| Every three days someone is hit while walking or bicycling in Lansing, Michigan, on average. (Lansing Police Department Traffic Crash Reporting System Data) |
| In Lansing, 2.45% of trips are by foot and 0.42% by bike. vs. In Ann Arbor, 15.79% of trips are by foot, and in Madison 3.19% of trips are by bike. (U.S. Census Decennial, 2000) |
Complete Streets Frequently Asked Questions
| Lansing Walking & Bicycling Task Force, c/o Mid-Michigan Environmental Action Council P.O. Box 17164, Lansing, MI 48901 |
Answers to frequently asked questions about Complete Streets are given below. Still
have other questions? Contact Jessica Yorko at jessica@walkbikelansing.com or at
517-214-5684.
have other questions? Contact Jessica Yorko at jessica@walkbikelansing.com or at
517-214-5684.
What Are Benefits of
Complete Streets?
Complete Streets?
| The walkability and bikeability of our city shapes our everyday experiences. |
 |  |  |  |  |
| Map of Accidents 653 pedestrians and bicyclists hit by cars in Lansing from 2001-2005. Click here for larger image. |
What Are Complete Streets?
Complete streets improve safety.
Designing streets with pedestrians in mind
-- sidewalks, raised medians, better bus
stop placement, traffic-calming measures,
and treatments for disabled travelers -- all
improve pedestrian safety.
Complete streets also improve safety
indirectly, by increasing the number of
people bicycling and walking.
Complete streets encourage more
walking and bicycling.
Public health experts are encouraging
walking and bicycling as a response to the
obesity epidemic, and complete streets can
help.
Complete streets can help ease
transportation woes.
Streets that provide travel choices can give
people the option to avoid traffic jams, and
increase the overall capacity of the
transportation network.
Several smaller cities have adopted
complete streets policies as one strategy to
increase the overall capacity of their
transportation network and reduce
congestion.
An analysis by the Victoria Transportation
Policy Institute found that non-motorized
transportation options can replace some
vehicle trips, and in urban areas where
more people commute by foot or bicycle,
people drive fewer miles overall.
Complete streets help children. Streets
that provide room for bicycling and walking
help children get physical activity and gain
independence.
More children walk to school where there
are sidewalks. Children who have and use
safe walking and bicycling routes have a
more positive view of their neighborhood.
Safe Routes to School programs, gaining in
popularity across the country, will benefit
from complete streets policies that help turn
all routes into safe routes.
Complete Streets are good for air
quality.
Air quality in our urban areas is poor and
linked to increases in asthma and other
illnesses.
If each resident of an American community
of 100,000 replaced one car trip with one
bike trip just once a month, it would cut
carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 3,764
tons of per year in the community.
Complete streets make fiscal sense.
Integrating sidewalks, bike lanes, transit
amenities, and safe crossings into the initial
design of a project spares the expense of
retrofits later.
Designing streets with pedestrians in mind
-- sidewalks, raised medians, better bus
stop placement, traffic-calming measures,
and treatments for disabled travelers -- all
improve pedestrian safety.
Complete streets also improve safety
indirectly, by increasing the number of
people bicycling and walking.
Complete streets encourage more
walking and bicycling.
Public health experts are encouraging
walking and bicycling as a response to the
obesity epidemic, and complete streets can
help.
Complete streets can help ease
transportation woes.
Streets that provide travel choices can give
people the option to avoid traffic jams, and
increase the overall capacity of the
transportation network.
Several smaller cities have adopted
complete streets policies as one strategy to
increase the overall capacity of their
transportation network and reduce
congestion.
An analysis by the Victoria Transportation
Policy Institute found that non-motorized
transportation options can replace some
vehicle trips, and in urban areas where
more people commute by foot or bicycle,
people drive fewer miles overall.
Complete streets help children. Streets
that provide room for bicycling and walking
help children get physical activity and gain
independence.
More children walk to school where there
are sidewalks. Children who have and use
safe walking and bicycling routes have a
more positive view of their neighborhood.
Safe Routes to School programs, gaining in
popularity across the country, will benefit
from complete streets policies that help turn
all routes into safe routes.
Complete Streets are good for air
quality.
Air quality in our urban areas is poor and
linked to increases in asthma and other
illnesses.
If each resident of an American community
of 100,000 replaced one car trip with one
bike trip just once a month, it would cut
carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 3,764
tons of per year in the community.
Complete streets make fiscal sense.
Integrating sidewalks, bike lanes, transit
amenities, and safe crossings into the initial
design of a project spares the expense of
retrofits later.
Complete streets are streets designed
for everyone, not just cars.
The term “complete streets” is an urban
planning concept -- complete streets are
roadways designed and operated to enable
safe, attractive, and comfortable access
and travel for all users.
In other words, adopting a complete streets
policy means that transportation agencies
and planners will routinely design and
operate the entire right of way to enable
safe access for all users.
Cities and towns with complete streets
policies are making sure that their streets
and roads work for everyone – including
drivers, transit users, pedestrians, and
bicyclists, as well as for seniors, children,
and people with disabilities.
for everyone, not just cars.
The term “complete streets” is an urban
planning concept -- complete streets are
roadways designed and operated to enable
safe, attractive, and comfortable access
and travel for all users.
In other words, adopting a complete streets
policy means that transportation agencies
and planners will routinely design and
operate the entire right of way to enable
safe access for all users.
Cities and towns with complete streets
policies are making sure that their streets
and roads work for everyone – including
drivers, transit users, pedestrians, and
bicyclists, as well as for seniors, children,
and people with disabilities.
Aside from being safe, appealing,
and efficient for all different types of
users, complete streets can also:
Click here to read about the concept
of "Placemaking".
Complete streets also help
encourage more walking and biking,
which improves physical health and
air quality, and reduces our carbon
footprint.
Whether you are a pedestrian,
bicyclist, motorist or a transit
rider, and no matter your age,
you should be able to safely
move along and across a
complete street.
and efficient for all different types of
users, complete streets can also:
- help create a sense of place
and improve social interaction, - improve property adjacent
land values
Click here to read about the concept
of "Placemaking".
Complete streets also help
encourage more walking and biking,
which improves physical health and
air quality, and reduces our carbon
footprint.
Whether you are a pedestrian,
bicyclist, motorist or a transit
rider, and no matter your age,
you should be able to safely
move along and across a
complete street.
What are Some
Advantages of Complete
Streets?
Advantages of Complete
Streets?
Each complete street is unique, and
must fit with the adjacent land uses.
Click here to read and see how St.
Louis is creating Complete Streets
based on this concept.
Ingredients that could be found on a
complete street might include:
sidewalks, bike lanes, crosswalks,
wide shoulders, medians, bus
pullouts, special bus lanes, raised
crosswalks, audible pedestrian
signals, sidewalk bulb-outs, and
more.
Since a rural area has different
needs from a highly urban area, a
complete street in will look quite
different in each place as a result.
Regardless, both are designed to
balance safety and convenience for
everyone using the road.
must fit with the adjacent land uses.
Click here to read and see how St.
Louis is creating Complete Streets
based on this concept.
Ingredients that could be found on a
complete street might include:
sidewalks, bike lanes, crosswalks,
wide shoulders, medians, bus
pullouts, special bus lanes, raised
crosswalks, audible pedestrian
signals, sidewalk bulb-outs, and
more.
Since a rural area has different
needs from a highly urban area, a
complete street in will look quite
different in each place as a result.
Regardless, both are designed to
balance safety and convenience for
everyone using the road.
What Do Complete
Streets Look Like?
Streets Look Like?
Why Does Lansing Need
Complete Streets Policies?
Complete Streets Policies?
Click here for more details and research
footnotes.
footnotes.
- Americans want to walk and bicycle
more. Recent opinion polls found that
52 percent of Americans want to
bicycle more, and 55% would prefer
to drive less and walk more.
- Many streets where people bicycle or
walk are incomplete. The City of
Lansing and the Michigan Department
of Transportation have built miles
and miles of streets and roads that
are safe and comfortable only for
travel by motor vehicle. We’ve all
seen these roadways -- they often
lack sidewalks or crosswalks, have
lanes too narrow to share with
bicyclists, make no room for transit
riders or have no accommodation for
people with disabilities.
- A recent federal survey found that
about one-quarter of walking trips
take place on roads without
sidewalks or shoulders, and bike
lanes are available for only about 5
percent of bicycle trips . Another
national survey of pedestrians and
bicyclists found that the top
complaints were the lack of
sidewalks and bikeways –
essentially, incomplete streets.
- Few laws require states to build
roads as complete transportation
corridors. In 2000, the US
Department of Transportation
advised states receiving federal
funds that “bicycling and walking
facilities will be incorporated into all
transportation projects unless
exceptional circumstances exist.” But
fewer than half the states follow this
federal guidance – including
Michigan. Many highway
improvements add automobile
capacity and increase vehicle
speeds, but do nothing to mitigate
the negative impact this usually has
on bicycling and walking.
- Streets without safe places to walk
and bicycle put people at risk. While
nine percent of all trips are made by
foot or bicycle, more than 13 percent
of all traffic fatalities are bicyclists or
pedestrians Thirteen pedestrians and
bicyclists were killed in accidents in
Lansing between 2000 and 2006, and
scores more were injured. More than
5,000 pedestrians and bicyclists die
each year on U.S. roads. Better
design can prevent some of these
needless tragedies.
- Roads without safe access for non-
drivers become barriers. About one-
third of Americans do not drive, so
complete streets are essential for
children and older Americans, as well
as people who use wheelchairs, have
vision impairments, or simply cannot
afford a car.
A number of states and cities have
adopted bike plans or pedestrian
plans that designate some streets as
bicycling and walking.
A few places have gone further
to ensure that every street
project takes all road users into
account.
Among the places with some form of
complete streets policy are the states
of Oregon, California, South
Carolina, and Florida.
adopted bike plans or pedestrian
plans that designate some streets as
bicycling and walking.
A few places have gone further
to ensure that every street
project takes all road users into
account.
Among the places with some form of
complete streets policy are the states
of Oregon, California, South
Carolina, and Florida.
- In Michigan, the city of
Jackson adopted a complete
streets policy in 2006.
- The city of Santa Barbara,
California calls for “achieving
equality of convenience and
choice” for pedestrians,
bicyclists, transit users, and
drivers.
- Columbia, Missouri adopted
new street standards to
encourage healthy bicycling
and walking. And the regional
body that allocates federal
transportation dollars around
- Columbus, Ohio has
determined that all projects
must provide for people on
foot and bicycle.
Where Else are
Complete Streets Being
Built?
Complete Streets Being
Built?
No!
In fact, by encouraging walking and
biking, a complete streets ordinance
can help reduce automobile trips and
ease traffic in the Lansing area.
And by giving bikers and pedestrians
safe places to travel, complete
streets will help reduce situations
where bikers, walkers, and cars are
competing for travel space, thus
improving travel times and reducing
crashes.
In fact, by encouraging walking and
biking, a complete streets ordinance
can help reduce automobile trips and
ease traffic in the Lansing area.
And by giving bikers and pedestrians
safe places to travel, complete
streets will help reduce situations
where bikers, walkers, and cars are
competing for travel space, thus
improving travel times and reducing
crashes.
Will Complete Streets
Lead to Increases in
Congestion?
Lead to Increases in
Congestion?
| Corbis Royalty Free Photography |
| Photo by Bell Sports/Gareth Walters |
| Photo by Heidi Potter |
| Photo by Steve Longrove |
| Corbis Royalty Free Photography |
| HOW DO WE PAY FOR COMPLETE STREETS? Click here to learn more about sources of funding for Complete Streets Features. |
| Click here for a PowerPoint Presentation from the National Complete Streets Coalition. More at www.completestreets.org. |
| Making Lansing, Michigan Accessible and Walk & Bike Friendly! |