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Introduction to Complete Streets
Complete streets are designed to be safe, comfortable, and convenient for all users, encouraging diverse transportation options beyond driving. They address the inadequacies of current streets, which often lack essential features like sidewalks and bike lanes, especially in underserved communities. The implementation of complete streets policies aims to systematically improve transportation infrastructure for everyone, fostering healthy, accessible environments.
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Introduction to Complete Streets
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- 2. What are CompleteStreets? 2 Complete Streets are streets for everyone, no matter who they are or how they travel.
- 3. What are CompleteStreets? 3 Safe Comfortable Convenient
- 4. What are CompleteStreets? 4 Safe Comfortable Convenient
- 5. Americans want choices 5 ofAmericans want more transportation options so they have the freedom to choose how to get where they need to go. Future of Transportation National Survey (2010) 66% 73% 57% currently feel they have no choice but to drive as much as they do. would like to spend less time in the car.
- 6. Getting out oftraffic 6 Future of Transportation National Survey (2010)
- 7. The tremendous potential 7 Ofall trips: National Household Travel Survey (2009) 50% are less than 3 miles 28% are less than 1 mile 60% are driven of these trips…
- 8. The tremendous potential 8 Everytrip starts and ends with walking.
- 9. People will walk 9 Centersfor Disease Control and Prevention 2012, newpublichealth.org
- 10. Who wants CompleteStreets? 10 of older Americans say it is unsafe to cross a major street near their home. Planning Complete Streets for the Aging of America, AARP 47% 54% 56% of older Americans living in inhospitable neighborhoods say they would walk and bike more often if the built environment improved. express strong support for adoption of Complete Streets policies.
- 11. Who wants CompleteStreets? Millennials are driving less and looking for other transportation options. 11
- 12. Incomplete streets areunsafe More than 40% of pedestrian deaths in 2007 and 2008 occurred where no crosswalk was available. 12 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Fatality Reporting System
- 13. Incomplete streets areunsafe Especially for: • People of color • Low-income communities • Older adults • Children 13
- 14. Streets are inadequate •No sidewalks • Too dangerous to cross on foot 14
- 15. Streets are inadequate •Unsafe for people on bicycles 15 Streets are inadequate
- 16. Streets are inadequate •Traffic jams on arterials • Too many crashes 16
- 17. Streets are inadequate •Uninviting for bus riders 17
- 18. Streets are inadequate •Inaccessible for wheelchair users 18
- 19. Streets are inadequate •No room for people! 19
- 20. We know howto build right 20
- 21. We know howto build right 21
- 22. We know howto build right 22
- 23. Yet too manyroads still turn out like this: 23
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- 26. The Solution: Complete StreetsPolicies 26
- 27. Complete Streets policies Ensurethat the entire right-of-way is planned, designed, constructed, operated, and maintained to provide safe access for all users 27
- 28. Complete Streets: Is ahigh-level policy direction Changes the everyday decision-making processes and systems Represents an incremental approach Has long-term results 28
- 29. Complete Streets isnot: • One “special” street project • A design prescription • A mandate for immediate retrofit • A silver bullet; other issues must be addressed: • Land use (proximity, mixed-use) • Environmental concerns • Transportation Demand Management 29
- 30. Rural roads withshared use trails 0 30
- 31. Paved shoulders onbridges 31
- 32. Low-traffic, low-speed skinny residentialstreets 3232
- 33. Skinny residential streetswith sidewalks 3 33
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- 44. For more information •Model policies & reports • Best Complete Streets Policies • Local Policy Workbook • Implementation resources • Latest news www.completestreets.org www.smartgrowthamerica.org 44
- 45. National Complete StreetsCoalition Steering Committee 45 AARP AECOM Alliance for Biking & Walking America Walks American Planning Association APTA American Society of Landscape Architects Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals Institute of Transportation Engineers National Association of City Transportation Officials National Association of Realtors NelsonNygaard Smart Growth America SRAM Stantec SvR Design Company
- 46. Copyright & use Thispresentation is licensed under a Creative Commons license permitting non-commercial use with attribution. Any of these conditions may be waived with permission. For-profit organizations wishing to use this presentation should contact us at sseskin@completestreets.org or 773-270-3534. For more information about this license, please visit: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ 46
- 47. Smart Growth Americais the only national organization dedicated to researching, advocating for and leading coalitions to bring smart growth practices to more communities nationwide. www.smartgrowthamerica.org 1707 L St. NW Suite 250, Washington, DC 20036 | 202-207-3355
Editor's Notes
- #3 The streets of our cities and towns are an important part of our communities. They allow children to get to school and parents to get to work. They bring together neighbors and draw visitors to neighborhood stores. These streets ought to be designed for everyone – whether young or old, on foot or on bicycle, in a car or in a bus – but too often they are designed only for speeding cars or creeping traffic jams.Now, in communities across the country, a movement is growing to “complete” the streets. States, cities, and towns are asking their planners and engineers to build roads that are safer, more accessible, and easier for everyone. In the process, they are creating better communities for people to live, play, work, and shop.Photo: Charlotte NC DOT
- #4 Complete Streets are streets for everyone. They are designed and operated to enable safe access for all users. Pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists, and public transportation users of all ages and abilities are able to safely move along and across a complete street.Photos, L-R: Pamela Palma, pedbikeimages.org; Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute;
- #5 Complete Streets make it easy to cross the street, walk to shops, and bicycle to work. They allow buses to run on time and make it safe for people to walk to and from train stations.Photos (all): Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute
- #8 Tremendous potential for to convert short tripsfrom driving to walking/bicycling.Data: National Household Travel Survey, 2009
- #9 Walking is the 2nd most common form of travel, representing 10.9% of all trips. However, a full 1/3 of Americans report not taking a walking trip in the last week. Studies show how unsafe people feel on the roads in their communities – lack of sidewalks, poor lighting, and too few crosswalks. These problems with the built environment keep people from walking, biking, and getting to transit. Likewise, walking and bicycling are often the only viable option for low-income residents to get physical activity.Photo: Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities InstituteData: National Household Travel Survey, 2009Policy Link, Prevention Institute, & Convergence Partnership. (2009). The Transportation Prescription
- #10 Source: CDC 2012, infographic from newpublichealth.org
- #11 Complete Streets policies are important for older adults, who want to remain in their communities and stay mobile. That makes Complete Streets very important for our nation, as by 2025, the number of people over the age of 65 will more than double (to about 62 million), representing 18 percent of the population (nearly one in five Americans). The AARP report cited here also notes that two-thirds of planners and engineers have not begun prepare for this.The 2009 National Household Travel Survey found that the percent of people who have stopped driving doubles each decade after the age of 65. About half of non-drivers do not travel at all, but would like to! The lack of opportunities to take transit, to bike safely, and to walk safely makes travel to the store, doctor, or to visit family and friends impossible.
- #12 Annual miles traveled by car among 16- to 34-year olds dropped 23 percent from 2001-2009 (Frontier Group). Miles traveled by drivers under 20 dropped from 21 percent to 14 percent of the total between 1995 and 2009 Source: FHWA Photo: Dan Burden, PBIC
- #13 Of pedestrians killed in 2007 and 2008, more than 50% died on arterial roadways, typically designed to be wide and fast. Roads like these are built to move cars and too often do not have meet the needs of pedestrian or bicyclist safety.Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Fatality Analysis Reporting SystemPhoto: Virginia (Cheryl Cort, Coalition for Smarter Growth)
- #14 Latino pedestrian fatality rate is 60% higher than for whites;African Americans, it is 75% higher than for whites; African Americans = ~12% of population but 20% of pedestrian deathsIn counties where more than 20% of households have incomes below the federal poverty line, the pedestrian fatality rate is over 80 percent higher than the national average.Adults over 65 made up 22 percent of all pedestrian fatalities from 2000-2009, despite being only 13 percent of the population, and those 75 and older were more than twice as likely to be killed while walking as those under 65. Older Latino adults are especially vulnerable, with a pedestrian fatality rate that is 173 percent higher than that of older white adults.Sources:Dangerous by Design 2011; “Where we need to go: A civil rights for transportation equity”; Photo: Wikipedia user Scheinwerfermann
- #16 Photo:Streetsblog- by Bryan Goebel http://www.orangephotography.com/
- #17 Many communities currently have overworked street networks that force neighborhood traffic onto larger arterial roads. This creates unnecessary traffic congestion and can be dangerous for drivers. San Francisco Metropolitan Transportation Authority estimates that part of that city’s downtown will be gridlocked with auto congestion within a generation due to job and population growth. In order to keep busy networks in growing areas operating smoothly for all users, including drivers, communities need to create alternatives to driving- including bicycling, walking, and taking transit.Source: San Francisco County Transportation Authority; StreetsblogImage Source: Oran Viriyincy via Flickr, Seattle, WA
- #21 All over the US, there areexamples of streets built with all users in mind…Photo: Andy Hamilton
- #22 Photo: Abby Hall, EPA
- #23 Photo by Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute
- #24 But in so many parts of the US we are still building streets like this…
- #25 Photo: Barbara McCann, National Complete Streets Coalition
- #26 Photo, right: Jackson, Mississippi (Dr. Scott Crawford)
- #27 Photo: Charlotte NC DOT
- #28 This is what complete streets is about – making sure our transportation network works for all users every time there’s a new project.Photo:Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute
- #29 Creating complete streets means transportation agencies must change their approach to community roads. By adopting a Complete Streets policy, communities direct their transportation planners and engineers to routinely design and operate the entire right of way to enable safe access for all users, regardless of age, ability, or mode of transportation. This means that every transportation project will make the street network better and safer for drivers, transit users, pedestrians, and bicyclists – making your town a better place to live.
- #30 Complete Streets is not about special projects. It’s about changing the way we approach transportation projects on all streets. It’s not about specific design elements. Implementation of Complete Streets is flexible and context-sensitive. Adopting a policy doesn’t mean all roads have to be changed all at once. Changes can be made a little at a time and done along with routine maintenance. Complete Streets won’t address all concerns, which will still need attention. Complete Streets policies are one important piece in ensuring our states are fiscally and physically healthy.
- #31 And when applied to transportation projects, a Complete Streets policy results in streets that are safer for everyone and that compliment the surrounding community – from rural areas to urban.Photo: Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute
- #32 And when applied to transportation projects, a Complete Streets policy results in streets that are safer for everyone and that compliment the surrounding community – from rural areas to urban.
- #33 And when applied to transportation projects, a Complete Streets policy results in streets that are safer for everyone and that compliment the surrounding community – from rural areas to urban.
- #34 And when applied to transportation projects, a Complete Streets policy results in streets that are safer for everyone and that compliment the surrounding community – from rural areas to urban.Photo: Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute
- #35 And when applied to transportation projects, a Complete Streets policy results in streets that are safer for everyone and that compliment the surrounding community – from rural areas to urban.Photo by Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute
- #36 Raised islands typically placed in the middle of four-way intersections, traffic circles are used to address speeding and traffic accidents and are most effective on neighborhood streets. Traffic circles reduce accidents and vehicle speeds but not necessarily traffic volume, benefitting residents on adjacent streets by avoiding traffic diversion and residents on treated streets by calming traffic. Seattle residents like them so much that they submit upwards of 700 requests for new circles each year. Traffic circles also benefit bicyclists because they decrease the difference in speed between bicycles and automobiles, making streets feel more comfortable. Sources: http://www.bicyclinginfo.org/bikesafe/case_studies/casestudy.cfm?CS_NUM=503Photo: Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute
- #37 Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) is a form of public transportation that offers riders improved service, similar to a rail system, but costs significantly less than a rail system to build and operate. The goal of BRT is to save passengers time and provide a higher quality of service. Successful BRT systems benefit existing riders while attracting new transit users. Key features of true BRT systems include dedicated bus lanes, off-board fare collection, signal priority, and at-grade boarding. Other design features can include center median alignment, system branding and attractive stations. BRT should be integrated with existing transit network and be accessible by foot and bicycle. BRT has been shown to benefit local economies: cities such as Cleveland and New York City have seen new economic development and decreases in retail vacancies along system corridors. In Cleveland, the Health Line has stimulated over $5.8 billion in development and increased ridership 60 percent since it opened in 2008 on the Euclid Avenue corridor.Sources: Metropolitan Planning Commission: http://www.metroplanning.org/work/project/3, Institute for Transportation and Development: http://www.itdp.org/index.php?/microsites/brt-standard/, Greater Cleveland Regional Transportation Authority: http://www.riderta.com/, NYC DOT: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/downloads/pdf/2012-10-measuring-the-street.pdfPhoto by CianGinty (wikipedia)Orange Line, Los Angeles
- #38 Neighborhood greenways are slow-speed, low-volume streets where neighborhood residents who are walking or bicycling are given priority. Designing streets as neighborhood greenways reduces automobile speeds and cut-through traffic; provides safer, more attractive bicycling and walking links; and makes residential streets safer and quieter. In developing neighborhood greenways, planners and designers utilize tools including special signage, bicycle-friendly speed bumps, and adding traffic barriers. Neighborhood greenways are opportunities for creative landscaping, public art, and community spaces. In Portland, Oregon, planners utilize a variety of infrastructure tools to develop an extensive neighborhood greenway network that allows bicyclists comfortable and safe ways to move through the city, including crossing larger streets.Sources: Active Transportation Alliance: http://www.activetrans.org/modeshift/04_05/greenways, Portland Bureau of Transportation: http://www.portlandoregon.gov/transportation/50518, Streetsfilms: http://www.streetfilms.org/portlands-bike-boulevards-become-neighborhood-greenways/Photo:Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute
- #39 Angled head-out parking is on-street parking where drivers back into parking spaces, placing the rear of the car closest to the curb. This strategy improves safety for occupants of the car and for passing vehicles and bicyclists. Angled head-out parking provides drivers entering traffic with greater visibility, decreasing the likelihood of crashes. By changing the orientation of the car so the trunk is close to the curb, angled head-out parking improves safety for children getting out of the car and people loading items in their trunks. In the first four years of implementation in Tucson, AZ, treated segments went from 3-4 auto-bicycle crashes a month to no reported crashes. This type of parking benefits local economies because it uses less curb space per car than traditional parallel parking and is often used on main streets. Sources: Nelson\\Nygaard Consulting Associates: http://lda.ucdavis.edu/LDA191/Course%20Handouts%20%26%20Readings/05-Back_in_Diagonal_Parking.pdfPhoto by Eric Fredericks (neighborhoods.org)
- #40 Cycle tracks are on-street bicycle facilities separated from vehicle travel lanes, parking lanes, and sidewalks by medians, bollards, and markings. Cycle tracks combine the user experience of a separated path with the on-street convenience of a conventional lane. In separating bicyclists from automobile traffic, cycle tracks can make bicyclists feel more comfortable and attract new bicyclists. They also clarify expected behavior for bicyclists and automobiles, decreasing the risk of bicyclists being hit by open car doors. Cycle tracks are growing in popularity in North America and can be found in cities such as Cambridge, MA; New York City, Portland, OR; and Washington, D.C. In Montreal, streets with this treatment have 2.5 as many bicyclists and 28 percent lower injury rates than streets without cycle tracks.Sources: Bicyclinginfo.org http://www.bicyclinginfo.org/faqs/answer.cfm?id=3962; NACTO Urban Bikeway Design Guide, http://nacto.org/cities-for-cycling/design-guide/cycle-tracks/; Lusk, C., Furth, P., et al. (2011). Risk of injury for bicycling on cycle tracks versus the street. (2011). http://injuryprevention.bmj.com/content/early/2011/02/02/ip.2010.028696.full.pdf; Photo: http://orange20bikes.com/uploads/blogimages/2011/04/LBC_cycletrack_02.jpg photo by Orange Bikes
- #41 Modern roundabouts channel intersection traffic in a circular pattern where incoming traffic yields to the flow of traffic within the roundabout. They are effective tools in urban and rural areas at major intersections and near freeways to improve safety and manage speed. Converting to a modern roundabout can lead to dramatic reductions in severe traffic accidents: up to 82 percent when converting from a two-way stop controlled mechanism and up to 78 percent when converting from a signalized intersection. The Federal Highway Administration recommends modern roundabouts for new and retrofit construction.Source: FHWA: http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/provencountermeasures/fhwa_sa_12_005.htmPhoto: Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities InstituteHonolulu, HI
- #42 The AASHTO Guide for the Development of Bicycle Facilities recommends adding paved shoulders to rural roads to accommodate for bicyclists. Paved shoulders create space for those traveling by bike – and by foot! – on these roads. Because these user groups are not competing for space at different travel speeds, paved shoulders help improve safety for all. Shoulders are also a useful tool for those who are driving, providing safe space to pull over if needed. Many states have policies to provide paved shoulders. The Wisconsin DOT, for example, paves 3-foot shoulders on highways where daily automobile traffic exceeds 1,000 vehicles if bicyclists regularly use the road.Sources: Bicyclinginfo.org: http://www.bicyclinginfo.org/engineering/facilities-shoulders.cfmPhoto: Fabb-bikes.org
- #43 Our website is home to many resources, including fact sheets, policy tracking and examples, information on changing policy from advocacy to implementation, links to research and publications, and information on federal policy. From our website, you’ll also find our blog and twitter feed, which are great ways to stay up to date on complete streets and transportation issues in general.Photo:Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute