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It is important to provide a variety of safe and reliable modes of transportation. Bicycling and walking are two modes that are an important part of the overall transportation system. They are useful for either an entire journey or for accessing another mode. In both cases are offered the benefits of low cost and low environmental impact. The 1995 Nationwide Personal Transportation Survey (NPTS) indicates that walk/bicycle modes comprise 21 percent of all modes for all trip purposes in the NYMTC region. The largest component of this statistic is walking. Nationally, walking and bicycling account for about 8 percent of all trips.In order to foster the use of these modes it important to develop and provide facilities that accommodate the user. In this regard NYMTC members and involved agencies are pursuing the planning and construction of facilities all across the region. Networks of on-street lanes and off-road greenways are being built and connected to form a comprehensive system to fulfill a variety of journey purposes. Existing facilities are used for work, school and recreational trips. The usage potential of walking and bicycling is large. The NPTS data shows 61 percent of all personal trips for all trip purposes are under five miles and 24 percent are under one mile. One benefit to the region of shifting some of these trips to other modes such as bicycling and walking would be to decrease traffic congestion.
The NYMTC Regional Transportation Plan's goal is to double current usage of walking and bicycling. The RTP Bicycle and Pedestrian Element of 1995 includes a variety of strategies to
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Increase
and make safe these modes: |
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Improve and increase
bridge access
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Improve access to activity centers |
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Increase access
to transit
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Preserve
valuable rights of way |
Data Collection
Monitoring and analyzing data is important in the development of
facilities. In this regard NYMTC staff, members and affiliated organizations
conduct data collection efforts. NYMTC conducts data collection
in support of a number of organizations. This activity provides
data in support of planning, design, construction and operation
of bike lanes, trails, and walkways. In addition, individual organizations
collect data internally for the same purposes. Typically, the data
that is collected focuses on number of users, the characteristics
of the users, as well specialized data. This data is generally updated on an
annual basis.
NYMTC Bicycle Data Collection Program
Comprehensive Planning
Comprehensive planning is taking place at the subregional level
at each of NYMTC's three Transportation Coordinating Committee (TCC)
geographic regions. Three counties within the Mid Hudson South TCC
have completed a comprehensive plan which examined the trip patterns
and users who walk and bicycle. Based on that information a plan
was devised which prioritizes the development of facilities to be
built. A similar effort is taking shape on Long Island which will
result in a staged implementation of routes and safety improvements
to address the issues of access and local high crash rates. New
York City has recently opened a 23 mile Manhattan Waterfront Greenway,
several bicycle lanes and has improved East River Bridge access.
Raising Awareness-Walkable Communities
How our communities are designed and whether they contribute to
how we use them is the objective of NYMTC-sponsored Walkable Communities
Program. Through this program people are brought together to jointly
assess and redesign their communities to serve them better. Typically
an expert is brought in to guide each Walkable Community audit.
The result is a number of recommendations which are passed on
to agencies that can implement the recommendations.
Links
Long Island
Non Motorized Transportation Study (LINMTS)
Mid-Hudson South Region
Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan
Walkable Communities
New
York City Bicycling and Walking
NYC
Department of City Planning Bicycle Network Development
National
Bicycle and Pedestrian Clearinghouse