Final Report: Nashville-Davidson County Strategic Plan for Sidewalks and Bikeways

Author(s):

RPM Transportation Consultants, LLC

Organization:

RPM Transportation Consultants, LLC

Publisher/Date:

RPM Transportation Consultants, LLC, Nashville, TN, 2003

Rating:

Very Useful

Abstract:

The purpose of the Strategic Plan for Sidewalks & Bikeways is to enable Metro to effectively plan and implement facilities that improve safety, enhance mobility, and promote a higher quality of life. This plan will provide Metro with a blueprint for making walking and bicycling attractive, safe, and practical transportation options for citizens throughout Nashville and Davidson County.

Comprehensive in scope, the plan addresses all aspects of pedestrian and bicycle planning: building welldesigned pedestrian and bicycle facilities promoting the benefits of walking and bicycling, educating users of all modes how to share our streets, and enforcing laws that help improve safety. More specifically, the plan addresses the following objectives:

• To provide safe, comfortable, continuous, direct, and convenient pedestrian facilities for users with all levels of physical ability.
• To reduce the number of injuries and death resulting from crashes between motorists, bicyclists, and pedestrians.
• To ensure that all new streets are safe and comfortable for pedestrians, bicyclists, and motorists.
• To maximize the multi-modal function of existing streets.
• To increase the percentage of trips undertaken in Nashville & Davidson County on foot and by bicycle.
• To encourage increased use of public transportation by improving pedestrian and bicycle access to bus stops and facilitating bus use by bicyclists.
• To minimize conflicts between motorists and bicyclists.
• To establish a methodology for prioritizing sidewalk projects on existing streets.
• To recommend design guidelines for pedestrian facilities and bicycle facilities.
• To develop budget cost estimates and an implementation strategy, and to identify potential funding sources.
• To ensure that all relevant Metro practices, programs and projects address pedestrian and bicyclist needs.

The various phases of development of the plan occurred over a twelvemonth period between September 2001 and September 2002. The process was broken down into six general tasks. These six main planning tasks were:

1. Project Initiation and Data Collection
2. Evaluation of Existing Pedestrian and Bicycling Conditions
3. Assessment of Pedestrian and Bicyclist Needs
4. Development of Proposed Pedestrian and Bicycle System
5. Development of Design Guidelines
6. Documentation

Contents:

• Chapter 1: Introduction and the Planning Process
• Chapter 2: The Planning Context
• Chapter 3: Existing Conditions
• Chapter 4: Analyses
• Chapter 5: Recommendations
• Chapter 6: Implementation and Funding
• Appendix B: Pedestrian Design Guidelines
• Appendix C: Bicycle Design Guidelines

Number of Pages:

260

Link:

Final Report: Nashville-Davidson County Strategic Plan for Sidewalks and Bikeways (http://www.nashville.org/mpc/sidewalks/finalplan_march03.htm)

Table of Contents?

Yes

Index?

NO

Illustrations?

Yes

Material Type:

Report

Key Document?

Yes

Categories:

Regional policy, guidelines; Planning, Concept/schematic Design

Keywords:

Nashville-Davidson County - Local, Pedestrian and Bicycle Planning

Strengths:

• Very comprehensive in scope
• Began with a well-defined process, that included public input
• Undertook comprehensive design guidelines as a component of the strategic plan
• Introduces with a nice policy piece
• Well footnoted with many links to resources
• Made connections to other plans
• Inventory of existing conditions used well thought-out methodology and was thorough
• Included a comprehensive review of existing policies and practices to determine gaps and enforcement needs
• Included a review of sidewalk ratio of peer cities for comparison
• Used quantative analysis of "trip generators" to assist in prioritization of recommended facilities
• Made recommendations on facility programs and special projects, education and encouragement programs, and enforcement actions
• Prominantly and thoroughly conducted cost analyis of recommendations
• Pedestrian Guidelines specifically addresses ADA, and references 2001 Access Board document, "Building a True Community", and contains a best-practice approach to design, including traffic calming measures.

Record Last Updated:

July 2006