Completing Our Streets: Tools to Get You Moving Laura Searfoss, Policy Associate, National Complete Streets Coalition

Americans want choices 66% of Americans want more transportation options so they have the freedom to choose how to get where they need to go. 73% currently feel they have no choice but to drive as much as they do. 57% would like to spend less time in the car. Future of Transportation National Survey (2010)

The tremendous potential Of all trips: 39% are less than 3 miles 17% are less than 1 mile 47% are driven Tremendous potential for to convert short trips from driving to walking/bicycling. Data: National Household Travel Survey, 2009 of these trips… National Household Travel Survey (2009)

The tremendous potential Every trip starts and ends with walking. Walking is the 2nd most common form of travel, representing 10.9% of all trips. However, a full 1/3 of Americans report not taking a walking trip in the last week. Studies show how unsafe people feel on the roads in their communities – lack of sidewalks, poor lighting, and too few crosswalks. These problems with the built environment keep people from walking, biking, and getting to transit. Likewise, walking and bicycling are often the only viable option for low-income residents to get physical activity. Photo: Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute Data: National Household Travel Survey, 2009 Policy Link, Prevention Institute, & Convergence Partnership. (2009). The Transportation Prescription

People will walk Source: CDC 2012, infographic from newpublichealth.org Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2012, newpublichealth.org

Incomplete streets are unsafe Of pedestrians killed in 2007 and 2008, more than 50% died on arterial roadways, typically designed to be wide and fast.  Roads like these are built to move cars and too often do not have meet the needs of pedestrian or bicyclist safety. Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System Photo: Virginia (Cheryl Cort, Coalition for Smarter Growth) More than 40% of pedestrian deaths in 2007 and 2008 occurred where no crosswalk was available. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Fatality Reporting System

Incomplete streets are unsafe Especially for: People of color Low-income communities Older adults Latino pedestrian fatality rate is 60% higher than for whites; African Americans, it is 75% higher than for whites; African Americans = ~12% of population but 20% of pedestrian deaths In counties where more than 20% of households have incomes below the federal poverty line, the pedestrian fatality rate is over 80 percent higher than the national average. Adults over 65 made up 22 percent of all pedestrian fatalities from 2000-2009, despite being only 13 percent of the population, and those 75 and older were more than twice as likely to be killed while walking as those under 65. Older Latino adults are especially vulnerable, with a pedestrian fatality rate that is 173 percent higher than that of older white adults. Sources: Dangerous by Design 2011; “Where we need to go: A civil rights for transportation equity”; Photo: Wikipedia user Scheinwerfermann

Streets are inadequate No sidewalks Too dangerous to cross on foot Source: National Survey of Pedestrian and Bicyclist Attitudes and Behaviors, 2003 Photo: Route 1, Virginia (Cheryl Cort, Coalition for Smarter Growth)

Streets are inadequate Unsafe for bicyclists Photo: Streetsblog- by Bryan Goebel http://www.orangephotography.com/

Streets are inadequate Traffic jams on arterials Too many crashes Many communities currently have overworked street networks that force neighborhood traffic onto larger arterial roads. This creates unnecessary traffic congestion and can be dangerous for drivers. San Francisco Metropolitan Transportation Authority estimates that part of that city’s downtown will be gridlocked with auto congestion within a generation due to job and population growth. In order to keep busy networks in growing areas operating smoothly for all users, including drivers, communities need to create alternatives to driving- including bicycling, walking, and taking transit. Source: San Francisco County Transportation Authority; Streetsblog Image Source: Oran Viriyincy via Flickr, Seattle, WA

Streets are inadequate Uninviting for bus riders Photo by Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute

Streets are inadequate Inaccessible for wheelchair users Photo: Dr. Scott Crawford

Streets are inadequate No room for people! Photo: Steve Davis, Transportation for America

We know how to build right All over the US, there are examples of streets built with all users in mind… Photo: Andy Hamilton

We know how to build right Photo: Abby Hall, EPA

We know how to build right Photo by Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute

What are Complete Streets? The streets of our cities and towns are an important part of our communities. They allow children to get to school and parents to get to work. They bring together neighbors and draw visitors to neighborhood stores. These streets ought to be designed for everyone – whether young or old, on foot or on bicycle, in a car or in a bus – but too often they are designed only for speeding cars or creeping traffic jams. Now, in communities across the country, a movement is growing to “complete” the streets. States, cities, and towns are asking their planners and engineers to build roads that are safer, more accessible, and easier for everyone. In the process, they are creating better communities for people to live, play, work, and shop. Photo: Charlotte NC DOT Complete Streets are streets for everyone, no matter who they are or how they travel.

Complete Streets policies Set the transportation decision-making process to provide safe access for all users in project selection, planning, design, construction, operation, and maintenance. This is what complete streets is about – making sure our transportation network works for all users every time there’s a new project. Photo: Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute

Complete Streets means: High-level policy direction Changes to the everyday decision-making processes and systems for all projects Incremental approach Using existing transportation budget better Long-term results Creating complete streets means transportation agencies must change their approach to community roads. By adopting a Complete Streets policy, communities direct their transportation planners and engineers to routinely design and operate the entire right of way to enable safe access for all users, regardless of age, ability, or mode of transportation. This means that every transportation project will make the street network better and safer for drivers, transit users, pedestrians, and bicyclists – making your town a better place to live.

Complete Streets does not mean: One ‘special’ street project Only done with specific funding source A design prescription A mandate for immediate retrofit A silver bullet; other issues must be addressed: Land use (proximity, mixed-use) Environmental concerns Transportation Demand Management Complete Streets is not about special projects. It’s about changing the way we approach transportation projects on all streets. It’s not about specific design elements. Implementation of Complete Streets is flexible and context-sensitive. Adopting a policy doesn’t mean all roads have to be changed all at once. Changes can be made a little at a time and done along with routine maintenance. Complete Streets won’t address all concerns, which will still need attention. Complete Streets policies are one important piece in ensuring our states are fiscally and physically healthy.

Total number of policies Policy adoption Total number of policies As of July 2013

National Complete Streets Coalition Steering Committee Benefactor AARP America Bikes American Planning Association American Public Transportation Association Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota National Association of REALTORS Smart Growth America Platinum American Society of Landscape Architects SvR Design Company Bronze Active Living by Design Alliance for Biking & Walking Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals Supporter America Walks Institute of Transportation Engineers National Association of City Transportation Officials