Developing & Implementing
Master Bike & Pedestrian Plans
Heleen Dewey
Spokane Regional Health District
March 2010
Objective
• Involve
transportation,
planning and public
health in the
development of
master bike and
pedestrian plans
Public Health & Planning
• A story
About Spokane
About Spokane
• 2008 Spokane County population 459,000
(estimate)
• City of Spokane largest jurisdiction at 204,400
Our health and activity level?
• 60% of County residents overweight or obese
• Fewer than half of all adults and children get
recommended levels of physical activity
2006 Non-Motorized Transportation Study
• Average commute is a half-mile for walkers
and 1½ for bikers
• 1% of trips by bike (2% nationally)
• 9% of trips by walking (same as nation)
• 42% of children are driven
[1]
Nonmortorized Transportation Pilot Program Evaluation Study. University of Minnesota. 2007. Communities
surveyed: Marin County, CA; Minneapolis, MN, Sheboygan, WI, Columbia, MO, and Spokane, WA
How Spokane got started…
• 2004 -$3500 annual grant for 5years from WSDOT/WSDOH in
cooperation with CDC
• Co-facilitated by Spokane Regional
Health District and City of Spokane
• Task Force made up of
professionals, advocates, and
agency representatives
• Facilitated a series of
events/workshops
• Educated elected officials
Active Living Symposium
• Education on connecting public health and planning
specific to our community
Outcomes:
• City of Spokane Plan Commission reviews
Comprehensive Plan for healthy community policies
• Illustrated then Councilwoman Verner’s 2007 Quality
of Life resolution
Connecting the City
• Generate ideas and support to develop a stronger
non-motorized plan within the City of Spokane
• Identify priority projects and effective
policy/regulatory intervention
• Existing plan not implemented and needed updating
• Lack of clarity in non-motorized transportation
planning (funding, RTPO involvement, priorities)
• More communication/collaboration among different
user groups
Outcome of Workshop
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Enforce development standards
Bike/Pedestrian coordinator
Impact fees
Bike boulevards
Stripe streets
Route across river
Sidewalks
Fill gaps
Need pedestrian plans
Spokane Regional Pedestrian Plan
• 3-year DOH Preventative Health Block Grant
• Focus to incorporate physical activity policies
into community pedestrian planning
documents
– First year Regional; Guidance document
provided by Spokane Regional
Transportation Council.
– City of Spokane planning
– Smaller jurisdictions in the county
– Complete Streets education
Pedestrian Plan - Process
• Included a community process with multiple
agencies
• Analyzed current data
• Surveyed residents
• Surveyed planners/engineers in jurisdictions
• Draft plan in a team approach
Residents Survey
Barriers to pedestrian travel:
• Lack of crosswalks
• No sidewalks, sidewalks in disrepair, gaps and
snow removal needed
• Lack of lighting
• Poor driver behaviors
• School issues, too much traffic near schools
and moving too fast thru neighborhoods
Planner Engineer Survey
Barriers to implementing pedestrian facilities:
• Inadequate funding
• Lack of staffing and training
• Lack of pedestrian inventory/network
• Lack of understanding of health & economic
benefits of walking
• Consideration for disabled users
GOALS
GOAL 1:
Support all levels of pedestrian travel by developing
plans, projects, and programs
GOAL 2:
Design & implement
changes in the
infrastructure to increase
pedestrian safety and
connectivity
GOAL 3:
Support the planning, funding, & public knowledge of integrated
networks of paved pedestrian paths that serve as an alternative to
roadways & facilitate non-motorized travel to and through
neighborhoods, shopping, parks, schools, & transit accessible areas.
GOAL 4:
Improve actual &
perceived
pedestrian safety
& security
GOAL 5:
Support all pedestrian travel to improve physical health
& slow obesity & chronic disease
GOAL 6:
Pursue funding to maintain, enhance & expand
pedestrian facilities.
GOAL 7:
Increase the number of school children who walk to
school by 2% from 26% to 28%
Other key public health recommendations
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Regionally significant project list
Complete street policies
Functional trail connections
Support transit use & linkages to transit
Insights
• Understanding each other’s goals, needs, strengths
• Clearinghouse
• Quiet catalyst – could seed the project, didn’t have
to own it
• Capacity – education, outreach, new Ideas
• Unintentional succession plan
• Timing – health, smart growth, gas prices,
sustainability, economics/market demands, political
climate, grassroots
• Another face for funding requests
• Rediscover the connections between planning and
public health
Next steps…
• Quiet Catalyst - partnerships
– YMCA Pioneering Healthier Communities
– SmartRoutes 2010
– Lands Council
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Complete streets resolution – Board of Health
Active Technical Transportation Committee
Health impact assessment training
Active Living Leadership
Elected officials
Heleen Dewey
Physical Activity & Nutrition Program
509-324-1555 hdewey@spokanecounty.org