Group items tagged

Spotlight on Pedestrian Safety by Tamara Redmon, Dan Gelinne, Leah Walton, and Jeff Miller FHWA's aggressive approach to reducing the fatality rate in 13 States and 5 municipalities is showing promising results. Focus cities have installed high-visibility crosswalks, such as this one in Montclair, NJ, in a number of locations to improve pedestrian safety. For the past 7.5 years, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has been trying to aggressively reduce pedestrian deaths by focusing extra resources on the States and cities with the highest numbers or rates of pedestrian fatalities. In recent years, 13 States experienced pedestrian fatalities above 150 per year and above the national rate of 2.5 per 100,000 population. In 2003 those States were Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Texas. An increase in Nevada's rate later added it to the list, while Michigan dropped off in 2007. In addition, five cities had the highest number of fatalities per year: Chicago, IL; Detroit, MI; Los Angeles, CA; New York, NY; and Phoenix, AZ. Washington, DC, later went on the list, and Detroit dropped off (only to rejoin in 2011). To address this challenge, FHWA's Focused Approach to Pedestrian Safety project began with a memorandum dated May 2004 outlining the goal of reducing pedestrian fatalities by 10 percent by the year 2008 (goal later changed to 2011). To address this performance goal, FHWA encouraged the affected States and cities to develop and implement pedestrian safety action plans. A previous article in Public Roads documented the early implementation of the Focused Approach to Pedestrian Safety (see "In Step With Safety" in the September/October 2006 issue). "The focused approach to pedestrian safety has changed the way road owners and operators view pedestrians," says Elizabeth Alicandri, FHWA director of the Office of Safety Programs. "One of the reasons it has bee

Pedestrian & Bicycle Safety Livable communities are a high priority of the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Obama Administration. A livable community is one that provides safe and convenient transportation choices to all citizens, whether it's by walking, bicycling, transit, or driving. Each year, unfortunately, pedestrian fatalities comprise about 12 percent of all traffic fatalities and there are approximately 4,000 pedestrian deaths. Another 59,000 pedestrians are injured in roadway crashes annually. The numbers are improving, but we still have a ways to go. Pedestrian safety improvements depend on an integrated approach that involves the 4 E's: Engineering, Enforcement, Education, and Emergency Services. The FHWA's Office of Safety develops projects, programs and materials for use in reducing pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities. Pedestrian Safety Strategic Plan Pedestrian Safety Focus States and Cities Crash Facts Tools to Diagnose and Solve the Problem Education and Outreach Pedestrians and Transit Pedestrian Safety in Communities Hispanic Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety [En Español] Legislation and Guidelines Research Order Copies of CD's, Reports, and Other Resources Webinar Information Related Websites Consideration and Implementation of Proven Crash Countermeasures Medians and Pedestrian Refuge Areas in Urban and Suburban Areas Curbed medians provide a pedestrian refuge area both at intersections and midblock locations. While the length of the crossing is important in the pedestrian being able to cross the street during one cycle, it is the median that gives them a refuge if they can not. This is very important especially in midblock locations as that is where over 70% of pedestrian fatalities occur. Also it is where vehicle travel speed are higher which contributes to the injury and fatality rate at this location. Over 80% of pedestrians die when hit by vehicles traveling at 40 mph or faster while less than 20% die when hit at 20 mph.

Pedestrians and Cyclists Introduction | Crash characteristics where and how | Measures to reduce crash numbers and injury severity | Pedestrians and cyclists unprotected road users | Promote cycling and bicycle helmets or not | References | Special regulations for pedestrians and cyclists | PDF This text on pedestrians and cyclists safety, reviews the scientific studies on the magnitude and nature of the safety problem, the contributing accident factors, and the effectiveness of countermeasures. For information on the development of casualty frequencies and accident circumstances over the period 1996-2005 per European country, please consult the Basic Fact Sheet Pedestrians [467 KB] and the Basic Fact Sheet Bicycles [574 KB] on the Data section of the website. Diagram & Summary Unprotected road users Walking and cycling are transport modes where relatively unprotected road users interact with traffic of high speed and mass. This makes pedestrians and cyclists vulnerable. They suffer the most severe consequences in collisions with other road users because they cannot protect themselves against the speed and mass of the other party. Of all journeys, 20-40% are travelled by cycle or on foot, with the highest percentage in the Netherlands and the lowest in Finland. Trips on foot take place most frequently in Great Britain, whereas bicycle trips are most frequent in the Netherlands, Denmark, and Sweden. Some groups of traffic participants walk or cycle more than others. These differences are also reflected in their crash involvement. Walking is particularly important for children below the age of 12 and adults aged 75 and above. The bicycle is used most frequently by adolescents (12-17 years of age). Crash characteristics Of all traffic fatalities in EU countries, the proportion of pedestrian fatalities is about 17% and the proportion of cyclist fatalities is about 6%. Age groups that have the highest percentage of pedestrian fatalities are children younger than 10 ye

The Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center offers several training courses to provide technical assistance to professionals and community members in developing pedestrian safety action plans and in improving conditions for walking. How to Develop a Pedestrian Safety Action Plan This 2-day course is designed to help communities know where to begin to address pedestrian safety issues when developing a pedestrian safety action plan tailored to their community. Pedestrian Safety Action Plan Workshop This 3-day workshop is designed to create a draft pedestrian safety action plan for state and local agencies wanting to address safety issues. Designing for Pedestrian Safety This 2-day course is intended to help communities address pedestrian safety issues through design and engineering solutions. Planning and Designing for Pedestrian Safety This 3-day course is designed to help communities learn how to address pedestrian safety issues through planning, design, and engineering solutions. Creating Livable Communities through Public Involvement This one-day course is designed to help government sponsored boards and commissions, advocacy, business and neighborhood-based groups and individuals work collaboratively to create livable communities through public involvement. To read an evaluation of the training courses, view the progress report, Developing and Implementing a Pedestrian Safety Action Plan. Pedestrian Safety Workshop: A Focus on Older Adults This one-day workshop is intended to initiate discussion about how to improve walking conditions and safety for older pedestrians. To enhance dissemination of the workshop, three free web-based options are available: watching an adapted version of the workshop, getting an instructor training or to preparing to make a brief presentation targeted to older pedestrians.

Science of Pedestrian Movements posted by jason king on january 05, 2012 Books, Cities, Modeling, Pedestrians, Public Space, Research, Resources, Transportation An interesting article from the Economist on 'The Wisdom of Crowds' echoes much of the seminal research of William Whyte (City), Edward T. Hall (The Hidden Dimension), and others that have closely studied the behavior of pedestrians and other users of public spaces.   The interplay of cultural habits that tells us to step right or left to avoid collisions on a busy street can lead to a certain inherent poetic 'choreography' when viewed.  There are different theories on how these actions are coordinated, and the article focuses on new scientific methods for predicting and studying pedestrian movements.  As Jane Jacobs mentioned in The Death and Life of Great American Cities this urban realm is likened to a ballet: "It is a complex order. Its essence is intricacy of sidewalk use, bringing with it a constant succession of eyes. This order is all composed of movement and change, and although it is life, not art, we may fancifully call it the art form of the city and liken it to the dance - not to a simple-minded precision dance with everyone kicking up at the same time, twirling in unison and bowing off en masse, but to an intricate ballet in which the individual dancers and ensembles all have distinctive parts which miraculously reinforce each other and compose an orderly whole. The ballet of the good city sidewalk never repeats itself from place to place, and in any once place is always replete with new improvisations." It was interesting, in this context, to remember my recent travels to Europe, namely London, where traffic on the roads occupies the left lane, but as mentioned in the article, there is not a correlation between this and pedestrian movement.  While they mention that London follows pedestrians on the right, that is an oversimplification, as it doesn't necessarily follow,

Coalitions and alliances are groups that form for mutual benefit. Partnerships are relationships between individuals or groups characterized by mutual cooperation and responsibility. These groups form for the achievement of shared goals. Creating change to improve safety and increase the number of people walking requires a multi-disciplinary effort. The likelihood of success increases when coalitions or partnerships bring together dedicated individuals including: Law enforcement officials, including officers and members of the judiciary Health industry, including doctors, nurses, dieticians, and health educators People in transportation and development, including engineers, planners, developers Parents, senior citizens, schools, parks and recreation departments The cooperation of public and private interests, professionals, businesses, and interested citizens can yield broad support for multi-faceted solutions to pedestrian problems. These groups exist at local and national levels. Many of them can serve as models for a local organization, or they may have members from your community. National coalitions, alliances and partnerships America Walks America Walks is a national coalition of local advocacy groups dedicated to promoting walkable communities. The group helps communities form advocacy groups. Members are autonomous grassroots organizations from across the country, each working to improve conditions for walking in their area. The mission of America Walks is to foster the development of community-based pedestrian advocacy groups, to educate the public about the benefits of walking, and, when appropriate, to act as a collective voice for walking advocates. America Walks provides a support network for local pedestrian advocacy groups. The group offers advice about how to get started and how to be effective with public officials and engineering and design professionals. Alliance for Biking and Walking The Alliance for Biking and Walking is a national coalitio

"Solving the Epidemic of Preventable Pedestrian Deaths The decades-long neglect of pedestrian safety in the design and use of American streets is exacting a heavy toll on our lives. In the last decade, from 2000 through 2009, more than 47,700 pedestrians were killed in the United States, the equivalent of a jumbo jet full of passengers crashing roughly every month. On top of that, more than 688,000 pedestrians were injured over the decade, a number equivalent to a pedestrian being struck by a car or truck every 7 minutes. Despite the magnitude of these avoidable tragedies, little public attention - and even less in public resources - has been committed to reducing pedestrian deaths and injuries in the United States. On the contrary, transportation agencies typically prioritize speeding traffic over the safety of people on foot or other vulnerable road users. Nationwide, pedestrians account for nearly 12 percent of total traffic deaths. But state departments of transportation have largely ignored pedestrian safety from a budgetary perspective, allocating only about 1.5 percent of available federal funds to projects that retrofit dangerous roads or create safe alternatives."

Getting people walking will help build support for creation of more walkable places, decrease air pollution and traffic congestion, improve physical health, and other benefits. Research reveals that creating places for walking (such as walking trails) and other forms of physical activity may be associated with increased physical activity. Below is a list of ideas that a walking coalition or partnership may select from to get going. If there is not yet an established coalition in your community, then find out more about how to build a coalition. The ideas below can be used to inspire and motivate people to get out of their cars and walk. 1. Make walking part of the business: walk at work programs Partner with large employers to design and publicize routes to walk on the business campus, give time for walking during the day or foster walking groups. One example is Berkeley's walking groups for employees. Some employers also offer incentives for physical activity through their insurance provider. For example, Blue Cross/Blue Shield members in North Carolina's State Health Plan can earn free gifts like backpacks, water bottles, blankets and tents as they log their activity. American Heart Association provides support to business-based walking programs through incentive items, printable material and recognition. 2. Offer incentives and buddies: mileage clubs Use online and community-based programs that encourage walking and provide incentives for reaching mileage goals either individually or in groups. See the America on the Move program or a "Walk Across a State" program sponsored by cooperative extensions. For older adults, there is AARP's Get Fit on Route 66 online mileage club. 3. Provide a guide: walking maps Provide maps of local attractions as well as locations of practical amenities such as restrooms. For inspiration, see examples from Feet First and Walk Arlington. Add walking routes to the Trails web site and invite community members to view them. Walkin

Bicycle Related Sites This page lists bicycle related web sites. Our focus is to provide information on bicycling as a mode of transportation. The sites listed below do not represent the views of the Department. They are for informational purposes only and the Department cannot be held liable for misinformation from any of these sites. Every effort has been made to review each site for content, however should a site grossly misstate facts or sources please send an e-mail to Ann Mahaney and the link will be removed. National Organizations: National Bicycle Safety Network - Contains safety and other information concerning bikes. Bicycle and Pedestrian Information Organization - Contains technical information on bicycles and walking. The League of American Bicyclists - ...for a bicycle friendly America, the national organization of bicyclists. Bicycle Federation of America - an electronic information center for bicycle and pedestrian advocates, practitioners, public officials and interested citizens. State Organizations: California Bicycle Coalition (CBC) - A non-profit organization that advocates increased bicycle use, access, safety and education, by promoting the bicycle as an everyday means of transportation and recreation. Smart Traveler - the single place on the internet to get information on all of your transportation options in California. California Association of Bicycling Organization (CABO) - California's bicycle clubs organized into a state federation in 1972 to protect bicyclists' interests state-wide and to encourage, maintain, and improve bicycling conditions. Local Organizations: LADOT Bicycle Services - The purpose of the LADOT Bicycle Homepage is to provide bicycle information to the constituents of the City of Los Angeles. Monterey Off Road Cycling Association (MORCA) - MORCA is an organized voice for responsible mountain biking in Monterey County. SLO County Bicycle Coalition - Transforming San Luis Obispo County into a safer and more livable

he Pedestrian Safety Guide and Countermeasure Selection System is intended to provide practitioners with the latest information available for improving the safety and mobility of those who walk. The online tools provide the user with a list of possible engineering, education, or enforcement treatments to improve pedestrian safety and/or mobility based on user input about a specific location. [read more] - understand what is needed to create a viable pedestrian system. - learn about the factors related to the pedestrian crash problem. - learn how crash typing can lead to the selection of the most appropriate countermeasures. - learn how selected treatments may address many requested improvements to the pedestrian environment. - read about the necessary components for implementing pedestrian treatments. - access additional information through a variety of resources. - access print versions of the guide and other relevant materials. - find appropriate countermeasures on the basis of desired objectives and specific location information. - view the countermeasures associated with crash types and performance objectives. - read descriptions of the 49 engineering, education, and enforcement treatments. - review real-world examples of implemented treatments. Project sponsored by: site map This site is best viewed in Mozilla 1.4+, Netscape 7.0+, or Internet Explorer 6.0+ browsers.    

Cycling Data The collection of data on the number of bicycles per household, number of bicycle journeys and the nature of those journeys helps to inform transport policy and practice. Filter by : All |  Case Studies | Cycling Advocacy | Effective Marketing | International | Resources | Videos | United Kingdom | Australia | Victoria | New South Wales | Queensland | New Zealand | South Australia | Bike Commuting | Bike Share Schemes | Europe | North America | State and Territory Government | Tasmania | Sustainable Urban Transport Plans | Cost Benefit Analysis | Research paper | Austroads | Australian Capital Territory | Local Government | Northern Territory | National Government | Western Australia | United States of America | Canada | Australian Bicycle Council Active Transportation Beyond Urban Centers (USA) 06th Feb 2012 Active Transportation Beyond Urban Centers was published by Rails-to-Trails Conservacy in January 2012. It shows that in large and small "rural cores" of 2,500 to 50,000 residents, the share of total trips made on foot or by bike is only 20 percent below the rate for larger urban cores. Furthermore, when it comes to work trips, rural areas fall right in line with the national rates of biking and walking to work. Read more Local Government Bicycle Account 2011 (Australia) 02nd Feb 2012 In January 2012 the Australian Bicycle Council released the results of Local Government and Cycling Survey undertaken in July 2011. Councils responding to the survey spent more than $72 million on bicycle-related programs in 2009-10. More than two thirds of responding councils either have a bicycle strategy or are working towards one. As at June 2010, councils responding to the survey reported having constructed 11,704km of cycling infrastructure. When their cycle networks are complete the infrastructure will measure 17,842km. Read more Weather or Not to Cycle: Temporal Trends and Impact of Weather on Cycling in an Urban Environment (Canada) 01st Feb 2012 Thi

TRANSPORTATION Zen and the art of urban transportation 7 BY JOHN GREENFIELD 16 DEC 2011 6:18 AM Commissioner Gabe Klein. Photo: Steven Vance This is excerpted from a longer story in GRID Chicago. To read the original, which includes a (somewhat hair-raising) ride to work with the commissioner, click here. When forward-thinking Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) Commissioner Gabe Klein reported for work on May 16 as part of Mayor Rahm Emanuel's new administration, it marked a sea change in the city's priorities. Chicago spent most of the 20th century trying to make it easier to drive. In recent years, as other cities pioneered green transportation initiatives like car-protected bike lanes, large-scale public bike sharing systems, and "ciclovia" events which shut down streets to make room for car-free recreation, Chicago futilely tried to fight auto congestion by removing pedestrian crosswalks, shortening walk signal times, and installing slip lanes and right-on-red signals to help drivers make faster turns. After Emanuel won the election, his choice of Klein made it clear the mayor-elect was serious about sustainable transportation. The new commissioner was fresh from a stint as transportation director for Washington, D.C., where in a mere 23 months, he made numerous pedestrian safety improvements, launched a new streetcar system, expanded the downtown circulator bus system, piloted protected bike lanes, and created the nation's first and largest bike share system. He arrived a month before starting work, so within six months on the job, the commissioner racked up an impressive list of accomplishments and firsts, installing the city's first protected bicycle lane, starting work on new protected lanes on two other streets, and laying plans to install a total of 100 miles of protected lanes within Emanuel's first term. Under Klein, CDOT has begun striping conventional bike lanes continuously through intersections, it has broken the R

Bike Tour Will Visit London's 10 Most Dangerous Intersections to Call for Cyclist Safety Alex Davies Transportation / Bikes November 9, 2011 lmQQ!/CC BY 2.0 On Saturday, a group of London cyclists will gather for an unusual ride. The tour won't feature the city's historical or cultural landmarks, but its ten most dangerous intersections, as ranked by cyclist deaths and injuries. The ride is being led by two cycling bloggers, Mark of ibikelondon and Danny of Cyclists in the City. The tour follows in the wake of three protests led by the London Cycling Campaign to protest a redesign of the junction at Blackfriars Bridge, which many transportation advocates argue ignores the needs and safety of cyclists, pedestrians and public transportation. When Transport for London argued that those plans were similar to many supposedly cyclist-friendly intersections, Mark and Danny saw a way to connect the common sentiment that brought 2,500 protestors to Blackfriars Bridge to a wider cause. Mark and Danny originally conceived of the ride as a fact finding mission, to visit each of the ten most dangerous sites and brainstorm ways to make them safer. Enthusiastic public response quickly made it more ambitious, and now around 100 cyclists are expected to take part. There will be safety marshals, photographers, and breaks for tea and coffee. It is not a protest, Mark says, but a chance to educate the public about the dangers cyclists and pedestrians face in a car-oriented setting: We'll take photos of each junction and record the experience of riding these locations; we'll rate each junction for safety, comfort, air quality and cycle facilities and pass our findings directly to Transport for London - that way the next time the terrible and the inevitable happens at one of these junctions TfL can't say they weren't warned. If you're in the area, head to St Mark's Church in Kennington for a 10:30am departure. Follow Alex on Twitter. Tags: Bike-Friendly World | London | Urban

Walking and cycling as transport modes No speed, no mass, and no protection Pedestrians and cyclists: unprotected road users Walking and cycling as transport modes Of all journeys, 20-40% are travelled by cycle or on foot, with the highest percentage in the Netherlands and the lowest in Finland. Trips on foot take place most frequently in Great Britain, whereas bicycle trips are most frequent in the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden [34]. Some groups of traffic participants walk or cycle more than others. These differences are also reflected in their crash involvement (see Crash characteristics). Age groups for which walking is particularly important, are children below the age of 12 and adults aged 75 and above. The bicycle is used most frequently by those younger than 18 years of age [34]. Walking as a transport mode Cycling as a transport mode Age groups most involved in walking and cycling Walking as a transport mode Walking as a means of transport is commonly used for rather short trips. This means that it is actually difficult to assess pedestrian mobility at country level, as the national travel surveys often do not register the shorter trips. Also, the walking parts of trips made primarily by public transport are usually not taken into account. At present, the importance of walking is therefore underestimated [60]. Survey data from a selection of seven European countries show that 12-30% of all trips is made by walking (as main transport mode), the highest figure being for Great Britain [34]. For short trips under 5 km, the share of walking is higher, with a maximum of 45% in Great Britain. The average length of walking trips varies from just under 1 km (Great Britain) to 2.8 km (Finland). It should be noted, however, that the extent of coverage of short trips may vary from country to country in the national travel surveys. This will affect the comparability of average trip length and the share of walking. In Great Britain, all trip lengths are included, where

BIKE-FRIENDLY WORLD Bike Tour Will Visit London's 10 Most Dangerous Intersections to Call for Cyclist Safety A bike tour this weekend will stop at all ten of London's most dangerous intersections to call for measures to promote cyclist and pedestrian safety. Toyota Funds Bike That Reads Minds This new "Prius of bicycles" switches gears based on your brain waves. Pretty smart, huh? Clever Dutch 'Traffic Garden' From 1950s Teaches Children About Road Safety It's a great idea to teach children about road safety (on foot, bikes, and in cars) long before they apply for their driver's license. This makes the road safer for everybody, and encourages biking. The Top 20 Most Bike-Friendly Cities According to the 2011 Copenhagenize Index A very comprehensive ranking of cities around the world based on many criteria that matter to cyclists. How does your city rank? Does it make the cut? Profile: An American in Amsterdam Talks About Bike Culture (Video) Julie A. Ruterbories, the U.S. Consul General in Amsterdam, discusses her experience with bike culture in the Netherlands and what we can learn from it. What Gets Measured Gets Managed: Cracking The Tracking of Bikes and Pedestrians Clever system picks up the bluetooth signals from cellphones to monitor how many people are using a street or sidewalk or bike lane. Police Confiscate Generators, Occupy Wall Street Switches to Bike Power (Video) Occupy Wall Street Turns To Sustainability With Bike Energy 'Green Phase' Traffic Signal is Great for Cyclists! This special traffic signal makes busy intersections safer and more bike-friendly. Cycle Chalao! Bike Sharing Comes to India Cycle Chalao! is bringing bike-sharing to Pune -- and the federal government is looking to help the program expand around the country. Penny Farthing Racing is Surprisingly Intense (Video) This summer, the IG Markets London Nocturne, perhaps the premier urban cycling competition, featured a variety of challenges that included straight-forward races

Pleasures of Life in the Slow Lane By MICHAEL KIMMELMAN Published: November 7, 2011 RECOMMEND TWITTER LINKEDIN SIGN IN TO E-MAIL PRINT SINGLE PAGE REPRINTS SHARE New Yorkers should love bicycling. We're control freaks. We want to get from here to there in a New York minute and moan about the subways and the buses, about lunatic taxi drivers and the gridlock that slows us down. Enlarge This Image Tony Cenicola/The New York Times The Williamsburg Bridge in the Lower East Side of Manhattan. More Photos » Multimedia Slide Show Urban Life on a Bike Related ArtsBeat Blog: After the Splat: Our Critic Is Back on the Bike (November 7, 2011) Breaking news about the arts, coverage of live events, critical reviews, multimedia and more. Go to Arts Beat » A sortable calendar of noteworthy cultural events in the New York region, selected by Times critics. Go to Event Listings » The other day I jumped on my bicycle and rode downtown to meet Janette Sadik-Khan, transportation commissioner for New York City. She is the driving force behind the city's new bike lanes and now also a piñata for their vocal opponents. I started out along the Hudson, then headed east at 40th Street, past that nowhere stretch of depots that muscles its way toward the chaos of the Port Authority Bus Terminal. The waterfront is bucolic and almost Zen-like without a million other bikes around, but I've also come to love those gruff, empty, brooding blocks on the far West Side, which I almost never bother to walk. River gives way to industry then density, silence to the din of Midtown - a classic New York transition, an urban glory best absorbed, I have come to realize, from a bike. It's too bad that so many New Yorkers still complain about the bike lanes' contribution to the inconvenience of urban driving instead of promoting them for their obvious role in helping solve the city's transportation miseries, and for their aesthetic possibilities. I don't mean they're great to look

Pros and cons regarding bicycle helmet legislation Promote cycling and bicycle helmets or not? Promoting cycling: changes to expect Pros and cons regarding bicycle helmet legislation Although bicycle speed is rather limited, it is acknowledged that a properly designed helmet provides very good protection for the most vulnerable part of the body, the head, from being severely injured in a crash. Whereas the helmet is more or less compulsory in all countries for participants in sporting events, in most countries it is still optional for cycle touring or bicycle rides in general (see Bicycle helmet legislation for exceptions). Some cyclists are against the helmet as it imposes a requirement conflicting with the feeling of freedom given by the bicycle or because it is unsightly, uncomfortable, or unnecessary over short distances. Others are firmly in favour of it as it provides good head protection [16]. In 2000, helmets were worn on a voluntary basis by 15% of cyclists in Finland, 16% in the United Kingdom, 17% in Sweden, 7% in Switzerland and 6% in Norway. In Denmark, 68% of children, who are passengers on bicycles (children between 0 and 5 years old), were using helmets. 34% of the children between 6 and 9 years old use helmets on their bicycles. Only 5% of cyclists aged between 10 and 25 year old used a helmet, and among cyclists aged 25 years and older only 3% used a helmet. The proportion is insignificant in most other countries [16]. Several reviews have been conducted on the effectiveness of bicycle helmets in reducing head and facial injuries [54][53][41][30] . Studies over the last 15 years in the United States, Europe, Australia and New Zealand indicate that bicycle helmets are very effective in decreasing the risk of head and brain injuries. Critics of legislation, though, have pointed out that reductions in absolute numbers of cycling fatalities and severe head injuries can be at least partially explained by a decrease in cycling per se. Given that good evi

Urban transport in the developing world: perspectives from the first decade of the new millenium Harry T. Dimitriou, Ralph Gakenheimer 0 Resenhas Edward Elgar Publishing, 30/03/2011 - 631 páginas The twenty thematic chapters in this book provide a broad set of perspectives on the plight, possibilities and opportunities of urban transport in the developing world, set against the challenges of sustainable development. The contributors expertly set the international context of transport policy-making and planning for developing cities and present a critical review of recent developments that have taken place and which offer lessons for the future. The special features that distinguish this book are: its multiple institutional perspectives on transport in the urban development of developing cities: its efforts to link sustainability with urban transport and other development concerns; and its understanding of the consequences of globalism in choices and obligations for urban transport. This Handbook will prove invaluable for professional practitioners and academics engaged in and concerned with the future of movement in cities of the developing world. It will also be of interest to students of urban transport and city planning, particularly those from developing countries. Politicians, policy-makers and international development agencies and investors, as well as those working for international non-government organizations wishing to familiarize themselves with the mounting transportation challenges of developing cities, will also find this book a source of inspiration. « Menos    Ver uma prévia deste livro » O que estão dizendo - Escrever uma resenha Não encontramos nenhuma resenha nos lugares comuns. Livros relacionados ‹ Sustainability and cities Peter Newman, Jeffrey R. Kenworthy Urban transport planning Harry T. Dimitriou Cities on the move World Bank, K. M. Gwilliam Urban transport development Emin Tengström A developmental approach to urb

BIKING Virtuous cycle: 10 lessons from the world's great biking cities 9 BY CHRISTINE GRANT 30 JAN 2012 7:04 AM Cross-posted from Sightline Daily. In the Seattle suburb where I grew up, the main transportation choice most residents face is what kind of car to buy. I moved to the city after college and, inspired by the "car-lite" lifestyles of several friends, decided to give cycling a try. I fell in love with it. Urban cycling freed me from slow buses, parking meters, and mind-numbing elliptical machines. I arrived at work with more energy. I lost weight. I discovered charming neighborhood restaurants. I could smell fresh laundry and dinners in the oven while I pedaled home through residential streets. Getting from A to B on my bike became the best part of my day. Recently, I won a fellowship and got to spend six months living life on two wheels in the world's most bike-friendly cities. I brought home 10 lessons for us here in the States: A bike lane in Denmark. (Photo by Christine Grant.) 1. It's the infrastructure, stupid! Amazing infrastructure makes cycling normal and safe in bike meccas. For example, parked cars to the left of the bike lane not only provide a barrier between motorized traffic and cyclists, they also minimize a cyclist's chance of getting "doored." Most cars only have one occupant, the driver, and drivers get out on the left. Bikes move at different speeds than cars or pedestrians, so intersections are safer for cyclists if they have their own traffic signal rhythm. Cyclists in Copenhagen generally get a slight head start over cars so that they'll be more visible as they cross the intersection. 2. Bike share! Bike-share programs are sweeping the world, and they are very successful at boosting bike numbers. About 130,000 trips are made each day in Paris on public bikes thanks to the pioneering Vélib bike-share program. Barcelona's bike-share program has been wildly succesful at boosting ridership. (Photo by C

Parking space management: Remove a spot, reduce global warming? January 20, 2011 | 11:20 am   42 0 "Parking management is a critical and often overlooked tool for achieving a variety of social goals," according to a new study released Wednesday by the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy in New York. The study cited improved air quality, reduced greenhouse gas emissions, reduced traffic congestion, improved road safety and revitalized city centers as the key benefits of parking reform. Those benefits have been achieved in various European cities through a mixture of public policies, regulatory tools and physical design attributes, the study found. In Amsterdam and certain boroughs of London, for example, drivers pay more to park cars that emit higher levels of carbon dioxide. In Hamburg and Zurich, every new off-street parking space that is built is matched with the removal of one on-street space. In Madrid, physical barriers are used to prevent parking in pedestrian pathways. In Copenhagen, parking spaces have been eliminated and repurposed into bike paths. Other tools in use across Europe include increased parking fees to reduce parking space occupancy and the need for cars to cruise around searching for spaces; taxes on employers for each parking space available to employees; and limiting the number of parking spaces developers are allowed to build. "What's happening in China and India and many other rapidly urbanizing places is they are simply copying the model of the U.S. that has dominated urban development for the last 60 years," said Michael Kodransky, global research manager for the nonprofit group and co-author of its report, "Europe's Parking U-Turn: From Accommodation to Regulation."  "What we found through this work is that Europe was on a very similar trajectory, but it started to shift away from just catering to increased demand. For a long time there was a connection between economic prosperity and motorization, an