City of St. Charles and Trailnet seek input on bicycle pedestrian plan
Since fall of 2015, the City of St. Charles has worked with Trailnet, a local nonprofit dedicated to improving walking and biking, to create a bicycle and pedestrian master plan. In order to illustrate street changes laid out in the plan, Trailnet and the city will hold a pop-up traffic calming demonstration from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, June 21.
The purpose of holding the demonstration is to depict how proposed street changes will affect the flow of traffic and improve safety for those who walk and bike. Through the demonstration, Trailnet and the City of St. Charles aim to give residents, policymakers, and businesses the chance to learn how traffic calming could improve quality of life. The traffic-calming demonstration will utilize proven methods of creating safer streets for people who walk or bicycle.
“This is a synergistic approach between Trailnet, St. Charles City Parks, and Public Works to improve our community,” said Kevin Corwin, city engineer with the City of St. Charles. “We foresee a cultural shift towards a multimodal lifestyle where people want to live in cities with an interconnected system of bikeways and pedestrian paths. Demonstrating how these changes will influence traffic movements is essential to the project’s success.”
Trailnet and the City of St. Charles encourage those interested to attend the demonstration to learn firsthand about the benefits of bicycle-friendly and pedestrian-friendly communities as well as offer input on the proposed changes.
All are invited to experience the demonstration to learn about proposed changes to Riverside Drive, such as improving the visibility of crosswalks to increase safety for those who walk. Trailnet will put on three demonstrations in the City of St. Charles at different locations on Riverside Drive—the intersection of Riverside and Jefferson Street, the intersection of Riverside and Tompkins Street, and in front of the Bike Stop Cafe on Riverside and Perry Street.
New St. Louis Pedestrian Safety Plan notes progress but lacks comprehensive strategy
Without a doubt we can make St. Louis one of the best regions for walking and biking in the country IF traffic safety is significantly improved. That’s why Trailnet—a frequent partner with the City of St. Louis—will also continue to push the City and other governments to do more to make our streets safer, particularly for those who walk and bike.
Last year, according to Missouri STARS reports, 21 people were hit and killed by vehicles while walking in St. Louis—more than five times the national average. An additional 134 people walking were seriously injured. Among those biking, one person was killed and 47 were seriously injured. The public should not be lulled into accepting these traffic fatalities and disabling injuries as an inevitable byproduct of transportation. Crashes are preventable.
A positive step in the right direction came last October, when Jamie Wilson, the first Bicycle and Pedestrian Coordinator for the City of St. Louis, started work.
Recently, Wilson produced a four-page document titled, “City of St. Louis Pedestrian Safety Action Plan (2015/16),” which was posted without fanfare on the City’s website at the end of April. The PSAP conveys some of Wilson’s progress to date and looks ahead to work anticipated through 2016, but it is not a comprehensive strategy with clear targets for reducing crash injuries and deaths. Read on for our thoughts—pro and con—on the plan contents.
The Positive Actions in Progress
Engineered improvements for pedestrian safety in high priority corridors and intersections are being implemented.
A crash database has been created for identifying hot spot areas needing to be addressed.
Policies and practices for planning and designing the City transportation network are being enhanced.
New communications outlets have been implemented for the public’s walking and biking concerns to be addressed.
New transportation improvements have been recommended in all twenty-eight wards.
A “Stop for Pedestrians” ordinance is being developed with the Board of Aldermen.
Potential Actions in the Future
Development of a Bicycle Safety Action Plan.
Development of a City-Wide Safety Education Campaign, contingent on grant funding, that will include education and enforcement for street safety, with focused efforts in high crash neighborhoods.
Development of school-based education, contingent on grant funding, on traffic safety best practices.
Frequent media communications about bike/ped safety updates.
What’s Missing
A problem statement.
Clarity as to how this plan relates to others, specifically the more detailed 2013 St. Louis PSAP, which was never officially adopted by the City.
Comprehensive strategies, including enforcement, which identify detailed actions, timelines, responsible parties, and performance measures.
A sense of what guides the City beyond this calendar year when this 2015/16 PSAP expires.
Five months ago Trailnet asked the Mayor’s office to join 17 other US cities that are now using the growing best practice of Vision Zero. There’s evidence it’s working:
However, the Mayor’s office declined our recommendation because the City lacks funds for implementation. We said the city must have an action plan. The Mayor’s Office agreed, and this is what the City has now produced. It’s a step in the right direction, but ultimately not comprehensive enough.
Next Steps for Trailnet
Trailnet will keep pushing the City, and working with the City, to make our streets safer for all users. The new plan mentions several actions the City will take in the next six months. We will hold the City accountable to this timeline and work with them in whatever way possible to make sure this progress is made and reported.
Walk Bike Ambassador Activities
Michele Oesch
Trailnet’s 12 Walk Bike Ambassadors are located throughout the St. Louis region. Their activities include assisting with Trailnet advocacy campaigns and helping to address walking and biking issues in their own communities. For example, Michele Oesch of the Skinker De Baliviere neighborhood in St. Louis recently had several successes in improving accessibility and safety.
Michelle used the online Citizens’ Service Bureau system to get the direction of a grate changed on McPherson in the Skinker Debaliviere neighborhood. Seems like a small change, but less tires stuck in grates is good for safety.
“It was really empowering to see how I could work through the City’s processes for improvements in bicycle-safety in my neighborhood,” Michele said.
Deidre Brown
Deidre Brown of Florissant is not only a Trailnet Walk Bike Ambassador and a GirlTrek St. Louis Team Leader, but she has now been awarded a Walking College Fellowship by America Walks, a national advocacy organization that promotes walking and walkable communities. The Fellowship will enable Deidre and 24 other advocates from around the country to participate in a four-month training program designed to strengthen local efforts to make communities more walkable. Deidre will also get to participate in the international Pro Walk, Pro Bike, Pro Place conference in Vancouver, British Columbia in September.
“I’m excited to have another tool to bring about political and social change and be a role model for reclaiming neighborhood streets and reestablishing the tradition of walking and biking as an everyday activity,” Deidre said.
Trailnet is again providing secure and complimentary Bike Valet for people cycling to Fair Saint Louis in Forest Park. Since the Park will be closed to vehicle traffic during the Fair, attendees are being encouraged to use bikes, walking, or MetroLink to get to the festivities.
Bike valets operate like a coat check for bicycles. Valet volunteers will give cyclists a claim ticket and park and retrieve bicycles from the bike racks. Shifts are three hours and will be staffed by 6 volunteers and one Trailnet staff member at each station.
What a great opportunity to gather friends, family and co-workers to team up and support Trailnet, active transportation, and CO2 reduction!
Any questions, call Chris Dowling at 314-436-1324 ext. 133 or email chris@trailnet.org
Trailnet partners with Whole Foods Markets for One Dime at a Time
St. Louis area Whole Foods Markets have selected Trailnet as their “One Dime at a Time Partner” from now through the end of June. Customers who bring their own bags into the store have the option of receiving a ten-cent per bag refund at checkout, or have a dime donated by Whole Foods to Trailnet. The partnership encourages patrons to reduce consumption of disposable plastic or paper bags and also helps to make customers aware of non-profit organizations that work in the local community.
Trailnet staff will be celebrating the One Dime at a Time partnership at all of the Whole Foods stores in the area. Come by and visit with Trailnet staff at these locations:
Central West End store during their Grand Opening on Wednesday, May 25th in the morning, and Sunday, June 12thfrom 12 to 3 p.m.
Galleria store Saturdays, May 28th and June 25th from 12 to 3 p.m.
Town and Country store Sunday, May 22nd and Saturday, June 18th from 12 to 3 p.m.
Trailnet Visits Jefferson City for Bicycle and Pedestrian Day at the Capitol
On April 11, a Trailnet delegation of nine advocates traveled to Jefferson City for Bicycle and Pedestrian Day at the Capitol, joining other advocates from around the state to support and oppose certain bills in the House and Senate. Three Trailnet staff, one board member, two Walk Bike Ambassadors, and three long-time Trailnet members spent the day lobbying state representatives and senators.
One of the highlights of the day was the chance meeting with two couples from Wisconsin and California who happened to be on a Katy Trail vacation. They heard about HB 2047, which would allow motorized vehicles on the Katy Trail, and came to the Capitol to ask questions.
“We won’t ever come visit this area again if Missouri allows motorized vehicles on the Katy,” one Katy Trail adventurer said before asking, “Who can we talk to?”
Trailnet managed to schedule a meeting with them and a Republican House member where the travelers effectively presented their opposition to HB 2047 as people who love the Katy just the way it is.
With just weeks left in the legislative session, we continue to monitor the status of HB 2047 and other bills. Alerts will go out if any action is needed.
For ten years, Harold Karabell has led bicycle tours that highlight St. Louis’ unique neighborhoods and interesting inhabitants, both living and deceased. Riders on his tours have pedaled their way through Calvary and Bellefontaine cemeteries, LaSalle Park and Soulard, Old North and “North of Old North” (Hyde Park, College Hill, and O’Fallon Park), exploring the history and architecture of these fascinating parts of St. Louis. He recently led Trailnet’s Literary Tour, winding through the Central West End, Academy, and Fountain Park neighborhoods, regaling riders with the life stories of local writers such as Tennessee Williams, T.S. Eliot, and Kate Chopin while reading selections from their works. Of all of the tours that he leads, Harold lists the cemetery and literary tours as the most popular, though he himself plays no favorites.
“People seem truly fascinated by well-known authors and tombstones,” Harold says.
Harold is also a dedicated bike commuter, using his bicycle as his principal mode of transportation, a lifestyle that he concedes is a relatively new phenomenon.
“Forty-five years ago, I didn’t know a single adult bicycle commuter,” Harold says. “You would see children on bikes using them for fun and recreation, but seeing an adult bike commuter was even more unusual than dining with a vegan. My wife and I used our bikes much of the time when we became parents and were able to serve as a model of alternative transportation for the next generation. Now bikes are accepted as a legitimate and even preferred form of transportation for increasing numbers of people. We’re not marginal any longer, we’re almost mainstream.”
Harold believes that this shift came about in part because of people’s concerns about our energy dependence and related environmental issues, such as global warming.
“It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by some of the big environmental problems that we face. Riding a bicycle is the single most important thing that an individual can do to make a real contribution and feel good about yourself.”
A long-time resident of the Central West End, Harold feels fortunate to live in a “self-sufficient and sustainable neighborhood.” He describes St. Louis City as “a bike commuter’s paradise – it’s very easy for an educated cyclist to get anywhere they need to go in the city.”
Harold also sees Trailnet as an important agent for change in transportation habits.
“As the pre-eminent bicycle enthusiasm organization in the region, Trailnet builds a constituency of bicyclists and pedestrians and helps move alternative forms of transportation from the margins to the mainstream,” he says.
Going forward, Harold believes Trailnet’s most important focus should be education.
“One can learn, as I have, to ride safely and successfully anywhere in the absence of separate infrastructure, simply by taking one’s place on the road as part of the normal flow of traffic,” Harold said. “Nonetheless, we’re seeing more and better infrastructure each year. The best local example is the City’s protected bike lane on Chestnut Street, a considerable step forward compared to St. Louis’ older door-zone bike lanes. But even the best-designed infrastructure contains not-so-obvious dangers and won’t automatically prevent conflicts between bicyclists and other users of the road. Cyclists need to educate ourselves not to run red lights, not to ride in the door zone, not to be victims of the ‘right hook’ at an intersection, not to be nighttime ninjas, and not to ignore the risks inherent in riding even in state-of-the-art separate facilities.”
Whether commuters or recreational riders, people have many reasons for riding a bike – they might do so to lose weight, to save money at the gas pump, or to do their part for the environment. Harold agrees with his long-time friend Paul McFarlane from the former St. Louis Regional Bicycle Federation (which became part of Trailnet in 2011), who sums it up this way: “The bicycle is the answer to every question.”
For Harold, the most important motivation for riding a bicycle is that it’s simply the most pleasurable way to travel.
“If it weren’t just joyful to get on a bike, most of us wouldn’t do it in the first place,” he says. “Being on a bike opens up the sights and sounds of the city in a way that no other vehicle can. Not being confined inside a car allows you to see your neighborhood in a new and exciting way, to hear the birds, to discover that very large part of the world that remains unknown and unknowable when speeding along in a car.”
In that spirit, Harold says, “Nothing makes me happier than to be on my bike heading toward a dinner date with a good veggie burger. Forty-five years ago, who would have imagined that such a thing would be possible for so many of us on an everyday basis?”
Trailnet and Active Trans
Trailnet Selected as Technical Assistance Provider in Chicago Initiative
We are excited to announce that Trailnet will be providing technical assistance on our traffic calmingmodel to the Active Transportation Alliance. The Active Transportation Alliance is a non-profit advocacy organization that works to improve conditions for bicycling, walking and transit and engage people in healthy and active ways to get around the Chicago region.
In April, Trailnet staff met with Active Transportation Alliance staff in Chicago to talk about their project and tour the target communities. Together they scouted sites for upcoming demonstrations and discussed project details. We are happy to announce that, as a result of our Plan 4 Health, we will collaborate on a project that includes several pop-up traffic calming demonstrations across the Chicago region.
The demonstrations will highlight traffic calming initiatives and help residents visualize what complete streets programs could look like in their communities. Trailnet staff will return to the city for a two-day event on June 8 and 9 in the community of Willow Springs.
Sixty years ago, the League of American Bicyclists designated the month of May as National Bike Month. This is a perfect time to celebrate the many benefits of bicycling and to encourage more folks to give biking a try.
Here at Trailnet, we’ll be celebrating bikes all month long with a Shift Your Commute May Challenge, with National Bike to Work Day, and by giving away this great Electra Cruiser to the lucky winner of our bike raffle. This 7-speed classic aluminum cruiser features a step-through frame, twist shifter, fenders, a comfy seat, and balloon tires.
Here’s how you can enter to win:
donate $25 or more to Trailnet on Give STL Day, May 3rd
buy raffle tickets online, by phone, or at Trailnet events
The drawing will be held on June 1st. Spend the Summer cruising around town on your new wheels!
For information or to buy tickets by phone, contact Carol Schmidt at (314) 436-1324 ext. 103 or carol@trailnet.org.
Thanks to for the generous donation of the bike.
Century Club 2016
The 2015 ride season was the first year for Trailnet’s Century Club. Riders that completed five centuries on Trailnet BFC and/or partner rides earned a Century Club patch and recognition on our website. Last year, ten riders pedaled through this daunting feat, one of whom completed nine out of the ten eligible centuries!
For 2016 we challenge our riders to more than double the size of the Century Club – be one of the riders who helps us reach our goal of 25 members! Eligible events include the Ride the Rivers Century, other BFC rides that include century options, or any of our partner fundraising events that include a century ride.
It’s easy to “join” the club. For each ride, the online registration page includes a check box to participate in the century. If you are riding for one of our partner fundraising rides, let them know you are participating in Trailnet’s Century Club.
As the season goes on, we will keep you updated on the list of riders pedaling their way to their 500 mile goal!
One of the highlights of the day was the chance meeting with two couples from Wisconsin and California who happened to be on a Katy Trail vacation. They heard about 
