Notes from
Walkable Communities Workshop

Meeting Notes posted on this site are NOT OFFICIAL MINUTES, but can give you different perspectives of what is happening in the county. More meeting notes can be found here. Newspaper reports about meetings can often be found in Newsletter archives - a brief description and a link to the story are in weekly e-newsletters.

May 4, 2004 - Oxon Hill

Ave. 1 accident/mo. in this OH parking lot.

Attendees: Pete L. - pedestrian & bicycle program. Met. Wash. COG mwcog.org pedestrian coordinator. MDOT Ed Stracco. Michael Jackson MNCPPC - bike policy. Dave Brinsky -bus stop safety. Indian Hd Hwy Action Council. Forest Heights town coordinator. College Park area bike club - transportation plan should include "pedestrian." Peterson Co.'s attended. So. PG Trails. Rep. from Tony Knotts office. Hwy Safety office. OH Library librarians. MD State Hwy. Eric Foster - MNCPPC - Transportation master plan. Rep from co. exec. office from dept. transportation. OH road plan includes bike lanes. Don Herring - so. area MNCPPC. Cicero Sallis dept. transportation. Jeanne Ulrich OH bike club. Fred Schaffer MNCPPC bike issues.

Gary McGaff National Center for Biking & Walking - have create vision - communties need to be committed; safety, aesthetics, access. Obesity epidemic. 1980 shift took place in obesity rate. Rate in children inclining drastically. Children don't walk any more. Many barriers to walking. Wide sidewalks can have several zones. Splash zone ~4' from street for walking. Sidewalk should be 5' wide so people can walk together. Wheel stops (used in malls) can line road leaving gaps as inexpensive way to separate street from sidewalk. Rolled curbs invite parking on sidewalk. ADA requirements for handicaps. No slope - driveway aprons separate from sidewalk. 2 ramps per corner w/ 70% contrast (eg. yellow). USDOT/FHWA booklet about Accessible Sidewalks. Lighting. Trees for shade is good - get disease resistant strains - put away from power lines. Pennsy Drive has attractive sidewalk.

By yr. 2030 20% will be 60+ yo. Many people have disabilities. Consider the design vehicle that will be using roads & how they make turns. Curb bulbs in Seattle - into parking lane so pedestrians can see better & have shorter walking distance. Find designs that slows traffic down. Check various roadway designs. Check driver visibility. Various crosswalk patterns - red brick w/o paint is noTV isible at night.Ifbusebtexture, put smooth surface in middle for strollers. Angle crosswalks so they can see into oncoming traffic. Wide streets encourage speed - 10' wide lanes are fine. VETR - vehicle speed. Mini traffic circles are good in residential areas. Consider needs of emergency vehicles. Speed humps are not the only solutions. 4 lane highway can become 2 lanes for traffic, center lane for turning & bike lanes. Cut-throughs can be designed from communities to schools & other areas instead of walking around the roads.

Urban & residential neighborhoods' site designs have lots of options, but should be designed in original plan. More mixed-used developments. People don't usuallyshop where they work, they shop where they live. Seniors especially need this convenience.

bikewalk.org
walkable.org
safety.fhwa.dot.gov/programs/ped_bike.htm
One Less Car- Maryland Campaign

Parking lots are pedestrian areas - are they walkable?

Walking tour of Oxon Hll (see photos) included broken sidewalks, few crosswalks, bus stop shelters only on one side of road, narrow sidewalks, speeding traffic, and curb designs that did not look like they considered the pedestrian as having the right-of-way. Other problems were also noted. Do you see problems in the photos?

- submitted by Joyce Dowling

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