The Florida Department of Transportation has achieved a major milestone in its efforts to improve pedestrian and bicycle safety. In late April, FDOT issued a draft of the new FDOT Design Manual, which integrates a context-sensitive Complete Streets approach and will replace the agency’s current Plans Preparation Manual. FDOT has also released a draft of its new Complete Streets Handbook to accompany the Design Manual. SSTI spoke with Billy Hattaway, P.E., former Secretary of FDOT District 1, about the Complete Streets implementation efforts.
Month: May 2017
Sacramento public housing residents just got free Zipcars
As of early May, some residents of public housing projects in Sacramento have access to an on-demand vehicle service using electric cars, reports the Sacramento Bee. Through a partnership with Boston-based Zipcar, eight electric vehicles—two at each of four public housing complexes throughout the city—are now available for residents’ use at significantly subsidized rates. The $1.3 million project is funded through California’s cap-and-trade program that charges businesses to offset their impact on the environment.
A near miss: How cities are misinterpreting the safety of streets for bicyclists and pedestrians
Crash data on reported collisions may not be telling the whole story about whether our streets are safe for bicyclists and pedestrians. A recent study revealed that crash data for road users may be significantly misinterpreting the actual level of safety that streets provide for bicyclists and pedestrians. Researchers set out to collect “near-miss incidents”— incidents when bicyclists or pedestrians barely avoid a collision with another road user.
New transit models: Laguna Beach and Uber partner for senior transportation services
Starting in mid-June, Laguna Beach, CA, will partner with Uber in a pilot program to provide transportation options for residents aged 55 and older, a group that makes up about 50 percent of the city’s population. To fill the transportation gap caused by cuts in the frequency and coverage of transit service in the city, the pilot will provide free rides for two months and low-cost rides after the pilot. This program, a first of its kind, will be an interesting test of a new application of ride-hailing services.
Big data shines light on bike and pedestrian trips
New applications in big data could soon let us understand precisely how people move around by bike and on foot, for all types of trips, almost anywhere in the country. SSTI has worked with several providers to better understand the available trip data and its useful applications. We recently tested preliminary pedestrian data, provided by StreetLight Data, with promising results.
Cities testing out autonomous buses, but is it worth the risk?
Six weeks ago, Arlington, TX, approved a 6-month lease (with an option to renew for another 6 months) of two EZ10 driverless shuttles to fill a gap for more precise transportation needs for residents of and visitors to the city. These vehicles will cost the city about $270,000 over the course of two years, should the city decide to extend this pilot project that long. The Eno Center for Transportation’s Greg Rogers and Paul Lewis did a “back of the envelope” cost analysis comparing the EZ10 with the capital and operating expenses of a traditional passenger van.
Utah adopts the lowest drunk driving limit in the country
Utah recently approved the nation’s strictest drunk driving standards. Republican Governor Gary Herbert signed legislation on March 23 that will reduce the maximum blood alcohol limit for drivers to .05 percent from the current threshold of .08 percent. The new standard is slated to take effect at the end of 2018. The legislation has been controversial, pitting opponents in the state’s tourism and hospitality industries against supporters in the fields of transportation safety, and public health.
VMT growth continued, slowed in 2016
The total number of vehicle miles traveled in the U.S. grew by 2.8 percent to 3.2 trillion in 2016, according to monthly estimates from USDOT. This marks the third year of notable growth following nine years of historical lows, but still shows slower growth than in the previous year (3.5 percent, based on the most recent numbers).
Avoiding a government shutdown, Congress agrees to fund popular transportation programs
On May 4, Congress passed a spending deal to fund the government through the end of the current fiscal year (FY2017) that ends on September 30, 2017. In this agreement, Congress accommodated President Trump’s requests for more defense and security spending but maintained and even increased funding for many programs that the Administration had proposed to cut or eliminate. And this ended up being good news for transportation projects around the country.
Avoiding a government shutdown, Congress agrees to fund popular transportation programs
On May 4, Congress passed a spending deal to fund the government through the end of the current fiscal year (FY2017) that ends on September 30, 2017. In this agreement, Congress accommodated President Trump’s requests for more defense and security spending but maintained and even increased funding for many programs that the Administration had proposed to cut or eliminate. And this ended up being good news for transportation projects around the country.