2000-mile Kansas City Regional Bikeways Plan adopted

Many cities and regions across Missouri have been working on bicycle, pedestrian, and trails plans.  The latest plan to be adopted is the Kansas City Regional Bikeway Plan, a major step forward in creating a comprehensive, connected bicycle transportation system across the eight counties and two states of the Kansas City region.

Kansas City Regional Bikeways Plan Vision Statement

Work on the updated plan, which proposes a 2000+ mile bikeway system connecting the region, has been underway for some time, with many public meetings and other milestones along the way. The Mid-America Regional Council.  The plan integrates both on-street bikeways and routes and off-road multi-use trails.

The Mid-America Regional Council announced the adoption of the new plan and outlined the plan's main features:

On Jan. 27, the MARC Board adopted the Kansas City Regional Bikeway Plan. The bikeway plan, when completed, would create a network of on- and off-road facilities for bicycle riders that crosses multiple cities and counties in the bistate region. The plan creates a network of more than 2,000 miles and works to promote active transportation and mobility choices for residents.

City, county and state personnel participated in Steering Committee sessions and Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee meetings to review priority corridors, current planning efforts and the direction of the plan along with MARC staff and the consultant team. Area residents also added input during a series of open house meeting and through use of an online WikiMap tool.

The Greater Kansas City Regional Bikeway Plan outlines benefits of a regional bikeway, reviews current facilities and gaps, introduces a model/scoring system for priorities and looks at a range of corridor classifications along with costs for per-mile implementation. Looking toward project implementation the plan looks at best practices, the five Es (engineering, education, enforcement, encouragement and evaluation), facility maintenance and financial direction.

Going forward, MARC will use this plan as a guide to work and partner with local governments and area stakeholders to provide a connected bikeway system across the region. The plan provides recommendations for:

• A prioritized network of regional bikeways.
• Regional planning and coordination.
• Data collection and technical capacities.
• Education and encouragement campaigns.
• Enforcement efforts.
• Encouraging national designation applications, such as Bicycle Friendly Community.

The plan, along with supplemental resources and county-level maps, is available online at marc.org/bikeplan.

 

Supporting the creation of local, regional, and statewide bicycle, pedestrian, and trails plans is one of the goals of MoBikeFed's Vision for Bicycling and Walking in Missouri. Creating a bicycle, pedestrian, and/or trails plan is one of the most important steps any Missouri city, county, or regional transportation planning organization can do to help improve the environment for bicycling, walking, running, and hiking.

We have created a page with information about creating these much-needed plans and many sample plans for your city, county, or planning organization to use as a framework.

Your ongoing membership and generous financial support help turn our Vision into reality!