1. Kansas Communities Supporting Walking and Biking April 9, 2014 The information and assistance provided in this webinar does not constitute legal advice or legal representation.

2. Just a reminder…. The information and assistance provided in this training does not constitute legal advice or legal representation.

3. Objectives  Understand framework of active transportation and recreation in HCI communities.  Discuss key policy questions and legal issues raised by HCI communities.  Identify resources available to HCI communities to further active transportation and recreation policy priorities.

4. HCI Communities Working on Bike/Pedestrian Policies

5. Comprehensive Plan Complete Streets Policy Master Bike/Ped Plan Active Transportation Council Active Transportation Design Standards SRTS Crosswalk Policy Mitchell CountyBarton County Franklin County Thomas CountyShawnee CountyFinney County Stafford County Dickinson County (Abilene) Harvey County Reno County Crawford County Active Transportation and Recreation Policy Priorities

6. Active Transportation and Recreation

7. BikingSkatingWheelchair Other Non- Motorized Pedestrian Cross-Country Skiing Equestrian

8. Why Active Transportation and Recreation?  Safety  Accessibility  Health Promotion  Environment  Community Connections  Economic Growth © Public Health Law Center

9. Who benefits from active transportation and recreation?

10. Kansas Communities Supporting Walking and Biking

11. Know the Environment Supporting Walking and Biking Streets/ Bicycle Lanes/ Roads Intersections/ Crosswalks Recreational Trails/ Shared Paths Signs/Speed Limits Traffic Calming Devices/ Signals Sidewalks/ Raised Medians/ Curbs Lighting/ Landscaping/ Trees Bicycle Parking/ Benches

12. Kansas Bicycle and Pedestrian Resources  Using Local Government Policies to Support Walking and Biking  Understanding Kansas Roads  Understanding Kansas Sidewalks  Accessibility Requirements for Kansas Sidewalks  Understanding Kansas Trails and Shared Use Paths  Differences Between Active Transportation and Recreation Facilities in Kansas  Using Kansas Roads and Sidewalks for Active Transportation  Using Kansas Trails and Shared Use Paths  Using Railroad Property for Community Trails (coming soon... http://publichealthlawcenter.org/topics/special- collections/kansas-resources)http://publichealthlawcenter.org/topics/special- collections/kansas-resources

13. Using Local Government Policies to Support Walking and Biking

14.  Local Ordinances and Resolutions  Internal Department Policies  Master Bike/Pedestrian Plan or Committee  Comprehensive Plan  Active Transportation Council  Active Transportation Design Standards  Complete/ Livable Streets  Safe Routes to School/Crosswalk Policy

15. Understanding Kansas Roads

16. Understanding Kansas Sidewalks

17. Accessibility Requirements for Kansas Sidewalks

18. Using Kansas Roads and Sidewalks for Active Transportation

19. Differences Between Active Transportation and Recreation Facilities in Kansas

20. Understanding Kansas Trails and Shared Use Paths

21. Using Kansas Trails and Shared Use Paths

22. Using Railroad Property for Community Trails

23. Recent Rails-to-Trails Developments  Rails-to-trails projects have generally been done in 3 different ways:  “Railbanking”: Preserving corridors for future use by converting it into a trail.  Rail-with-trail: Building a trail that parallels an active rail corridor.  Conversion of Abandoned Railroads: This method has been affected by a recent Supreme Court ruling.

24. Recent Rail-to-Trail Supreme Court Ruling  Marvin Brandt Revocable Trust v. U.S.  Decided in March, 2014 and directly impacts rail-to-trail initiatives.  Holding: Once abandoned, the full rights to the railroad property are transferred back to the original landowners.  Only federally granted rights-of-way after 1875 are directly affected by this ruling.  There is no database of federally granted rights of way so the legality of starting a project can be difficult to determine.

25. Exceptions to the Ruling  Railbanked trails  Right of ways acquired before 1875  The title was actually acquired from a private landowner  The trail manager owns the adjacent land  The trail manager holds the title to the corridor  The railroad corridor is in one of the original 13 colonies

26. Challenges

27. Who funds transportation?

28. Local Community Planning

29. If you build it, will they come?

30. Be aware of limitations on lobbying

31. Resources  Kansas Department of Transportation  Kansas Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan - http://www.ksdot.org/burRail/bike/pdf/bikeplan1995.pdf http://www.ksdot.org/burRail/bike/pdf/bikeplan1995.pdf  Kansas Safe Routes to School - http://www.ksdot.org/burTrafficEng/sztoolbox/Safe_Routes_to_School_links.asp http://www.ksdot.org/burTrafficEng/sztoolbox/Safe_Routes_to_School_links.asp  U.S. Department of Transportation  http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/bicycle_pedestrian/overview/bp-broch.cfm#funding http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/bicycle_pedestrian/overview/bp-broch.cfm#funding  Rails to Trails Conservancy  http://www.railstotrails.org/index.html http://www.railstotrails.org/index.html  KanBikeWalk  http://www.kanbikewalk.com http://www.kanbikewalk.com  Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks, and Tourism  http://kdwpt.state.ks.us http://kdwpt.state.ks.us  Public Health Law Center http://publichealthlawcenter.org/resources/active-transportation-minnesota-resources- dedicated-pedestrian-bicycle-and-non-motorized-t http://publichealthlawcenter.org/resources/review-federal-and-minnesota-laws-pedestrian- bicycle-and-non-motorized-transportation http://publichealthlawcenter.org/topics/special-collections/kansas-resources

32. Questions?

33. www.publichealthlawcenter.org http://publichealthlawcenter.org/topics/special -collections/kansas-resources Natasha Frost – Natasha.Frost@wmitchell.edu– Mary Marrow - Mary.Marrow@wmitchell.edu