Part 7 (of 8) in the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center (PBIC) webinar series, “Designing for Pedestrian Safety,” will take place tomorrow, Wednesday, November 3 at 1:00 p.m. CDT.  The webinar is on “Road Diets” and will include a presentation by Peter Lagerway of Toole Design Group.  The webinar will provide participants with an up-to-date overview of design considerations for "road diets," as well as background information that can be used to justify lane reductions. Special attention will be given to research that has evaluated the effectiveness of road diets in decreasing crashes for both pedestrians and automobiles. Finally, participants will be presented with design tips for allocating space for all road users.

The webinar is free and online registration is available.  For more information, email webinars@hsrc.unc.edu.

Following the recent launch of Walk Friendly Communities (WFC), the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center (PBIC) has made available for download a webinar describing the WFC program.  The webinar provides an overview and details of the application process.  It also describes the WFC Community Assessment Tool, which was developed to provide an objective measurement method to recognize communities that have achieved high levels of walking and low rates of pedestrian crashes, while also acknowledging communities that are making progress in achieving these goals through policies, projects, and programs.

The relationship between transportation and livability has been a recent theme in academic research, policy discussions, and planning practice -- including CMAP’s GO TO 2040 comprehensive regional plan. The concept of livability comprises interrelated ideas such as sustainability, quality of life, the character of place, and the health of communities.

The two-day conference, “Transportation Systems for Livable Communities,” will take place October 18 to19, 2010, in Washington D.C. This conference -- sponsored by the Transportation Research Board (TRB) and the Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) -- will bring together research on the connections and interaction between transportation and livability and provide an opportunity for transportation and other planning practitioners to share research results, explore practical challenges, and identify directions for future research. Information and registration is available online at the TRB website.
 

Part 5 (of 8) in the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center (PBIC) webinar series, “Designing for Pedestrian Safety,” will take place Monday, September 27 at 1:00 p.m. CDT. The webinar is entitled “Signalized Intersections” and will include presentations by Michael Moule, president of Livable Streets, Inc., and Fred Ranck, safety design engineer with the FHWA Resource Center. The webinar will explore pedestrian safety concerns related to signalized intersections and provide guidance for effectively accommodating pedestrians at these intersections. Participants will gain an understanding of pedestrian safety concerns at signalized intersections and will be able to address these concerns through appropriate treatments.

The webinar is free and online registration is available. For more information, email webinars@hsrc.unc.edu.
 

The U.S. Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) will be conducting two two-day workshops, “Designing Streets for Pedestrian Safety,” in the Chicago area during the last week of October.

These IDOT- and CMAP-sponsored workshops will address pedestrian safety issues through design and engineering solutions. Instructors cover the significance of land-use, sidewalk and walkway design, signs, signals, and crosswalks. Participants also take part in a field exercise at a nearby intersection. This course, funded by the FHWA, will be an opportunity for planners and engineers to learn about strategies for addressing pedestrian crashes and design-related barriers to pedestrian travel in our communities. Information about the workshops is posted at the CMAP Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety webpage.

The workshops are free. Space, however, is limited and registration is required. Up to 16.4 professional development hours (PDH) are available for the engineering community. The course dates, locations, and times are as follows:

October 26 to 27, 2010 (Tues. and Wed.)
Limited to IDOT and County staff and their consultants
Illinois Department of Transportation
District 1 Offices
201 West Center Court
Schaumburg, IL 60196-1096
Contact tmurtha@cmap.illinois.gov for more information about the IDOT workshop.

October 28 to 29, 2010 (Thursday, Friday)
For municipal, county, and IDOT staff and their consultants
Cook County Room
Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning Willis Tower
233 S Wacker Dr Suite 800
Chicago IL 60606
Click here to register for the CMAP workshop.

Information from the developer of the course, the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center (PBIC), on course content, goals, and target audience is available here.
 

The Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) presents the webinar “Designing Walkable Urban Thoroughfares: A Context Sensitive Approach” on Wednesday, September 29, from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. CDT. The webinar will include presentations by James Daisa, P.E. at Kimley Horn and Associates, Inc. and Joh Norquist, president and CEO, Congress for New Urbanism. The webinar will provide a detailed overview of the contents of the newly released manual, Designing Walkable Urban Thoroughfares: A Context Sensitive Approach, along with supplemental information and case studies to demonstrate real world implementation of the concepts included in this guide to recommended practice. The webinar costs $100 for ITE members; $175 for non-members; and $50 for ITE student chapter members.

Part 3 (of 8) in the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center (PBIC) webinar series, “Designing for Pedestrian Safety,” will take place tomorrow, Tuesday, August 17 at 1:00 p.m. CDT.  The webinar is entitled “Treatments at Unsignalized Pedestrian Crossings” and will be presented by Charlie Zegeer, PBIC Director.  The webinar will provide an in-depth look at pedestrian safety considerations at unsignalized crossing locations and an overview of effective countermeasures to use when planning and designing for pedestrians at such locations.

The webinar is free and online registration is available.  For more information, email webinars@hsrc.unc.edu.

The biannual Pro Walk/Pro Bike conference will be held this year in Chattanooga, TN from September 13 to 16.  The conference theme is “Bringing Livable Communities and Regions to Scale.”  The conference will offer attendees the opportunity to learn about innovative bicycle and pedestrian work underway nationally and internationally, and the chance to be part of the discussion about what the future may – and should – hold for non-motorized Transportation in this country. An updated conference program is available on the National Center for Bicycling and Walking (NCBW), and online registration and reservations for mobile workshops are also available online.

Hurry! There is still a chance to enroll in the League of Illinois Bicyclists’ (LIB) bike planning seminars. These 2.5-hour seminars, entitled "Introduction to Bicycle Planning," are being held in various locations throughout the state. The seminar is designed for planners, engineers and local officials, and will provide continuing education credits to planners and certificates for professional development hours to engineers. All seminars begin at 9:30 a.m. The remaining seminar dates and locations are as follows:

• February 16   Des Plaines   Oakton Community College, Conference Room A/B, 1600 E. Golf Rd.

• February 19   East Hazel Crest   South Suburban Mayors and Managers Association; 1904 W. 174th St.

• February 25   Wheaton   DuPage County Administration Building, auditorium, 421 N. County Farm Rd.

For more information, please contact Gina Kenny at gina@bikelib.org or (708) 334-2244.  Or download a description of the course [PDF].

The Association for Bicycle and Pedestrian Professionals (APBP) will be offering a webinar entitled “Cycle Tracks: Concept and Design Practices.” The webinar will take place Wednesday, February 17, 2:00 to 3:30 p.m. CST. See the APBP website or contact Debra Goeks (info@apbp.org) for more information.

The webinar will cover general design principles and practices, drawing from European experience. Examples from Cambridge, Mass., Montreal, New York City, and Portland, Ore., will be cited throughout.

Specifically, this webinar will cover:

• Definition of a cycle track
• Examples of means of separation from traffic and from pedestrians
• Space needs for one-way and two-way cycle tracks
• Intersection treatments
• Discussion of "false sense of security" studies
• What AASHTO says about cycle tracks, and other sources of design guidance
• North American cities' experience with design, operations and safety

APBP has applied for one CM credit from the AICP for this webinar. A certificate of attendance for those wanting to claim Professional Development Hours will be available.

Institute of Traffic Engineers Training Course

The Institute of Traffic Engineers (ITE) is offering a training course (Site Fee: $50) for engineers and other Transportation professionals, entitled "Overview of the 2009 MUTCD: Pedestrians and Bicyclists." The web seminar will take place on Thursday, February 25, 2010, from 2:00 to 3:30 p.m. CST. The course is being taught by engineers Bruce E. Friedman and W. Scott Wainwright, both of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) team in the Office of Transportation Operations of the Federal Highway Administration. The seminar will focus on the significant revisions made to the standards, guidance, and options that are included in the 2009 MUTCD regarding traffic control devices, including signs, pavement markings, and traffic control signals, with a special emphasis on changes that directly affect pedestrians and bicyclists. For more information and to register, visit the ITE website.

Pro Walk/Pro Bike Call for Proposals

The National Center for Bicycling and Walking (NCBW) announced the Call for Proposals for Pro Walk/Pro Bike 2010. The deadline to submit a proposal is March 5, 2010. NCBW seeks proposals for poster sessions, 90-minute panel presentations, and 90-minute guided discussions or workshops. For more information, visit the conference website. The conference will be held September 13-17 in Chattanooga, TN, and the theme of the conference will be “Bringing Livable Communities and Regions to Scale.”

Transportation facilities for pedestrians must meet the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). However, many jurisdictions have not yet complied with the direction from ADA Title II to create and implement a transition plan for addressing deficiencies in their public infrastructure. As of 2002, approximately 68 percent of municipalities did not have or did not know whether they had a transition plan (according to a survey conducted by Chicago Area Transportation Study).

The Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals (APBP) is offering a webinar on creating and institutionalizing an ADA transition plan on Wednesday, March 17, at 2:00 p.m. CST.

The webinar will answer the following questions:

• What, exactly, is a transition plan?
• Who needs to do one, and why?
• When does it need to be done, and how often updated?
• What are the relevant federal standards and guidance?
• What is the state's role

Registration is $75 per site for non-APBP members and $50 for APBP members. CMAP will participate in the webinar, and government officials and staff, and the interested public are invited to our offices at 233 S.Wacker Dr., Suite 800 to attend. If you would like to attend, please email Yesenia Ambriz (yambriz@cmap.illinois.gov) to be put on the visitors’ list.

The program committee of the 20th American Trails National Symposium is currently seeking presentations for its 2010 conference in Chattanooga, TN, on November 14-17, 2010. The theme for the 2010 Symposium is Trails: The Green Way for America.

The Committee is seeking presentations that introduce new ideas, convey useful strategies, identify lessons learned, and strengthen participants’ existing skills and knowledge in the spirit of the Symposium theme. Potential topics for presentations include, but are not limited to, the general topic areas included on the conference website. The deadline for submitting proposals is April 9, 2010.

This weekend, local and national experts -- including Active Transportation Alliance’s senior planner Carolyn Helmke -- will meet to discuss opportunities for integrating Transportation, place making, and sustainable development. Sponsored by the Sierra Club’s Green Transportation Campaign and Building Healthy Communities Team, Natural Resources Defense Council, and Transportation for America, this one-day symposium will address the following questions:

• How do we plan for vibrant communities that create a sense of place, allow for many Transportation choices, and protect lands from development?
• How do we invest in high-quality Transportation infrastructure to elevate pedestrian, bicycle, and public transit options?
• How do we design efficiency into communities to meet everyday needs within a rich fabric of building and Transportation choices?

The symposium will be on Saturday, April 10, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Catalyst Ranch, 656 W. Randolph, Suite 3W, Chicago, IL. The cost, which includes lunch, is $25 at the door ($15 for students).  For more information and to RSVP, please visit www.sierraclub.org/Transportation/Chicago.

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.

On April 21, 2010, the Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC) is hosting a roundtable on the need for Chicago and other cities to create walkable, safe streets and public places.  The roundtable will feature examples from cities around the world that are creating healthy communities through the good design and skillful use of streets and shared spaces.  The roundtable is from noon to 1:30 p.m. at MPC offices. Registration, which includes lunch, is $15 for MPC donors and $30 for all others. For more information and to register online, visit www.metroplanning.org/news-events/event/53.

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).

From May 18 to 20, 2010, Easter Seals Project ACTION (ESPA) will present a free three-day Online Conference on Pedestrian Access, as part of ESPA's series of ‘Promising Practices and Solutions in Accessible Transportation.’  Each day will include one, 90-minute session from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. CDT. The Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center (PBIC) is co-hosting the online conference with ESPA and the National Center on Senior Transportation. The deadline for registration is Tuesday, May 11, 2010.  

Session 1: Tuesday, May 18
Policy, Design and Importance of Accessible Pedestrian Environments for Livable Communities
  Jana Lynott, AARP’s Public Policy Institute
  Scott Windley, U.S. Access Board

Session 2: Wednesday, May 19
Making Streets Accessible to All
  Michael Ronkin, Consultant

Session 3: Thursday, May 20
The Power of 25
  Peter Lagerwey, Toole Design Group

Law enforcement is an essential part of making communities more walkable and bicycle- friendly.  Experience here in the U.S. and lessons learned from overseas show that integrating engineering, education, and enforcement helps to improve bicyclist and pedestrian safety. The Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals (APBP) is offering a webinar on this topic Wednesday, May 19, 2010, from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. CDT.  The webinar will focus on a combined enforcement and education effort in Burlington, Vermont that included significant involvement by local law enforcement.  Participants in the webinar will learn how they can effectively engage and work with law enforcement to achieve greater and safer levels of walking and bicycling.

Cost for the webinar is $50 per site for APBP members, $75 per site for non-APBP members. Each site license includes one phone connection, one internet connection, one set of handouts for unlimited attendees in the same location, and access to a recording of the webinar.  For more information, contact Debra Goeks (262-228-7025 or info@apbp.org).