According to this article, children in Taylor, Texas near Austin, have safer access to schools since the city was awarded $574,000 in Safe Routes to School infrastructure funds from the Texas Department of Transportation in 2008. The city strategically partnered with Taylor Independent School District to apply for funds to construct a sidewalk that would connect four schools: two elementary schools, one middle school and one high school. Once construction of the sidewalks are complete, the city anticipates that more children will be walking to school. While some components are funded by the state, federal funding is also available for these programs. Communities and school districts across Texas, have developed Safe Routes to School plans. Funding for Safe Routes programs exists for ...
In 2012, the Better Block Team and City of San Antonio residents took some time to see what West Commerce, a four-lane street, would look like if improvements were made to encourage walking and biking. The Better Block event allowed citizens to imagine what their community would look like with temporary bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure. City officials looked to the reaction of constituents to decide how funds from the 2012 bond program would be spent. Read More About San Antonio's Better Block Experiment Recap of Final San Antonio Better Block for 2012-Case Study: Transportation and Retail Study Testing West Commerce Temporary Transformation into a Better Block (San Antonio Express ...
Mayor Rahm Emanuel of Chicago has launched the Chicago Plays initiative to improve the condition of 300 parks and playgrounds throughout the city. Parks with trails, playgrounds, and athletic facilities can increase the amount of physical activity that people participate in. A recent study found that 81 percent of Hispanic neighborhoods lacked recreational facilities. Through the Chicago Plays initiative, Mayor Emanuel hopes to provide at least one park within a 10-minute walking distance of every Chicagoan. Chicago Plays is a five year playground renovation project that aims to improve the quality of 300 parks and playgrounds throughout Chicago. According to a press release from the office of the mayor, Mayor Emanuel hopes to complete the first upgrades to 50 playgrounds by November ...
Prior to 2010, San Antonio ranked 6th in the nation for childhood obesity and 12th for adult obesity. By initiating a Complete Streets initiative, the city has improved safety and encouraged alternative means of transportation, including walking, biking, and public transportation. The city's Complete Street's policy was adopted on September 29, 2011, and took effect in October of 2011. San Antonio Metrohealth collaborated with the City’s Planning and Community Development Department and led an interdepartmental working group of planning and engineering professionals on the creation of complete streets recommendations. Implementing a Complete Streets policy has helped make the road safer for cyclists and pedestrians alike, and has provided Latino children living in San Antonio with an ...
Karin Drakenberg from Bronxville, NY is an example of anyone being able to start a movement in their community. Drakenberg was just an ordinary mom living in Bronxville, NY, but she couldn't help but wonder why more children in her community did not walk to school. In order to get more students walking Drakenberg, a mother of two, and her friends proposed that schools in Bronxville walk to school on Earth Day. When others learned of Karin Drakenberg's plan, they too wanted to participate. To futher promote Walk to School Day, Drakenberg gathered support from local shop owners and the mayor of Bronxville. Now Walk to School bumper stickers, posters, and other promotional items can be found throughout the Bronxville community and many families have decided to opt for walking to school ...
Although, the state of California has already adopted a statewide Complete Streets policy (AB1358), barriers to adopting and implementing local Complete Streets policies still exist. In order to ensure that maximal benefits are derived from a this type of policy it is necessary to understand how to overcome barriers, and why local Complete Streets policies are necessary. In the San Diego region, up to one-third of residents in low-income neighborhoods lack access to a car. It is residents like these that may stand to benefit the most from Complete Streets policies---which would reduce the economic burden of health costs, by providing safer avenues for walking and biking. The June 2012 report--From Policy to Pavement: Implementing Complete Streets in the San Diego Region--produced through ...
In 2012, the city of Indianapolis signed a Complete Streets proposal which will modify city code once implemented. The Complete Streets Coalition has rated Indianapolis' Complete Streets Policy as the best policy of the year. The ordinance will ensure that both public and private developments consider the transportation needs of all users when developing new land or road projects. The success of this policy will be measured based on a number of performance measures outlined in the policy. The total miles of bike lances, total feet of new pedestrian accommodations, and rate of children walking or biking to school, are all examples of specific measures that will be used to evaluate the effectiveness of this policy on a quarterly and annual basis. More information This article from the ...
Alice Independent School District (Alice ISD) entered into a joint use agreement with Migrant Health Promotion Inc. on November 26, 2012. The joint use agreement will keep tracks, playgrounds, and walking trails open to the public over the next five years. Through the Transforming Texas initiative, Migrant Health Promotion Inc. was charged with creating physical activity opportunities for the residents of Jim Wells County. Program coordinator for the Transforming Texas initiative, Robert De Leon believes that this shared use agreement will serve to provide recreational facilities to those living in the rural community of Jim Wells County. De Leon also believes that this joint use agreement will guide local policy makers in understanding how environmental changes can impact a person's ...
San Antonio's downtown is growing. Walking and biking around is easier than ever, and many young people are heading to downtown for the business and night life. However, downtown San Antonio is missing one thing that is keeping it from becoming a pale where young people and families want to live: a grocery store. Would you want to raise your family in a place where you couldn't buy fresh fruits and vegetables for your kids? City officials decided recently to solicit proposals from anyone serious about opening a major grocery store downtown, an amenity they think is necessary to revitalize the urban core. La Fiesta is one food retailer considering a downtown location. Currently, it looks like HEB might be the lucky food retailer that gets to claim stake to San Antonio's downtown ...
