerns.

• Links to related sites for resource materials.

• Activities for children.

For more information or questions, contact Paula Bawer (202-366-2692 or Paula.Bawer@dot.gov), the Bicycle and SRTS program manager at NHTSA.

The Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals (APBP) issued an updated edition of its publication, Bicycle Parking Guidelines. Bicycle parking is a critical strategy for promoting bicycling for both Transportation and recreation. Convenient, easily used, and secure bicycle parking encourages people to replace some of their car trips with bicycle trips and helps advertise and legitimize cycling as a Transportation mode. The growing popularity of bicycling, particularly in urban areas, has spurred many innovations in the field of bicycle parking. This new guide addresses the varied parking needs of both commuter and recreational cyclists with expanded guidance on long-term and sheltered parking, as well as event parking, in-street bicycle parking, and bicycle transit centers.  Read the executive summary here.

The guide is available for purchase on the APBP website.  The price is $20 for APBP members and $45 for non-members

The United States Access Board is developing new guidelines for public rights-of-way (PROWAG) that will address various issues, including access for blind pedestrians at street crossings, wheelchair access to on-street parking, and various constraints posed by space limitations, roadway design practices, slope, and terrain.

As part of the Access Board’s monthly series AccessibilityOnline, the webinar “Accessible Sidewalks and Street Crossings” will be held on Thursday, June 3 from 1:30 to 3:00 p.m. CDT.

This webinar will present and describe the most recent draft of PROWAG and provide an update on the status of this rulemaking. Presenters include Lois Thibault and Scott J. Windley.  The following professional development certificates will be available:

• Certificate of Attendance (Free)
• American Institute of Architects Continuing Education System  ($25.00) : 1.5 Credits
• Landscape Architecture Continuing Education System  ($25.00) : 1.5 Credits

To register for this free webinar, visit www.accessibilityonline.org.

AASHTO LRFD Guide Specifications for Design of Pedestrian Bridges

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) released the 2^nd edition of its LRFD Guide Specifications for Design of Pedestrian Bridges.  These design specifications address the load and resistance factor design (LRFD) and construction of typical pedestrian bridges – defined as bridges designed for and intended to carry primarily pedestrians, bicyclists, equestrian riders, and light maintenance vehicles, but not designed and intended to carry typical highway traffic. Pedestrian bridges with cable supports or atypical structural systems are not specifically addressed in these design specifications.

The price for AASHTO members is $35, and for non-members, $42.

The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) issued a Bureau of Design and Environment (BDE) Procedure Memorandum (Number 68-10) on “Bicycle and Pedestrian Accommodation (Complete Streets).”  The memorandum modifies Chapters 5 and 17 (‘Local Agency Agreements’ and ‘Bicycle and Pedestrian Accommodations,’ respectively) of the Bureau of Design and Environment Manual.  The changes represent IDOT’s implementation of the Illinois Complete Streets Law.  The revisions will be incorporated into the next update of the BDE Manual.

Localities and states have increasingly turned to land planning and urban design for help in reducing automobile use and related social and environmental costs.  However, the effects of such strategies on travel demand have not been generalized in recent years from the multitude of available studies. The authors of the article “: a meta-analysis,” published in the June issue of the Journal of the American Planning Association reviews and generalizes literature on the built environment and its affect on Transportation options and travel behavior.  Consistent with prior studies, the authors find that vehicle miles traveled (VMT) is most strongly related to measures of accessibility to destinations and secondarily to street network design variables.  According to the article, “walking is most strongly related to measures of land use diversity, intersection density, and the number of destinations within walking distance.”

The full article is available for free online.

The Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center (PBIC) launched a web-based library collection of pedestrian and bicycle-related safety videos on its website.  Submitted from pedestrian and bicycle organizations from across the country, the videos can either be viewed online or downloaded from the site. Visitors to the PBIC Video Library can use the videos for any noncommercial projects including on websites, presentations, and for events. Users of the site can either browse available videos or search by topic area.

PBIC will continually seek and compile videos to be included in this Library.  If you have publicly available videos that you have developed and would like to be included in the Video Library, contact Katy Jones at jones@hsrc.unc.edu or 919-843-7007. All videos must be either in digital or DVD format, be educational and non-commercial, and be relevant to pedestrian and bicycle safety issues.

One tool that planners and engineers use to improve the safety and functioning of roads for all users – especially pedestrians and bicyclists – is the “road diet.”  A road diet narrows or eliminates travel lanes on a roadway in order to make more room for pedestrians and bicyclists, manage speed, and/or improve overall traffic flow.  General information on road diets can be found at on the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center (PBIC) website and in “Lesson 15: Bicycle Lanes” in the Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) University Course on Bicycle and Pedestrian Transportation.

FHWA’s Highway Safety Information System (HSIS) recently released a summary report evaluating the effects of “road diet” treatments on crashes and injuries.   This report updates and replaces an earlier report (FHWA-HRT-04-082) on the same topic.  The treatment studied was the reduction from four lanes to three.  The report concludes that such road diets can result in a 19 to 47 percent reduction in crashes, depending on context and site characteristics.

WalkScore -- a website that scores the walkability of a location (on a scale of 1 to 100) -- recently made some tweaks to improve accuracy.  Originally, WalkScore ranked locations based upon the proximity of nearby amenities, such as supermarkets, restaurants, dry cleaners, cafes, etc.

However, the website recently made some changes to improve the accuracy of its rankings.  First, the walkability “score” of a particular location is now based upon the measurement of the actual walking distance, as opposed to “as-the-crow-flies” distance.  Secondly, the scoring program now incorporates pedestrian friendliness metrics such as intersection density and block length.  In addition, the website has added a separate Transit Score number as a calculation of transit service quality for more than 40 metropolitan areas, where transit data is available.  The Transit Score number is calculated by assigning a "usefulness" value to nearby transit based on its mode, frequency, and walking distance to nearest stop.  Finally, WalkScore has introduced new, interactive “heat maps” to visualize and “find the most walkable neighborhoods in the top 40 U.S. cities.”  Overall, Chicago ranks fourth, behind San Francisco, New York, and Boston.

                                                                                              Source: www.walkscore.com