This presentation provides an overview of Complete Streets. Please visit www.completestreets.org for more information.
This presentation is free for for non-commercial use. For-profit entities wishing to use our presentations and materials in working with clients should contact us at sseskin [at] completestreets [dot] org.
5. Americans want choices
5
of Americans want more
transportation options so they
have the freedom to choose how
to get where they need to go.
Future of Transportation National Survey (2010)
66%
73%
57%
currently feel they have no choice but
to drive as much as they do.
would like to spend less time in the car.
6. Getting out of traffic
6
Future of Transportation National Survey (2010)
7. The tremendous potential
7
Of all trips:
National Household Travel Survey (2009)
50%
are less than
3 miles
28%
are less than
1 mile
60%
are driven
of these trips…
10. Who wants Complete Streets?
10
of older
Americans say
it is unsafe to
cross a major
street near
their home.
Planning Complete Streets for the Aging of America, AARP
47% 54% 56%
of older Americans
living in inhospitable
neighborhoods say
they would walk and
bike more often if the
built environment
improved.
express strong
support for
adoption of
Complete
Streets policies.
11. Who wants Complete Streets?
Millennials are driving less and looking for
other transportation options.
11
12. Incomplete streets are unsafe
More than 40% of pedestrian deaths in
2007 and 2008 occurred where no
crosswalk was available.
12
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Fatality Reporting System
13. Incomplete streets are unsafe
Especially for:
• People of color
• Low-income
communities
• Older adults
• Children
13
27. Complete Streets policies
Ensure that the entire right-of-way is
planned, designed, constructed, operated,
and maintained to provide safe access for
all users
27
28. Complete Streets:
Is a high-level policy
direction
Changes the everyday
decision-making
processes and
systems
Represents an
incremental approach
Has long-term results
28
29. Complete Streets is not:
• One “special” street project
• 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
29
44. For more information
• Model policies & reports
• Best Complete Streets Policies
• Local Policy Workbook
• Implementation resources
• Latest news
www.completestreets.org
www.smartgrowthamerica.org
44
45. National Complete Streets Coalition
Steering Committee
45
AARP
AECOM
Alliance for Biking & Walking
America Walks
American Planning Association
APTA
American Society of Landscape
Architects
Association of Pedestrian and
Bicycle Professionals
Institute of Transportation
Engineers
National Association of City
Transportation Officials
National Association of Realtors
NelsonNygaard
Smart Growth America
SRAM
Stantec
SvR Design Company
46. Copyright & use
This presentation is licensed under a Creative
Commons license permitting non-commercial use
with attribution. Any of these conditions may be
waived with permission.
For-profit organizations wishing to use this
presentation should contact us at
sseskin@completestreets.org or 773-270-3534.
For more information about this license, please visit:
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/
46
47. Smart Growth America is the only national organization
dedicated to researching, advocating for and leading
coalitions to bring smart growth practices to more
communities nationwide.
www.smartgrowthamerica.org
1707 L St. NW Suite 250, Washington, DC 20036 | 202-207-3355
Hinweis der Redaktion
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. They are designed and operated to enable safe access for all users. Pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists, and public transportation users of all ages and abilities are able to safely move along and across a complete street.Photos, L-R: Pamela Palma, pedbikeimages.org; Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute;
Complete Streets make it easy to cross the street, walk to shops, and bicycle to work. They allow buses to run on time and make it safe for people to walk to and from train stations.Photos (all): Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute
Tremendous potential for to convert short tripsfrom driving to walking/bicycling.Data: National Household Travel Survey, 2009
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 InstituteData: National Household Travel Survey, 2009Policy Link, Prevention Institute, & Convergence Partnership. (2009). The Transportation Prescription
Source: CDC 2012, infographic from newpublichealth.org
Complete Streets policies are important for older adults, who want to remain in their communities and stay mobile. That makes Complete Streets very important for our nation, as by 2025, the number of people over the age of 65 will more than double (to about 62 million), representing 18 percent of the population (nearly one in five Americans). The AARP report cited here also notes that two-thirds of planners and engineers have not begun prepare for this.The 2009 National Household Travel Survey found that the percent of people who have stopped driving doubles each decade after the age of 65. About half of non-drivers do not travel at all, but would like to! The lack of opportunities to take transit, to bike safely, and to walk safely makes travel to the store, doctor, or to visit family and friends impossible.
Annual miles traveled by car among 16- to 34-year olds dropped 23 percent from 2001-2009 (Frontier Group). Miles traveled by drivers under 20 dropped from 21 percent to 14 percent of the total between 1995 and 2009 Source: FHWA Photo: Dan Burden, PBIC
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 SystemPhoto: Virginia (Cheryl Cort, Coalition for Smarter Growth)
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 deathsIn 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
Photo:Streetsblog- by Bryan Goebel http://www.orangephotography.com/
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; StreetsblogImage Source: Oran Viriyincy via Flickr, Seattle, WA
All over the US, there areexamples of streets built with all users in mind…Photo: Andy Hamilton
Photo: Abby Hall, EPA
Photo by Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute
But in so many parts of the US we are still building streets like this…
Photo: Barbara McCann, National Complete Streets Coalition
Photo, right: Jackson, Mississippi (Dr. Scott Crawford)
Photo: Charlotte NC DOT
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
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 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.
And when applied to transportation projects, a Complete Streets policy results in streets that are safer for everyone and that compliment the surrounding community – from rural areas to urban.Photo: Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute
And when applied to transportation projects, a Complete Streets policy results in streets that are safer for everyone and that compliment the surrounding community – from rural areas to urban.
And when applied to transportation projects, a Complete Streets policy results in streets that are safer for everyone and that compliment the surrounding community – from rural areas to urban.
And when applied to transportation projects, a Complete Streets policy results in streets that are safer for everyone and that compliment the surrounding community – from rural areas to urban.Photo: Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute
And when applied to transportation projects, a Complete Streets policy results in streets that are safer for everyone and that compliment the surrounding community – from rural areas to urban.Photo by Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute
Raised islands typically placed in the middle of four-way intersections, traffic circles are used to address speeding and traffic accidents and are most effective on neighborhood streets. Traffic circles reduce accidents and vehicle speeds but not necessarily traffic volume, benefitting residents on adjacent streets by avoiding traffic diversion and residents on treated streets by calming traffic. Seattle residents like them so much that they submit upwards of 700 requests for new circles each year. Traffic circles also benefit bicyclists because they decrease the difference in speed between bicycles and automobiles, making streets feel more comfortable. Sources: http://www.bicyclinginfo.org/bikesafe/case_studies/casestudy.cfm?CS_NUM=503Photo: Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute
Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) is a form of public transportation that offers riders improved service, similar to a rail system, but costs significantly less than a rail system to build and operate. The goal of BRT is to save passengers time and provide a higher quality of service. Successful BRT systems benefit existing riders while attracting new transit users. Key features of true BRT systems include dedicated bus lanes, off-board fare collection, signal priority, and at-grade boarding. Other design features can include center median alignment, system branding and attractive stations. BRT should be integrated with existing transit network and be accessible by foot and bicycle. BRT has been shown to benefit local economies: cities such as Cleveland and New York City have seen new economic development and decreases in retail vacancies along system corridors. In Cleveland, the Health Line has stimulated over $5.8 billion in development and increased ridership 60 percent since it opened in 2008 on the Euclid Avenue corridor.Sources: Metropolitan Planning Commission: http://www.metroplanning.org/work/project/3, Institute for Transportation and Development: http://www.itdp.org/index.php?/microsites/brt-standard/, Greater Cleveland Regional Transportation Authority: http://www.riderta.com/, NYC DOT: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/downloads/pdf/2012-10-measuring-the-street.pdfPhoto by CianGinty (wikipedia)Orange Line, Los Angeles
Neighborhood greenways are slow-speed, low-volume streets where neighborhood residents who are walking or bicycling are given priority. Designing streets as neighborhood greenways reduces automobile speeds and cut-through traffic; provides safer, more attractive bicycling and walking links; and makes residential streets safer and quieter. In developing neighborhood greenways, planners and designers utilize tools including special signage, bicycle-friendly speed bumps, and adding traffic barriers. Neighborhood greenways are opportunities for creative landscaping, public art, and community spaces. In Portland, Oregon, planners utilize a variety of infrastructure tools to develop an extensive neighborhood greenway network that allows bicyclists comfortable and safe ways to move through the city, including crossing larger streets.Sources: Active Transportation Alliance: http://www.activetrans.org/modeshift/04_05/greenways, Portland Bureau of Transportation: http://www.portlandoregon.gov/transportation/50518, Streetsfilms: http://www.streetfilms.org/portlands-bike-boulevards-become-neighborhood-greenways/Photo:Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute
Angled head-out parking is on-street parking where drivers back into parking spaces, placing the rear of the car closest to the curb. This strategy improves safety for occupants of the car and for passing vehicles and bicyclists. Angled head-out parking provides drivers entering traffic with greater visibility, decreasing the likelihood of crashes. By changing the orientation of the car so the trunk is close to the curb, angled head-out parking improves safety for children getting out of the car and people loading items in their trunks. In the first four years of implementation in Tucson, AZ, treated segments went from 3-4 auto-bicycle crashes a month to no reported crashes. This type of parking benefits local economies because it uses less curb space per car than traditional parallel parking and is often used on main streets. Sources: Nelson\\Nygaard Consulting Associates: http://lda.ucdavis.edu/LDA191/Course%20Handouts%20%26%20Readings/05-Back_in_Diagonal_Parking.pdfPhoto by Eric Fredericks (neighborhoods.org)
Cycle tracks are on-street bicycle facilities separated from vehicle travel lanes, parking lanes, and sidewalks by medians, bollards, and markings. Cycle tracks combine the user experience of a separated path with the on-street convenience of a conventional lane. In separating bicyclists from automobile traffic, cycle tracks can make bicyclists feel more comfortable and attract new bicyclists. They also clarify expected behavior for bicyclists and automobiles, decreasing the risk of bicyclists being hit by open car doors. Cycle tracks are growing in popularity in North America and can be found in cities such as Cambridge, MA; New York City, Portland, OR; and Washington, D.C. In Montreal, streets with this treatment have 2.5 as many bicyclists and 28 percent lower injury rates than streets without cycle tracks.Sources: Bicyclinginfo.org http://www.bicyclinginfo.org/faqs/answer.cfm?id=3962; NACTO Urban Bikeway Design Guide, http://nacto.org/cities-for-cycling/design-guide/cycle-tracks/; Lusk, C., Furth, P., et al. (2011). Risk of injury for bicycling on cycle tracks versus the street. (2011). http://injuryprevention.bmj.com/content/early/2011/02/02/ip.2010.028696.full.pdf; Photo: http://orange20bikes.com/uploads/blogimages/2011/04/LBC_cycletrack_02.jpg photo by Orange Bikes
Modern roundabouts channel intersection traffic in a circular pattern where incoming traffic yields to the flow of traffic within the roundabout. They are effective tools in urban and rural areas at major intersections and near freeways to improve safety and manage speed. Converting to a modern roundabout can lead to dramatic reductions in severe traffic accidents: up to 82 percent when converting from a two-way stop controlled mechanism and up to 78 percent when converting from a signalized intersection. The Federal Highway Administration recommends modern roundabouts for new and retrofit construction.Source: FHWA: http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/provencountermeasures/fhwa_sa_12_005.htmPhoto: Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities InstituteHonolulu, HI
The AASHTO Guide for the Development of Bicycle Facilities recommends adding paved shoulders to rural roads to accommodate for bicyclists. Paved shoulders create space for those traveling by bike – and by foot! – on these roads. Because these user groups are not competing for space at different travel speeds, paved shoulders help improve safety for all. Shoulders are also a useful tool for those who are driving, providing safe space to pull over if needed. Many states have policies to provide paved shoulders. The Wisconsin DOT, for example, paves 3-foot shoulders on highways where daily automobile traffic exceeds 1,000 vehicles if bicyclists regularly use the road.Sources: Bicyclinginfo.org: http://www.bicyclinginfo.org/engineering/facilities-shoulders.cfmPhoto: Fabb-bikes.org
Our website is home to many resources, including fact sheets, policy tracking and examples, information on changing policy from advocacy to implementation, links to research and publications, and information on federal policy. From our website, you’ll also find our blog and twitter feed, which are great ways to stay up to date on complete streets and transportation issues in general.Photo:Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute