"We deeply regret that comments made by on-air personalities were misinterpreted. Clear Channel does not condone advocating violence in any form."—Clear Channel Radio CEO John Hogan, after disc jockeys at three of the company's stations urge listeners to attack bicyclists with tactics that include slamming on car brakes, throwing open car doors suddenly, and beaning riders with soda bottles.
In most Missouri cities, MoDOT roads are both the most important commercial centers and also the most pedestrian and bicycle unfriendly roads in the city. MoDOT policies and procedures have a strong influence on the transportation policies and practices of all Missouri counties, cities and towns.
For this reason, MoDOT leaders must fully support the creation of a true multimodal transportation system. The director and commissioners must be interested in and knowledgeable about the big factors that influence transportation planning such as sprawl, smart growth, public health, connectivity and transportation choice.
And at least one member of the Highways and Transportation Commission should be a representative of the community of transportation alternatives ? someone very knowledgeable about pedestrian, bicycling and transit issues. These issues are vital for Missouri's future and someone needs to speak for them at the highest levels of statewide transportation planning and policy.
What can you do? Clip or print this article from the Star and send it, along with a brief personal note saying that you support the idea, to:
Missouri Governor Bob Holden Missouri Capitol Building, Room 216
PO Box 720
Jefferson City, MO 65102-0720
Telephone: (573) 751-3222
FAX: (573) 751-1495
Email: mogov@mail.state.mo.us
Governor Holden will appoint the two new MHTC members.
MoDOT James B. Anderson, Chair of Director Search Committee
Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission
POB 1687
202 S John Q Hammons Parkway
Springfield, MO 65806
MoDOT's email submission form 1-888-ASK-MODOT
When emailing comments, include a note that they are "ATTN: MoDOT Director Search Committee"
Missouri Bicycle Federation Board Meeting February 1st
Place: Panera Bread on Missouri Boulevard in Jefferson City (directions below)
Date: February 1, 2004
Time: 1 P.M.
Agenda:
1. Minutes of previous meeting (5 min)
2. Follow-up on previous action items (5 min)
3. Membership (20 min)
Dues
Membership drive
Possible fund-raising activities 4. MBF's bank account (Paul) (5 min)
5. Legislation (20 min)
Legislative report (Mike)
Support from other groups
Strategy 6. MoDOT director/commissioners campaign (10 min)
7. Ohio Bicycle Federation's Cyclist-Friendly community program (5 min)
8. TEA reauthorization (10 min)
9. Rumble strips (10 min)
10. Bike conferences (10 min)
11. Bridges (5 min)
12. MBF's future--what's you're vision of it? (15 min)
13. Discussion/other issues (15 min)
Directions: From the intersection of Highways 50, 63 and 54 in Jefferson City, go west on Missouri Boulevard. Pass KMart on the right and park in the Panera Bread parking lot on the right side (between KMart and Big O Tire, across the street from Hastings). The restaurant is just east of the intersection of Stadium and Missouri Blvd. 2226 Missouri Blvd, 573-893-7656.
This was an unscientific online poll, with all the caveats and possible problems that suggests. Nevertheless, the results are interesting and provocative
Aggressive driving and distracted driving (together, 49%) were a much higher concern than drunk driving (17%). Even large trucks (22%) were considered more of a problem than drunk driving.
80% approved of the federal government mandated higher fuel efficiency standards.
Respondents were asked to divide $100 of money spent on roads into four different categories. Here is the average breakdown:
Maintaining and/or expanding existing roads $60
New roads $17
Public transit $16
Bicycle/pedestrian projects $7
Right now, bike/ped spending is about $1 out of every hundred (despite the fact that about 10% of actual transportation is on bike or on foot, and about 10% of the injuries/deaths on the roads are of cyclists or pedestrians).
Local planning organizations make bike/ped-friendly streets better than state DOTs
Friday, January 23, 2004
Are a lot of the streets in your area designed for autos only, with little or no thought for bicycle and pedestrian needs? Maybe it has something to do with the organizations that planned those roads . . .
Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) are quasi-governmental organizations that help plan transportation for an entire metropolitan region. MPOs are like a council of governments. Most every metropolitan area of over 50,000 population has an MPO. Two MPOs in Missouri are the Mid-America Regional Council (MARC, Kansas City) and the East-West Gateway Coordinating Council (St. Louis).
According to a recent report by the Brookings Institution, MPOs, which are closer to local governments and local needs, do a better job of providing for multimodal transportation (transit, walking, bicycling) than do state DOTs, which like to concentrate on highway building. According to one summary of the report:
The concept of metropolitan planning organizations was first codified in 1973 with the Federal Aid Highway Act, but MPOs did not gain much responsibility until the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) passed Congress in 1991. ISTEA required that MPOs create long-range and short-range transportation plans while also suballocating some state funding to the organizations.
But states continue to hold the most sway when it comes to transportation spending, the Brookings researchers found. "The reality is that the state receives and manages all the federal transportation money, as well as large amounts of state transportation money, and the state political leverage is far greater than the MPOs'," the report said.
States may not be the best managers when it comes to local needs, especially when it comes to multimodal planning, the authors said. Examining federal funds over which MPOs have exclusive control, Brookings found that "these metropolitan entities are much more likely to fund local transit needs than state DOTs."
Planning organizations spent 9.3 percent of their Surface Transportation Program funding on transit projects, while state DOTs only spent 2.5 percent of their STP funds on transit in metropolitan areas, the report found.
For much the same reason MPOs are a good idea for metropolitan areas, State Planning Organizations (SPOs) are a good idea for states. An SPO, which would bring together transportation, planning, health, conservation, transit, public interest groups and other organizations with a stake in long-range planning for the state, could be a big part of the solution for Missouri's current transportation crisis.
According to a New York Times story breaking down obesity related medical spending state by state, Missouri spends $1.6 billion, or 6.1% of total medical expenditures, on obesity-related expenses (Source: RTI International and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention).
Surely with obesity expense that high in just one single state, Congress can afford to fully fund the Safe Routes to School program, a common sense program designed to help make Americans more fit and less obese . . .
The nationwide cost of Safe Routes to School is but a small fraction of one state's yearly obesity bill.
The new law creates tougher penalties for people whose bad and dangerous driving injures or kills. Let’s face it--one reason people drive dangerously is because they know they can get away with it. Under the new law, they won’t. This law makes recklessly or knowingly injuring or killing with an automobile a criminal offence. Common-sense standards allow these provisions to be applied against drivers who habitually or knowingly drive dangerously or illegally, when their dangerous driving causes injury or death.
At the same time, poor drivers will be required to take a driving class demonstrated to be effective in making them safer and more responsible.
Examples of consequences under old and new laws:
A woman sped through a School Zone, illegally changed lanes to pass other cars stopped at a crosswalk, and then ran over UMKC student Pei Chen in a crosswalk, killing her.
OLD LAW: Misdemeanor charge, a slap on the wrist. 4 driver’s license points (same as driving through a stop sign twice).
NEW LAW: 2nd degree involuntary manslaughter, a felony. Automatic 2 year license revocation (possibly longer). No "limited driving" allowed during revocation period. Required driver’s ed course, targeted at improving aggressive drivers, before driving again.
A bus driver drove through a crosswalk while turning through an intersection. The bus struck Susie Stephens, who was crossing in the crosswalk, knocking her under the rear wheels of the bus and crushing her to death.
OLD LAW: Failure to yield, $500 fine. 4 driver’s license points.
NEW LAW: 2nd degree involuntary manslaughter, a felony. Automatic 2 year license revocation (possibly longer). No "limited driving" allowed during revocation period. Required, driver’s ed course, including specific bike/ped education, before driving again.
A man was fumbling around trying to find something on the floor of his pickup when he drove off onto the shoulder of a road on a bright, clear, sunny day when he rammed into and killed bicyclist Michael Brady, who was riding on the wide shoulder. Shoemaker had 19 convictions for speeding and other driving violations between 1986 and 1999.
OLD LAW: 1 year suspended sentence, 2 years probation. License revoked for one year. Driving school required. (Much of this not required, but at judge’s discretion.)
NEW LAW: 1st degree involuntary manslaughter, a felony. Previous driving record allowed in court to help show recklessness of actions. 7- or 13-year license revocation. Required, tough, driver’s ed course before driving again.
Bicycle and pedestrian accommodations: What did Congress intend with Tea-21?
Sunday, January 18, 2004
Is your local department of transportation or public works department still building roads, highways, and bridges that are not bike/ped friendly? If federal funds are involved in the construction--almost always the case in large projects involving major roads--here is what the U.S. Department of Transportation says is required, in Accommodating Bicycle and Pedestrian Travel: A Recommended Approach:
* Congress clearly intends for bicyclists and pedestrians to have safe, convenient access to the transportation system and sees every transportation improvement as an opportunity to enhance the safety and convenience of the two modes.
* "Due consideration" of bicycle and pedestrian needs should include, at a minimum, a presumption that bicyclists and pedestrians will be accommodated in the design of new and improved transportation facilities.
* To varying extents, bicyclists and pedestrians will be present on all highways and transportation facilities where they are permitted and it is clearly the intent of TEA-21 that all new and improved transportation facilities be planned, designed and constructed with this fact in mind.
* The decision not to accommodate [bicyclists and pedestrians] should be the exception rather than the rule. There must be exceptional circumstances for denying bicycle and pedestrian access either by prohibition or by designing highways that are incompatible with safe, convenient walking and bicycling.
Enhancements in the 2003 edition of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) include increased letter size on street signs and turn-path pavement markings at intersections meant to help older drivers. For pedestrians, the new manual includes guidelines for “animated eyes,” electronic signs that mimic back-and-forth eye movements to serve as a reminder to look both ways before crossing a street; “countdown signals” that tell pedestrians the time remaining to cross a street safely; and crosswalk markings and “in-street” pedestrian signs that focus the eyes of the driver on crosswalk activity.
The revised manual also includes new provisions to help pedestrians with disabilities. For example, the use of barriers to assist in safe navigation of walkways and audible devices to communicate sign information will assist visually impaired individuals. To improve safety for bicyclists, the manual calls for new bicycle lane markings and symbols.
Disappearing sidewalks, impassable crosswalks, unstoppable traffic, malevolent driving. Does it have to be such a jungle out there? . . .
I can remember when -- in a suburban Washington childhood in the '60s and '70s -- walking was common, routine even. We walked to the shopping center, walked to school. I can even remember walking on the Beltway in suburban Maryland the night before the roadway opened.
But somewhere between then and now, walking as an option in suburban America seems to have virtually disappeared. The facts bear this out. Between 1980 and today, the number of children walking to school has fallen from 70 percent to less than 10 nationwide. Walking as a means of getting from here to there is 36 times more dangerous than driving, according to the Surface Transportation Policy Project, a research and advocacy group. Nationally, only 5 percent of all trips are made on foot, but pedestrians account for more than 13 percent of all traffic fatalities.
The article ends with a section about Hwy 50 in Virginia, which officials had originally envisioned as a high-speed four-lane expressway, with $50 million interchanges by8passing several small towns in its path. When local citizens heard about this plan, they took action:
The Route 50 coalition was born and began asking questions, which led its members to the leaders of the new urbanism, and "traffic calming" and a federally funded pilot project that its backers say could be a model for the rest of the region, and the country, too. The project proceeded in stages -- years of "charrettes," or design meetings, where everyone from local storekeepers to fire and rescue workers and state highway officials was invited to come and draw on the blueprints. The central notion was that if you want people to drive at 25 mph, you don't build a road that looks like it's designed for 60 mph. Instead, you design it so it looks like you should drive 25, and then, as it turns out, people do. You build in some curves, some raised crosswalks (which reduce pedestrian accidents by a factor of 10, according to the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments), you use brick and other varied paving materials to let drivers know they've left the highway and there are humans afoot.
The full article is quite long but well worth reading in its entirety.
Bicycle-friendly legislation introduced in the MO Senate
Thursday, January 15, 2004
The Missouri Bicycle Federation has been working with Missouri legislators from both parties and in both houses of the Missouri General Assembly, to create legislation that will improve the road environment for Missouri bicyclists, pedestrians, motorcyclists, and motorists.
Please note that both of the above are the initial and not the final versions of the bill--the language will certainly change as it goes through the legislative process.
Transportation has become far too important to be left in the minds, hands, and dollars of people who prefer the existing automobile-dominated system. The new reality is that transportation intersects many other policy areas, especially housing, health, economic development, schools, employment, trade, land use, and the environment. . . .
Considering the much larger sphere of influence of transportation on so much of American society, it is no longer smart to expect state departments of transportation (DOTs), and the transportation commissions that often govern or advise them, to have the resources and expertise to manage the much larger agenda for transportation. . . .
I recommend the creation of state planning organizations (SPOs), analogous to current metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs). SPOs can take a big picture, strategic view of all the state transportation needs policy can address, far more than vehicles and roads. Reporting to governors, SPOs will provide the venue for policy experts from many areas in both the public and private sectors to examine and steer state transportation planning. A key goal is to explicitly examine the impact of transportation policy and planning on other policy areas and vice-versa. Another goal is integration of MPO plans throughout a state and comparable treatment of rural areas and their transportation needs.
MoDOT State of Transportation address, Transportation Day Jan 28th in Jefferson City
This year, for the first time, the director of MoDOT will give a "State of Transportation" Address to the Missouri legislature. The address is required by legislation passed last year.
MoDOT Director Henry Hungerbeeler will give the address to a joint session of the House and Senate at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, January 28th in the House Chamber.
Speeches and debate from the floor of the legislature, including Hungerbeeler's speech on January 28th, can be heard via webcast whenever the MO legislature is in session, at the Missouri General Assembly web site.
January 28th will also be "Transportation Day" and MoDOT officials from around the state will be on hand to meet with lawmakers and provide information about MoDOT.
You may have heard news reports that Hungerbeeler is stepping down as Director of MoDOT. The search is already on for the new MoDOT director and MoBikeFed is preparing a statement for the search committee emphasizing the importance of hiring a director who is bike/ped and multi-modal savvy.
AmericaBikes has coined a new phrase, "Complete the Streets", to describe what needs to be done to fix the bike- and pedestrian-unfriendly mess many parts of many of our cities have become:
In bicycling circles, this idea had become known as routine accommodation, as advocates, working with planners and engineers, used their terminology to urge a more inclusive approach. America Bikes wants to make what has been a behind-the-scenes discussion into an easily understandable (and widely supported!) concept: that every road and street be routinely made safe and friendly for bicycling and walking. Through a process involving media experts and the America Bikes Board, the group coined the phrase Complete the Streets, since such routine accommodation means truly completing the street network, expanding its capacity to serve everyone who travels, be it by automobile, bus, foot, or bicycle.
U.S. teens are more likely to be overweight than are teens from 14 other industrialized nations, according to survey information collected in 1997 and 1998 by two agencies of the Department of Health and Human Services as well as institutions in 13 European countries and in Israel. The study appears in the January issue of The Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine. . . .
"Overweight adolescents have an increased likelihood of being overweight during adulthood, and adult overweight increases the risk for such health problems as heart disease and diabetes," said Duane Alexander, M.D., Director of the NICHD.
It doesn't take a genius to figure out some of the reasons why. Here's one:
A recent national survey by the Surface Transportation Policy Project (STPP) found that 71 percent of parents with school-age children reported walking to school when they were young but only 18 percent of their children do so today.
Other studies show that walking and bicycling are declining dramatically in the U.S.
"We're essentially socializing kids to be inactive," he said. "Kids naturally want to be active" . . .
"We encourage people to make a walk part of their daily life -- to intentionally keep a post office box and walk down there to get the mail, or walk to the video store or to the place where you get your milk or newspaper," he said.
And kids? How do we get them to walk more?
"Role modeling is a very important thing," Fenton said. "If you're the kind of parent who actually suggests to their kid that you need not drive the car everywhere and that maybe they could walk back from band rehearsal with a couple of friends instead of you going to get them, that can help set the tone a lot."
Ellen Creager of the Detroit Free Press has these ideas:
Emphasize vigorous activity in daily life rather than separate exercise time.
Encourage citizens to demand communities that make it a pleasure to be active. . . .
Keep encouraging people toward active living, not perfect bodies.
Ideas like this aren't just hot air--they've been endorsed by the Centers for Disease Control, which now considers overweight and obesity to be serious health threats of epidemic proportions, among the top two or three national health problems in the U.S. Dr. William Dietz, fitness and nutrition chief at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, says
We have to build opportunities for physical activity into everyday life.
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources has begun accepting grant applications from private organizations, and municipal, state and federal agencies for the Fiscal Year 2004 grant round of the federal Recreational Trails Program.
The Recreational Trails Program is funded through the Federal Highway Administration as part of the Transportation Equity Act for the Twenty-first Century (TEA-21). A minimum of $500,000 is expected in this cycle with additional funds possible.
Eligible project categories include construction, maintenance, restoration and development of new trails. All grants are awarded on a reimbursement basis; a minimum 20 percent match is required for projects. Applications must be postmarked by March 15, 2004.
To help acquaint applicants with the program, Department of Natural Resources staff is planning six question-and-answer sessions throughout the state. The sessions are being planned for the end of
January and the first part of February in Macon, Jefferson City, Kansas City, Springfield, Poplar Bluff and St. Louis. The complete schedule of dates and locations will be available on the Web .
For more information on the question-and-answer sessions or to request an application, contact the Department of Natural Resources, Division of State Parks, Grant Management Section, 659 E. Elm St.,
Jefferson City, MO 65101 or call (573) 751-3442. The application is available for downloading.
Kansas City Critical Mass, last Friday of each month
Wednesday, January 07, 2004
CriticalMassKC rides the last friday of each month. Meet at 5pm, ride 5:30pm. Meet in Westport at the northeast corner of Southwest Trafficway and Mill Street (near the Sun Fresh Market). There is an email list; to subscribe send any email to criticalmasskc-subscribe@yahoogroups.com (the web page is here).
A Kansas City Star article summarizes recent research showing how urban design affects activity level, and thus fitness level, and thus obesity level of citizens:
Of course, the reasons Americans are getting more obese, no matter where they live, usually start with eating habits or exercise routines. But those are things each individual has control over. Researchers for a study published in the fall issue of the National Journal of Health Promotion isolated something we have less control over: daily activity levels based on the neighborhoods we live in.
In a nutshell, residents of far-flung suburban subdivisions typically walk less in their everyday lives than residents of compact urban neighborhoods. And the research shows that because Kansas City is one of the nation's most sprawling regions — where subdivisions are separated from stores and churches and parks, forcing residents to drive everywhere — we pack a few more pounds than people in many other areas, based solely on our everyday physical activity, or lack thereof.
The difference amounts to about 6 pounds for a 160 pound person, but is more on average for heavier people--as much as 10 pounds difference, just because of the neighborhood and urban design of the city the person lives in.
“We think this shows people in these more sprawling areas have a harder time getting out and getting routine activity, like just getting around on foot or bicycle,'' said Barbara McCann, a health and land- policy consultant who wrote part of the new findings with University of Maryland professor Reid Ewing. “It's an indication the basic fitness level is lower.”
