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Traffic calming: a lighter, quicker, cheaper way to policy change

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

Public Hearing on Des Peres Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan

Des Peres LOGOsmallTrailnet has been working with the City of Des Peres, Missouri, to develop a Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan. On September 14, Trailnet and the City of Des Peres will hold a public hearing on the contents of the Master Plan Draft. This event will begin at 7 p.m. at the Des Peres City Hall. For directions, click here. To view a copy of the draft Master Plan, click here.

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DBB.2014.13St. Louisans are fortunate to enjoy lush greenspace in our numerous parks, fine food offered through restaurants and a growing fleet of food trucks, a vibrant art and music scene, and a champion baseball team. These many assets are clouded by statistics that rank St. Louis as one of the most dangerous cities in the country for pedestrians. In the U.S. as a whole, 12 percent of lethal traffic accidents involve pedestrians. This number compares to 14 percent in Europe and 25 percent in China. In St. Louis, 36 percent of fatal accidents affect pedestrians. 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.

A number of factors have contributed to creating this risky environment for pedestrians, most notably road designs that prioritize automobiles over pedestrian safety, and excessive speed of car traffic. Statistics indicate that pedestrians struck by cars travelling at 20 miles per hour generally suffer minor injuries and fatalities are below 10 percent. As speeds increase, the risk to pedestrians involved in collisions rises dramatically: at 30 mph, 45 percent of pedestrians who are struck suffer fatal injuries; when struck by a car traveling above 40 mph, pedestrian mortality increases to 80 percent.

Trailnet was recently awarded a Plan4Health grant in collaboration with the HEAL Partnership to improve the safety of pedestrians in the city of St. Louis. Our efforts will begin with community meetings in the Ville, Greater Ville, Carondelet, Dutchtown, and Jeff-Vander-Lou neighborhoods to learn about residents’ concerns about pedestrian safety. These meetings will be followed by walk audits and “pop-up traffic calming” demonstrations in the neighborhoods. Traffic-calming measures help to decrease vehicle speeds and provide refuges for pedestrians. These measures include infrastructure changes such as speed bumps, roundabouts and pedestrian islands.

For more information about Plan4Health, please contact us at trailnet@trailnet.org.

Trailnet welcomes new bicycle and pedestrian planner

The Plan4Health grant has brought excitement and new energy to Trailnet’s planning division by allowing us bring on some new talent. We’re excited to announce Grace Kyung has joined the Trailnet team as our new Bicycle and Pedestrian Planner. She comes to Trailnet from Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, where she earned master’s degrees in public health and urban planning from the University of Illinois.

GraceKyung3Grace has a strong passion for active forms of transportation and is an avid bicycle commuter. Aside from being a cost-effective approach to city travel, Grace says she appreciates how riding gives her a lay of the land in St. Louis. She added that riding her bike around the city has given her a helpful lens with which to see various neighborhoods connect with locals. Grace hopes through working on the Plan4Health grant, she can help Trailnet demonstrate effective traffic calming approaches to increase the safety and health of the region’s communities.

Welcome Grace!
For more information about Plan4Health, please contact Grace Kyung at grace@trailnet.org or 314-436-1324 x 110.

Kirkwood City Council Accepts Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan

At a meeting on May 7, the Kirkwood City Council voted to accept the Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan. You can view or download the plan here.

Trailnet would like thank the Planning Advisory Committee and all of the residents that helped shape the plan through their input and comments. The exemplary dedication of the residents, elected officials, and staff of Kirkwood strengthened the planning process.

Final Kirkwood Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan

The final Kirkwood Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan has been presented to City Council. You can view or download the plan here.

Trailnet would like thank the Planning Advisory Committee and all of the residents that helped shape the plan through their input and comments. The exemplary dedication of the residents, elected officials, and staff of Kirkwood strengthened the planning process.

Des Peres Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan Draft Recommendations

Take some time to review the DRAFT recommendations for the plan below and tell us what you think!  The planning team wants to hear what works and what doesn’t in order to make sure the plan is right for Des Peres.

Please contact Marielle Brown, Planning Manager, at marielle@trailnet.org or 314.436.1324 ext. 115 before Monday, June 15, with comments, questions, and recommendations.

You can talk with the planning team about the draft recommendations on Saturday, May 23, at a community walking tour. The planning team will visit communities throughout Des Peres to talk about the plan and answer questions.

 

 

Advocacy Alert: Help ensure funding for safe walking and biking for our youth

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IMG_1987smallHelp make sure that Congress doesn’t cut the Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) funding in the next transportation bill. TAP helps local communities build sidewalks, crosswalks, bike lanes, trails and more. TAP funding supports Safe Routes to School initiatives throughout St. Louis City and County.

IMG_2078smallWithout TAP, hundreds of millions of dollars used to improve streets for walking and biking would evaporate. Some of these funds have been used to support youth programs like Trailnet’s “Steps in the Right Direction” at Froebel Literacy Academy to help make walking and biking a way of life in St. Louis.

IMG_1977smallPlease follow the link below to ask Senators Roy Blunt and Senator Claire McCaskill to support bill S. 705, the Transportation Alternatives Program Improvement Act. Thank you for supporting legislation that will keep our youth walking and biking safely.

https://www.votervoice.net/Shares/Be2UOAVgACIsJAh1gpM7FAA

Des Peres Plan Review and Bicycle Rodeo

The planning team will have a plan review and Bicycle Rodeo set up at the Monster Machines Day in Des Peres Park on Saturday, May 2. Residents of Des Peres are invited to meet the planning team and to provide their input on the plan. For more information, click here.

Biking and Walking Makes Cents – February 24, 2015

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kickstand-3647smallTrailnet introduced their new business membership program at an event on Tuesday, February 24 at the Venture Cafe on the Cortex campus. This invitation-only event served as a great opportunity to share Trailnet’s 2015 plans, to launch Trailnet’s Business Membership Program, and to meet Trailnet’s new executive director, Ralph Pfremmer.

kickstand-3664smallThe attendees were board members, community partners, donors, and prospective business members who spent most of the evening networking and enjoying food and drinks. The room was abuzz with the latest in transportation news and Trailnet’s vision to make walking and biking a way of life in St. Louis.

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As part of the event, Ralph Pfremmer and Jennifer Allen, Director of Strategic Initiatives, presented research on the economic impact protected bikeways and improved walking infrastructure can have on a community. They connected this data to the introduction of Trailnet’s Business Membership Program and how, in becoming a member, businesses can invest in Trailnet’s vision for better walking and biking infrastructure that supports a prosperous, healthy region.

kickstand-3763smallExecutive Director Ralph Pfremmer summed up the evening this way: “In a perfect world, collaboration is abundant, everyone is included, and transparency is the standard. The Trailnet business member understands that together we can foster a quality of life that supports a prosperous, healthy region.”

 

Special thanks to our charter business members:

Pedestal Foods, Britt Hunt, CEO

XLR8, Rick Duree, CEO

Duree Center for Entrepreneurship, Rick Duree, Founder

Retro Image Apparel, Michele and Jim Sherman, owners

Confluence Business Advisors, Ron Tanner and Dave Fingerhut, partners

 

Collaborate with us

kickstand-3643smallAs we work to make walking and biking a way of life in our region, it is critical that we have the resources and support to bring about innovative and positive change in our community. Your business membership provides for us the support we need to be visionary and collaborative leaders for progress. Click here for business membership levels and benefits. For more information contact Kay Barnes, Director of Development – kbarnes@trailnet.org, 314.436.1324 x 104

Thanks to everyone who made the event a success:

Kaori Yazawa and the Venture Cafe team, Dennis Lower and the Cortex Innovation Community, and Pedestal Foods.

Visit our Facebook page to view more photos from the event.

Special thanks to our photographer, Kelly Sleeper.

Stay tuned for our next Business Membership Event – coming this Summer!