Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
United States Department of Transportation 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE Washington, DC 20590 September 9, 2013 Dear Secretary Foxx, Thank you for the opportunity to submit comments on the US Department of Transportations strategic plan Transportation for a New Generation,whichlays out how the US Department of Transportation proposes to manage our transportation system from 2014 to 2018. We, the undersigned organizations, are state and local bicycle and walking advocacy organizations united under the Alliance for Biking & Walking. We work to implement educational programs, advocacy initiatives and awareness campaigns to create safer roads, stronger communities and accessible neighborhoods for everybody. We support the overriding priorities you have laid out for the Department, including making the US transportation system the safest in the world, improving the efficiency and performance of the existing transportation system and rebuilding the nations infrastructure to meet the needs of the next generation of Americans. We believe the following comments and suggestions can help the department meet those goals.
III. Safety
1. Safety performance goal and indicators The Departments plan includes the goal of reducing roadway fatalities per 100 million VMT. We believe this goal will be stronger if: a) US DOT sets specific numerical goals for each of the sub-indicators, and b) Priority is given to develop a metric based on non-motorized miles traveled. The undersigned groups therefore recommend that the Department alter the performance goal to the following: Reduce roadway fatalities by 50 percent by 2020 for each of the following sub-categories: o Passenger vehicle occupant fatalities o Motorcycle rider fatalities o Bicycle fatalities o Pedestrian fatalities 1
o Roadway fatalities involving larger trucks and buses 2. Proposed strategies to meet safety goals In its proposed strategies to reduce pedestrian, bicyclist and older driver fatalities and injuries, DOT has included several strategies we agree with. Most notably, the undersigned groups applaud the Department for proposing the following strategies: Encouraging states to adopt policies and programs that improve pedestrian and bicyclist safety. Providing technical assistance such as bicycle and pedestrian safety assessments to state, local and tribal governments. Developing training programs for drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians. Distributing technical guidance on improving bicycle and pedestrian safety through engineering, outreach and enforcement activities. While we are pleased to see biking and walking safety given specific attention, we strongly encourage the Department to separate active transportation modes from older drivers when considering safety. Because walking and biking safety differs strongly from older driver safety, it is imperative that these issue areas be given unique treatment. In order to ensure maximum success in truly improving safety on our roads network, the undersigned groups urge the Department to incorporate the following additional safety strategies: Implement a Complete Street approach when designing safety measures, such as: o Ensuring intersection improvements benefit motorists, transit users, bicyclists and pedestrians; o Amending rumble strip policies to address the particular needs of bicyclists so as not to create additional safety hazards or deterrents to bicycling. Focus on reducing speed as a crash factor, especially in metropolitan areas. Study alternatives to the common practice of setting speed limits using the 85th percentile speed of free flowing traffic. Implement MAP-21 performance measures that address non-motorized safety under FHWA Highway Safety funding. (The current proposed strategic plan suggests this strategy for motor vehicle safety but not bicycle and pedestrian safety). Actively encourage investment in bicycling and pedestrian infrastructure that addresses system-wide safety issues. Improve data collection for bicycling and walking. Specifically: o Improve data collection and analysis of use and crash data at the municipal, MPO and state level. (In the current proposed strategic plan, this strategy is suggested for motor vehicle safety but not for bicycle and pedestrian safety.) o Improve NHTSAs data collection and analysis system to enhance bicycle and pedestrian crash data. (The proposed plan suggests this strategy for motor vehicle safety but not bicycle and pedestrian safety.) o Conduct a bicycle and pedestrian crash causation study to identify contributing
factors for bicycle and pedestrian crashes and identify effective countermeasures based on evaluation and analysis of the study data. (There is currently a study on motorcycle crashes underway, but there has not yet been a comparable study for bicycle and pedestrian crashes.) o Support, conduct and encourage research on innovate design of bicycle facilities.
Data collection and analysis o Developing and improving planning data and analytic techniques for planning and implementation of livability projects. In addition, the undersigned groups recommend the following strategies to ensure that states, regions and localities around the country maximize livability: Adopt a Complete Street policy to ensure that livability is integrated into every program and project. Institute annual or biennial travel surveys to accurately measure state and local bicycling and walking levels and better understand travel behaviors, trends and needs for all modes of transportation. Set standards for coding transportation projects so that spending on bicycling and walking can be more accurately tracked. Develop a framework for best practices for states and local jurisdictions to conduct audits and reports on bicycle and pedestrian facilities every 1 to 2 years. Create a model system of accountability so that projects programmed with multi-modal accommodations in the STIP are built with those components. (For instance, a STIP amendment is required to change the scope of work concerning sidewalks and bike facilities.) Research and disseminate best practices for retrofitting urban and suburban transportation facilities to consider all roadway users.
2. Strategies to meet environmental sustainability goals The undersigned groups recommend the following strategies to ensure that states, regions and localities utilize bicycling and walking improvements to mitigate transportation related impacts to climate, ecosystems and communities: Develop training programs for federal, state and local transportation engineers on Complete Streets policies and practices. Create a clearinghouse of best practices and innovative design for Complete Streets policies and practices.
Thank you again for the opportunity to comment on US Department of Transportations Strategic Plan. We look forward to working with you to implement the plan and improve our national transportation system for all users. Sincerely, Alliance for Biking & Walking Bike Erie
Erie, PA
National
Bike Maryland
Maryland
Bike Newport
Newport, RI
Bike Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, PA
Bike Utah
ADVOCATE - EDUCATE - RIDE www.BikeUtah.org
Utah
Bike Walk Mississippi Bike Walk Montana, Inc. Bike Walk Tennessee
Tennessee
Bike-Walk Alliance of NH
New Hampshire Montclair, NJ
Dallas-Fort Worth, TX
Bike Austin
Austin, TX
BikeHouston
Houston, TX
Bike Cleveland
Cleveland, OH
Bikemore
Baltimore, MD
San Diego, CA
BikeSD
BikeTexas
Texas
Health by Design
Indiana
BikeWalkKC
BikeWalkLee
Lee County, FL
Kids on Bikes
Colorado Springs, CO
Michigan
Recycle-Bicycle, Inc
Brooklyn, NY Reno, NV
WV Connecting Communities
West Virginia
Wyoming Pathways
Cheyenne, WY