Join the National Bicycle & Pedestrian Documentation Project's Upcoming Count Activities The Alta/ITE National Bicycle & Pedestrian Documentation Project (NBPD) is now being used in all four Non-motorized Transportation Pilot Projects (Marin, Minneapolis, Columbia, Sheboygan), under the approval/review of the FHWA/Volpe National Transportation Systems Center. It is also being used as part of the 2.5 year Caltrans research project in San Diego (Seamless Travel), and by agencies nationwide.
The basic assumptions of the methodology are that, in order to estimate existing and future bicycle and pedestrian demand and activity, agencies nationwide need to start conducting counts and surveys in a consistent manner similar to those being used by ITE and other groups for motor vehicle models.
We've uncovered some remarkable and important statistics so far, including (a) 30-70% of bicycle trips are transportation-related, and (b) count machines are apparently almost unusable on busy pathways.
The next National Count/Survey days are during the week of September 8, 2008: Tuesday, September 9 through Thursday, September 11, and Saturday, September 13 through Sunday, September 14.
More information about the National Bicycle & Pedestrian Documentation Project can be found here .
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Way to Go Sausalito Launches
In July 2008, Alta launched an exciting new program called Way to Go Sausalito for Marin County. During the summer of 2008, Way to Go offers Sausalito residents fun and easy chances to walk, bicycle, and take transit more frequently. Every Sausalito resident receives an order form for a free customized information packet, featuring an event calendar, a new Sausalito walking map, a local business coupon book, a bicycling guide, and numerous transit maps and schedules. In addition, Way to Go Sausalito features twice-weekly events such as group walks, guided bicycle rides, and classes and workshops. Way to Go staff will appear at community events and visit community groups to answer questions about walking, bicycling, and transit use. Way to Go Sausalito is a major part of WalkBikeMarin (Marin County’s implementation of the National Nonmotorized Transportation Pilot Program), and is a cooperative effort between Marin County, the City of Sausalito, Golden Gate Transit, Marin Transit, the Chamber of Commerce, and numerous other community partners. This three-year program will reduce drive-alone trips while increasing walking, bicycling, and transit use in the cities of Sausalito, San Rafael, and Novato. Visit the Way to Go program website at http://www.walkbikemarin.org/waytogo/
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North Indian River County Greenways Plan Adopted! The North Indian River County Greenways Plan was unanimously adopted by the MPO board this week - a major success for a developing region along Florida's east coast. Important elements include connections to the East Coast Greenway, the Florida Water Trail, Florida Central Rail Trail, the Wabasso Jungle Trail and Pelican Island Wildlife Refuge, the historic first wildlife refuge established in the U.S. system. Alta teamed with Kimley-Horn Associates and CivaTerra to complete the plan.
 To see more about the plan, click on one of these links: - North Indian River County Greenways Plan - Sebastian [ Map ]
- North Indian River County Greenways Plan - Trans Florida Rail Corridor [ Map ]
- North Indian River County Greenways Plan - Draft FPL Powerline Trail [ Poster ]
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On the Cutting Edge: the new Vernonia Bike Skills Park
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| Alta staff and a representative of the City of Vernonia visit the future site of the City's Bike Skills Park. | The site of the History Channel's show "Axemen," the City of Vernonia, Oregon, boasts a long history of logging. Thanks to the efforts of Alta Planning + Design, the city is about to become famous for another reason, as it will be home to the state's most comprehensive mountain bike park. Located in a proposed municipal park that used to contain the world's largest covered lumber mill, the Vernonia Bike Skills Park emphasizes progression and a family-friendly environment. Alta designed the park to include a pump track, a graduated "North Shore"-style riding area, three dirt jump lines, and a dual slalom practice course. At the edge of Portland's populous westside, the bike park is projected to be a favorite with locals and visitors alike and will likely host mid-week races for eager riders. To see more about the plan, click on one of these links: - Isometric Views - Jump Course and Pumpback [ PDF ]
- Final Plan [ PDF ]
- Final Plan rendered view [ PDF - 6MB]
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Alta Launches the San Diego Regional Bicycle Plan
The San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) recently launched the San Diego Regional Bicycle Plan, a component of the Regional Transportation Plan. It will assist local jurisdictions in their efforts to improve and encourage bicycling and will advance the development of a unified bicycle system throughout the San Diego region that serves the needs of all bicycle riders. The initial phase of the planning process involves existing conditions data collection and analysis, identifying issues and opportunities, and an extensive public outreach effort. The first series of public workshops were in June, and the project website has collected nearly 900 online surveys as well as additional comments since it was launched in mid-June! Click here to watch a television segment featuring the Plan.
Visit the San Diego Regional Bicycle Plan website at http://altaprojects.net/sandag/
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New Employees and Offices Alta has grown quite a bit in the last year. We've hired new employees as well as promoted a few interns to full time employees. We've also added offices in San Diego and Georgia.
Below are employees listed by office location that have not been previously introduced in newsletters. Click on a link to find out more about them on their staff page on altaplanning.com .
| Portland |
South (GA) |
| San Diego |
Berkeley |
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Alta Portland is Moving In August, the Portland office is moving to a beautifully renovated historic building! Our Davis Street building is available to lease, as well as multiple spaces in the new building. Please call Julie at 503.230.9862 for details. The new Alta Portland address will be:
Alta Planning + Design
711 SE Grand Avenue
Portland, OR 97214 |
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In the News... To receive Alta news and announcements as they happen, subscribe to the Alta News Feed .  - Guadalajara Mayor Alfonso Petersen is envisioning making the city bicycle-friendly, crisscrossed with connecting bike lanes and supportive infrastructure. In this article the Guadalajara Reporter tells how the city is looking to Portland, Oregon for inspiration as they move forward with their effort to make the city safer and more encouraging for biking.
- Aside from helping to sponsor this year's Carfee Cities conference , many Alta employees attended and contributed to the events & programs. Alta Principal Mia Birk was a keynote speaker at the International Toward Carfree Cities Conference . Mia spoke on behalf Alta's efforts for bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure as well as the City of Portland's advancement as a bicycling leader in the United States. "We're not anti car," she noted, "but we're trying to create a system where walking and biking are viable transportation options." Mia introduced keynote speakers Andy Clarke, executive director of the League of American Bicyclists , and Gil Penalosa, former Commissioner of Parks, Sport, and Recreation for the city of Bogota, Colombia and Executive Director of Walk and Bike for Life . The San Francisco Bay Guardian ran this article about the presentations and bikeportland.org went into more detail about Clarke's announcement of the Bicycle Friendly Business Program and Penelosa's rousing reality check about Portland's efforts. Senior Associate Steve Durrant sat on the Building Urban Greenways panel and Senior Planner Eric Anderson was part of the Building Better Bikeways presentation. Planner Rory Renfro led the Transportation Geeks Bike Ride developed by Program Manager Jessica Roberts (see the SF Bay Guardian's ride report ). Roberts and Principal Mia Birk exchanged insights and ideas at the international level with a visiting delegation from Mexico. Birk was also part of Tuesday's keynote presentation. Designers Karen Vitkay and Melissa Olson were among the 400+ attendees. Benjamin Doyle has been with the World Carfree Network's Portland conference team since the fall of 2007. Learn more about this year's conference at www.carfreeportland.org
- Lee Cullum, Dallas journalist and host of the Dallas television program "CEO," contributed this article to the Dallas Morning news on the redevelopment of the Katy Trail . "The Katy Trail-Arts Loop is not only brilliant but doable," says Cullum, "It's exactly the sort of imaginative effort we need to keep Dallas alive and jumping, fed by the innovation, energy and youth drawn to cities endowed with the joys of everyday." The Katy Trail feasibility study and designs are being conducted by Alta Principal Mia Birk and designer Robin Wilcox .
- The Spokane Journal of Business ran this article about Spokane’s efforts to become more bicycle and pedestrian friendly.
- Columbus, OH City Council voted to adopt the Columbus Bicentennial Bikeways Plan produced by Alta. Business First of Columbus ran this story on the plan and what's next for the city.
- Alta's work in Bozeman, Montana is highlighted as a national model program by the Safe Routes to School National Partnership in a recent report on "how SRTS programs are resulting in the implementation of infrastructure improvements that close gaps in the non-motorized transportation network." The report, prepared for the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, also discusses SR2S programs in Miami, FL; Knoxville, TN; and Avondale, AZ. Click to download the full report. [3.4 MB PDF] Learn more about Alta's Safe Routes programs in our Programs & Training section .
- This bikeportland.org article discusses the City of Portland, the City of Vancouver, and the Oregon Department of Transportation's effort to improve cyclists' access and ability to cross the Columbia river between Portland, Oregon and Vancouver, Washington. Jonathan Maus describes the current: "With a disorienting combination of sidewalks, a freeway on-ramp and off-ramp, and several high-speed streets that access hotels and the Janzten Beach shopping center, it seems like it was designed and planned before bicycles even existed (or clearly before they were considered a viable means of transport)." The draft version of the map is available in the article: http://bikeportland.org/2008/06/03/new-map-improvements-will-make-i-5-bridge-crossing-easier/
- Treehugger.com shows an interest in Alta's recently completed Columbus, OH Bicycle Master Plan, comparing the city's efforts to that of New York, Seattle, Chicago, London and Copenhagen. The article mentions the importance of education of cyclists and motorists in the plan and highlights a few other key components. See the article here: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/06/columbus-ohio-unveils-bicycle-master-plan.php
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