Promoting active transportation, such as walking or biking, in street design requires careful consideration of various strategies to create a safe, accessible, and inviting environment. Here are some key strategies that can be employed:
1. Develop a Complete Streets Approach: Implement a comprehensive "Complete Streets" policy, where streets are designed to accommodate all users, including pedestrians, cyclists, motorists, and public transportation users. This approach prioritizes active transportation by integrating bike lanes, wider sidewalks, pedestrian crossings, and improved public transportation infrastructure into street designs.
2. Implement Protected Bike Lanes: Create physically separated bike lanes from vehicle traffic using barriers like curbs, planters, or bollards. Protected bike lanes provide a sense of safety and comfort for cyclists, encouraging more people to use bikes as a means of transportation.
3. Create Shared Spaces: Design streets as shared spaces where pedestrians, cyclists, and vehicles coexist harmoniously. By removing traditional demarcations like curbs, using textured surfaces, and incorporating pedestrian-friendly features, these shared spaces encourage slower vehicle speeds, enhancing safety and promoting active transportation.
4. Build Walkable Infrastructure: Prioritize the needs of pedestrians by designing wider sidewalks, installing pedestrian-scale lighting, constructing curb extensions (also known as bulb-outs) at intersections to decrease crossing distances, and adding benches, greenery, and street furniture to create a pleasant walking experience.
5. Enhance Safety Measures: Improve safety by adding well-marked crosswalks, accessible pedestrian signals (APS) for visually impaired individuals, and raised crosswalks or speed humps to calm traffic. Implementing traffic calming measures helps create a safer environment for walking and biking, encouraging more people to choose these modes of transportation.
6. Improve Intersection Designs: Enhance intersection design to prioritize active transportation. Add bike boxes, advanced stop lines, and bicycle-specific signal phases to allow cyclists a head start at signals. Install pedestrian countdown timers, clear signage, and highly visible road markings to improve pedestrian safety and encourage walking.
7. Promote Connectivity and Access: Develop a connected network of sidewalks, bike lanes, and pathways linking key destinations such as residential areas, schools, workplaces, parks, and public transit stops. Consider the needs of all users when designing these networks to ensure seamless connectivity and accessibility.
8. Involve the Community: Engage the local community in the design process to incorporate their input, as they are key stakeholders in promoting active transportation. Conduct surveys, town hall meetings, or design charrettes to understand community needs and expectations, fostering a sense of ownership and support for active transportation initiatives.
9. Provide Adequate Bicycle Parking: Install secured and easily accessible bicycle parking racks or lockers near key destinations like shopping centers, schools, or transit stops. Sufficient and convenient bike parking encourages people to cycle instead of using cars.
10. Educate and Encourage Active Transportation: Combine street design strategies with public education campaigns to promote active transportation. Conduct workshops, distribute informational materials, or involve local schools to teach safe walking and biking practices, encouraging more people to adopt these modes of transportation.
By employing these strategies, urban planners, engineers, and policymakers can create street designs that prioritize and promote active transportation, leading to healthier, more sustainable, and livable communities.
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