Feds Propose Major Rule Changes to Eliminate Barriers to Safer Streets for Biking, Walking | Streetsblog USA

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Applying highway design standards to city streets has been a disaster for urban neighborhoods. The same things that make highways safer for driving at 65 mph — wide lanes, “clear zones” running alongside the road that have no trees or other “obstacles” — make surface streets dangerous and dreadful for walking, killing street life. . . .

In what appears to be a major breakthrough, yesterday the Federal Highway Administration proposed rule changes that will allow cities and towns to more easily design streets in a way that’s consistent with an urban setting.

The FHWA may drop 11 of the 13 design requirements that currently apply to streets in the National Highway System designed for speeds below 50 miles per hour.

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Feds Propose Major Rule Changes to Eliminate Barriers to Safer Streets for Biking, Walking | Streetsblog USA

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http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=FHWA-2015-0020-0003