While there are so many achievements to reflect upon from 2015, it goes without saying that all of us at Trailnet are busy planning for an even more exciting 2016. It is with renewed focus and commitment that we bring you all of the events, programs, and special attention to the issues that continue to shape the future of the St. Louis region.
Looking back, we first celebrate the accomplishments of our employees. We affectionately call them the “class of 2015” due to their energy and commitment to the legacy of Trailnet. This highly motivated group brought new ideas and a rekindled spirit to Trailnet—one on which we continue to build.
As a result, we were able to implement creative and progressive methods with our public engagement. We introduced newer marketing materials to help better illustrate our mission and purpose: to make walking and biking better in St. Louis. We completed a constituent survey and published the results. We gathered our cohorts and members at our Share the Street Party. We celebrated our heroes and thought leaders at our Active Living Awards and Benefit Concert at the Sheldon.
It was you who joined us and helped shape a better understanding of what Trailnet is and what is important to you, as well as our members, constituents, and supporters.
We build community around active lifestyles
We hosted more than 25 walking and biking “active events” designed to inspire anyone with the urge to get up and get out. This included all of the 14 rides on our Bicycle Fun Club calendar, six cultural rides, a three-day Lucky’s Ride on the Katy Trail, the Ride of Silence for fallen riders, Bike to Work Day, and much, much more.
Through a partnership with Great Rivers Greenway, more than 1,100 students received in-classroom bike safety education. As a direct result, 119 kids started riding without training wheels.
An all-time high of 34 adults earned new bikes from the Ferguson Bike Shop in our Spokes for Folks Class, supported by Beyond Housing. Each student attended five sessions on bike maintenance, safety, traffic skills, and on-the-bike skills, adding up to more than 340 hours of contact time with students who now feel confident using their bikes for transportation.
In partnership with the League of American Bicyclists and Great Rivers Greenway, Trailnet trained 12 new League Certified Instructors. Each instructor was already an experienced rider and committed to three days of intensive training and classroom simulations. These 12 individuals now have the skills and confidence to teach bicycle education classes throughout the region.
These events and all that are scheduled for 2016 are only made possible by the support of sponsors, businesses, volunteers, and our cherished board members and staff. We are all stewards of Trailnet with one thing in common: a goal to make St. Louis better!
We work for better streets
“It’s how we represent and involve our members and our constituency. We help write policy and voice opinion on items important to the mission of Trailnet.”
—Janet Matthews, Policy and Advocacy Coordinator, Trailnet
In April, we organized a St. Louis delegation of 12 advocates to lobby for distracted driving legislation and transportation funding in Jefferson City. We also advocated for a stronger focus on St. Louis pedestrian safety with an opinion piece in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and began partnering with resident-led Greater Gravois to ensure high-quality bicycle and pedestrian improvements would be included in MODOT’s Gravois Improvement Project.
In August, we took a study tour of City of St. Louis staff, elected officials, and partners to Portland, Oregon. The trip was part of Trailnet’s Calm Streets St. Louis project and was highly successful in propelling traffic-calming policy and the creation of pilot routes.
In the same month, we advocated for continued use of automated enforcement to reduce crash-causing behaviors like speeding and red light running in a Post-Dispatch letter to the editor. We then we formed the first Trailnet Board Advocacy Committee and developed an advocacy policy.
Next, we challenged action by St. Charles County leadership to limit O’Fallon’s road funds unless the city refrained from consideration of a “road diet” on Main Street. And finally, in November we launched the Walk/Bike Ambassadors program to expand Trailnet’s advocacy reach throughout the region.
We create bicycle and pedestrian plans
Our planning department had an exciting year as well. In the fall of 2015, the Missouri Chapter of American Planning Association, the HEAL Partnership, and Trailnet received a Plan4Health grant from the CDC in partnership with American Planning Association and American Public Health Association to work together to implement pop-up traffic-calming demonstrations. The demonstrations were used as a tool to educate one another on how to create safer streets in the City of St. Louis.
We also started a St. Charles Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan and finalized a Des Peres plan. These plans provide a blueprint for the development of pedestrian and bicycle improvements throughout the community, making it safer and easier to reach local destinations, including parks, schools, transit, and commercial areas.
By hiring Bicycle and Pedestrian Planner Grace Kyung, we doubled the planning department’s capacity. Grace has a Masters in Public Health and a Masters in Urban Planning from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, one of the top three planning schools in the nation.
Governance, stewardship, and organizational sustainability in 2016
In 2016, we will strengthen our organization and our leadership in order to take on a bolder vision for the region. While biking and walking and a focus on changing the built environment continues to be our platform, it is with the same purpose that we seek to understand, interpret and promote that which makes St. Louis unique in order to help cultivate, attract and retain talent—this in the spirit of the right type of economic development.
-Ralph Pfremmer, Executive Director, Trailnet
Welcome new and renewing Trailnet members
Thanks to everyone’s interest and efforts, Trailnet welcomed over 100 new members during the December membership drive. Additionally, with over 380 renewals, Trailnet finished strong in 2015. Membership support provides vital unrestricted funds to allow staff to address important issues in our region.
We welcome the following new members (and a few lapsed members) to Trailnet:
Jeffery Allen, Suzette Asmar, Charlotte Balettie, Mike Been, Joann and Matt Biehl, Jason Biggs, Joe Bonner, Mike Briner, Kathleen and David Brunts, Bill and Cathi Cahoon, Rebecca Cannon, Brent Cantor, Evelyn Coates, Nancy Collis, Barbara Cosseboom, Michelle Croyle and Christopher Erwin, Yemisrach Derebe, Jason Dix, Jo Ann and Bernard Dubray, Scott Durden, Gavreal Feder, Bruce Feldacker, Walter Filla, Teresa Flynn, Chris Freeland, Alyse Garbisch, Linda Gardner, Gary Gebhart, Lynn and Jay Giardina, Zach Gietl, Justin and Melanie Gifford, Tina Givens, Dan Gough, Jon Gould, Dana and Michael Harman, Joan Haven, Peter Haynes, Clare Higgins, Stephen Hiltebeitel, Lori and Derek Hirst, Janet Hulseberg, Lisa and Benjamin Humphreys, Robert Jackson, John Jauss, Davie Kirtley and Melissa Brickey, John Kohler, Judith and Nick Kouchoukas, Elizabeth Kramer, Martha Kratzer, Sandy and Chris Krebeck, Keri Lappas, Kathy Lovett, Dennis Lower, Kathy McKay, Susan Mackin, Kathryn and Peter Manning, James Mason and Beverly Riola, Vivia McCutcheon, Katherine McNamara, Kater Murch and Renbecca Bart, Terry Murphy, Michael Noetzel, Molly and Joe Obermeyer, Michele and Bob Oesch, Christa Ollinger, Steve O’Loughlin, Harry O’Toole, Jerry Padawer, Jim and Mary Pandjiris, Kathy and Nick Parker, Dan Parsons, Robert Patterson, Neal Patterson, Jayson Pollard, Robert Polzin, Bob Reiker, Deborah Richie and Carl Halford, Dan Richter, George Ripplinger, Noah Rowen, John Russell, Jerome Sagona, John Sant, Natalie and John Schaefer, Norma Schecter, Raymond Scott, Glenda and James Seldin, Shirley Sher, Sandra Siefert, Robin Simonds, Patricia and Robert Standley, Patricia Szymkowicz, Thomas Tenhula, Billie Teneau, Brenda Tripp, Evelyn Weibel, Douglas Whitlock, Mindy and Keith Whittle, David Willis, Jack and Barbara Witte, Jill and Kevin Yarasheski, Christian Zimmerman, Richard Zerega, Joann Radil, Norma Deen Juracski, Elizabeth and Chris Poelker.
As detailed in the Post-Dispatch, MODOT’s 2015 plan for re-paving and replacing some old signals on Gravois in the City of St. Louis also proposed several street closures; that last item was wildly unpopular. Now, nine months later, MODOT has unveiled a new plan for Gravois and the street closures are no longer part of it. The new Gravois plan will be presented to the public in an “open house” format on January 12th, from 4-7 pm at the Five Star Senior Center, 2832 Arsenal Street. Trailnet will submit comments to MODOT on whether this new plan goes far enough to improve walkability, bikeability, traffic safety and opportunities for economic development on Gravois. Come out to the January 12th meeting, take a look at the plans, talk to MODOT, talk to Trailnet (we’ll be there), and decide what you think!
Twelve energetic, engaged and diverse individuals were recently selected from among 45 applicants to be Trailnet’s first Walk/Bike Ambassadors. They are: Deidre Brown, Florissant; Jodi Devonshire, City of St. Charles; Chris Freeland, St. Louis (Tower Grove East); Robin Medici, St. Louis (Northhampton); Chris Mileski, Wildwood; Aaron Mollette, St. Louis (Holly Hills); Michele Oesch, St. Louis (Skinker/DeBaliviere); Margie Oliver, Hazelwood; Don Orf, St. Louis (St. Louis Hills); Steven Peyton, Belleville; Ramona Scott, St. Louis (Greater Ville); and Patty Szymkowicz, Chesterfield. These folks will have a day-long training session later this month and then volunteer time to expand awareness of Trailnet and to build our advocacy capacity in the region. They’ll develop relationships with community leaders, participate in advocacy campaign events, promote active living, and recruit other Trailnet supporters (and potential future ambassadors). Stay tuned for more updates!
Alderman visits Froebel Elementary’s Walk Ambassadors
The goals of Trailnet’s Walk Ambassadors Program are to teach elementary school students about the benefits of active living, safe pedestrian behaviors, and ways in which kids can advocate for making their communities better places for walking. Students in the Leadership Development Program at Froebel Literacy Academy have participated in the program for several years.
20th Ward Alderman Cara Spencer paid a visit to the Leadership students on December 3 and got to hear about what the students liked and what they would like to change about their community. Each student also had an opportunity to ask a question of their alderman.
Some of the things that the students liked about their neighborhood included: “my school, my friends, the crossing guard, the stores, the parks, I can walk to places…” The students’ concerns about where they lived ranged from high rates of violence and drug use to the presence of abandoned buildings and trash on the streets to noisy neighbors and “pooping” dogs and cats.
The students’ most poignant questions stemmed from their concerns about neighborhood safety. Spencer’s answers were thoughtful and honest and led to interesting exchanges with her young constituents. In response to a student asking “why people kill other people,” Spencer acknowledged the many factors that can lead to violence and the inability to know exactly what drives people to carry out these acts. A leadership student offered the idea that “they want something that the other person has.”
Students concerned about litter in the neighborhood were assured that more trash containers would be installed and that Spencer was planning a clean-up day that she hoped would include the students’ participation.
When asked if she “would give a homeless person a hundred dollars,” Alderman Spencer described some of the many services that are available to the homeless in St. Louis and admitted the scope of the problem by saying that she could not afford to give money to all those experiencing homelessness.
More lighthearded questions included “what did you eat for Thanksgiving?” Answer: “everything.” And “what kind of car do you drive?” Answer: “a square one.”
Spencer also defined her motivation to seek political office in response to the question “what does an alderman do?” Answer: “An alderman works to make a community a better place to live.”
Froebel Literacy Academy and Trailnet are grateful to Spencer for taking time to talk with the Leadership students. Her visit made quite an impression on the students, as evidenced by some of the comments in their thank you notes to the alderman:
“Thanks for making Ward 20 a safer and better place for young and old people to live.”
“I want to be like you when I grow up.”
“I hope we did not make you tired.”
“You R the greatest.”
The speed cushion: one of many great traffic calming tools
The Plan4Health project has proven to be an asset in creating important conversations around traffic calming. It has also helped the Healthy Eating Active Living Partnership strengthen relationships with other stakeholders in the St. Louis region.
Among other opportunities, the Plan4Health project lead to a renewed connection between Trailnet and local bicycle advocate Martin Pion. Martin has been working hard to create dialogue around effective measures for traffic calming. He was very generous in allowing Trailnet to use his temporary speed cushion at one of our four traffic calming demonstrations.
Speed cushions are similar to speed humps, but they have a smaller surface area and can be offset with wheel cutouts, allowing larger vehicles (like emergency vehicles) to pass through without reducing their speed.
Trailnet thanks Martin for the donation of his speed cushion and for sharing his resources with us. To learn more about Martin’s work please read this article he posted on traffic calming.
New transportation bill preserves bicycle and pedestrian funding
Congressional negotiators reached an agreement Tuesday on a new five-year, $305 billion transportation bill, but once again failed to find a long-term way to pay for transportation. The new bill, called Fixing America’s Surface Transportation, or FAST, cobbles together federal gas tax revenues and $70 billion in transfers from other areas of the federal budget, such as selling oil from the Strategic Reserve ($6 billion), and raiding the Federal Reserve’s “rainy day fund” ($19 billion). FAST is expected to pass both chambers by December 4, when transportation spending was set to expire. President Obama is likely to sign the bill this week.
According to the Washington Post, FAST increases money for pedestrian and bicycle programs and protects funding for transit. Other reports have indicated that funding for pedestrian and bicycle programs will remain status quo. More details will emerge soon, but it looks like a significant win since such programs have been threatened with cuts during the transportation bill development process.
Locally, we expect Safe Routes to School programs as well as bicycle and pedestrian projects to continue to be funded and to get more people moving.
The lobbying work of Trailnet staff and supporters, and that of many advocates across the country, made a difference over the past year. In addition, a debt of gratitude is owed for the diligent work of Sen. Barbara Boxer and Rep. Peter DeFazio, alternative transportation advocates in their own right and vice-chairs of their respective transportation committees.
Thanks to Wells Fargo Advisors
Trailnet would like to recognize Wells Fargo Advisorsas a collaborative partner in achieving our vision to see St. Louis as a more active, vibrant, and connected community. Their corporate leadership serves as an excellent example to inspire others. Funding from Wells Fargo Advisors allows Trailnet to concentrate resources on comprehensive neighborhood-based economic and community development initiatives. Their support helps to advance St. Louis toward being a top ten livable city in the U.S. where walking and biking are safe and easy. Trailnet truly values our long-standing relationship with Wells Fargo Advisors. If you would like to find out more about how your company can join arm-in-arm with Trailnet, please call Kay Barnes, Director of Development, at (314) 436-1324 ext. 104 or emailkbarnes@trailnet.org.
Traffic calming: a lighter, quicker, cheaper way to policy change
St. Louis’ most recent effort toward creating safer streets consisted of brightly painted tires, colorful cones, plants, and signs. The Healthy Eating Active Living (HEAL) Partnership in the City of St. Louis is using pop-up traffic-calming demonstrations to raise awareness on how to create safer streets. The materials from the demonstrations will be used to develop a traffic-calming lending library.
Please watch this exciting recap that highlights the positive effect the Plan4Health grant has brought to the community.
This new opportunity for the City comes from a Plan4Health grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in partnership with the American Planning Association (APA) and American Public Health Association (APHA). The objective of the grant is to bring together those who work within planning and public health to improve their communities and make them become more loveable.
The City of St. Louis is like many other cities—built for cars to have the largest advantage in transportation. In the U.S., 12 percent of fatal traffic crashes involve people walking, In St. Louis, however, that figure is 36 percent. In the first six months of 2015, 15 pedestrians were killed in the City of St. Louis, many in hit-and-run incidents. These sobering statistics earned St. Louis a designation as a Focus City by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, joining 21 other U.S. cities in which pedestrian deaths are higher than the national average.
Data has shown that wider roads lead to a faster rate of travel for people driving. The graphic below illustrates how higher rates of speed lead to higher rates of traffic fatalities.
Many streets in the City of St. Louis were built to accommodate streetcars and high levels of traffic, so some residential streets are as wide as 65 feet. The traffic calming pop-ups have been a great way for the City and residents to start exploring what to do with the extra space.
Trailnet, a local bicycle and pedestrian advocacy organization and partner within the HEAL Partnership, has been working to address this problem by implementing several pop-up traffic-calming demonstrations throughout the City of St. Louis. The purpose of the events has been to educate community members, elected officials, and city staff on how we can work together to create safer streets. The pop-up traffic-calming demonstrations are less-than-ten-hour events meant to measure the impact street designs have on people driving as well as listen to the community’s suggestions for safer streets.
The Plan4Health grant also offers a unique opportunity for the HEAL Partnership to develop a traffic-calming lending library so community members who are interested in demonstrating their own pop-up traffic-calming events have the resources and tools to use for free. The lending library will come with a toolkit that will list all available materials with instructions anyone can use on how to create their own pop-up traffic-calming demonstrations.
These lighter, quicker, cheaper tactics have already shown to be a catalyst for change within the City of St. Louis. The demonstrations have aided in creating new traffic-calming policies and the City of St. Louis has begun to use the traffic-calming lending library for community outreach.
These demonstrations are helping the City of St. Louis to create equitable places people love by bringing together planning and public health.
To learn more about the St. Louis Plan4Health project, click here.
Like many local professionals, Adrian Stillman makes frequent trips to other cities in the Midwest. Unlike most business travelers, Adrian makes these visits without getting into a car or walking through an airport. His modes of transportation include his bicycle, Metro bus, MetroLink and Amtrak.
In order to get in better shape and to save money, Adrian sold his car five years ago, bought a used bicycle, and began commuting to his office by bike—a twelve-mile round trip. Never a bicyclist before this, he soon decided to extend his car-free travels beyond St. Louis.
Adrian’s most recent trip took him to Milwaukee in early November. Loaded with a change of clothes and his laptop, he left his house at 4:30 a.m., biked a few blocks to catch an express bus to the Brentwood MetroLink station, rolled his bike onto the Metro and arrived at the Amtrak station in plenty of time for his train’s 6:40 a.m. departure. Adrian estimated door-to-door travel time for his trip to Milwaukee at ten hours. A nonstop flight to Milwaukee from St. Louis takes just over an hour. This begs the obvious question: why does he do it?
“I love being able to explore and appreciate the world as I travel,” Adrian said. “Using my bike and transit, I can relax and enjoy the scenery, look at the interesting architecture and hear the music – I can explore the new city in a way that you just can’t in a car.”
Most importantly, Adrian values the way that his travels allow him to “connect with other people by sharing physical and social space with them.”
Trailnet staff member Ginny McDonald accompanied Stillman on the St. Louis leg of his journey and observed Adrian connecting and conversing with everyone from the bus driver, to other early-morning commuters, to the person who sold him his first cup of coffee at the Amtrak station. Other transit commuters shared the value of time spent together rather than being isolated in a car. Two co-workers who knitted during their bus ride described their commute as “much more relaxing than driving and a lot cheaper than therapy.”
Would Stillman recommend this mode of travel to others?
“It’s very empowering to travel like this, especially to new places,” he said. “We are all good at throwing obstacles in front of ourselves that prevent us from doing new things. It is up to us to overcome those obstacles.”
One of the barriers that Adrian encountered on this trip was having to dismantle and box his bike for the train from Chicago to Milwaukee. Amtrak baggage staff helped him with the transfer.
“Those guys were great,” Adrian said. “Any connection is so valuable, even when you have to ask for help and show that you are a little vulnerable. That’s life.”
Adrian also appreciates the importance of Trailnet’s efforts in helping to break down barriers to biking and using transit in our region.
“They are doing some awesome things for our community,” He said. “Don’t keep it a secret – tell a friend!”
saying that all of us at Trailnet are busy planning for an even more exciting 2016. It is with renewed focus and commitment that we bring you all of the events, programs, and special attention to the issues that continue to shape the future of the St. Louis region.
Trailnet would like to recognize 
