Active Transportation Introductory Webinars | |
Title | Description |
|---|---|
| Opportunities for Walkability in Rural Communities and Small Towns | This webinar from AmericaWalks and the Urban Institute explores some of the work being done to promote physical activity and improve conditions for people who move and walk in small towns and rural communities. |
Stakeholder Engagement | |
Title | Description |
|---|---|
Let's Get Together: A Guide for Engaging Communities and Creating Change | This resource from Safe Routes Partnership is for individuals, organizations, and government agencies working on equity and engagement in Safe Routes to School and beyond. This guide offers tips and strategies for engaging communities to work together to make meaningful change. Based on work in Kansas, Oregon, and California. |
Design Resources
| Title | Description |
|---|---|
| Small Town and Rural Multimodal Networks | The Small Town and Rural Multimodal Networks report is a resource and idea book intended to help small towns and rural communities support safe, accessible, comfortable, and active travel for people of all ages and abilities. |
| Bikeway Selection Guide | This guide from the Federal Highway Administration outlines the different types of bike infrastructure and how to assess a location to decide which would be appropriate. |
| The Pop-Up Placemaking Tool Kit | This tool kit from AARP and the Better Block Project can help elected officials, planners, policymakers, and involved residents use temporary projects to improve communities for people of all ages. |
Resources for Rural Communities
| Title | Description |
|---|---|
| Active Transportation Beyond Urban Centers: Walking and Bicycling in Small Towns and Rural America | This 2011 report from the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy outlines the realities of need -- even in more rural places not thought to be central locations -- for walking and biking. |
| Rural Walking in Massachusetts: A Tool Kit for Municipalities | This 2013 report provides an introduction to different types of walking facilities that can be constructed in rural areas. These case study examples may help other communities identify opportunities to provide better walking infrastructure and the tools to implement such improvements. |
| Rural Multimodal Planning: Why and How to Improve Travel Options in Small Towns and Rural Communities | This 2022 report from the Victoria Transport Policy Institute gives a summary of current active transportation and transit offerings and status in rural areas and proposes ways to address shortfalls, known gaps, and documented needs in the communities. It explores why and how to implement more multi-modal planning in rural areas and small towns. |
| Bicycle and Pedestrian Infrastructure Improvements Realized in Communities Under 10,000 | This 2018 research report defines underlying factors that have allowed communities of less than 10,000 people in Maine, Minnesota, and New Hampshire to successfully implement bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure. |
| Case Studies of Communities of Under 10,000 With Bicycle and Pedestrian Infrastructure | This 2022 research report focuses on implementation of bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure in 3 small communities within 5 states within each of the 5 U.S. regions. |
| Bicycle Tourism as a Rural Economic Development Vehicle by Heidi Beierle | This 2011 research report highlights the benefits of cycling in rural areas, including the potential for business growth and tourism development for economic growth in keeping with rural character. |
| National Center for Rural Road Safety | This website is designed for rural communities to access multidisciplinary rural road safety training, resources, and technical assistance that are dynamic, collaborative, and responsive. |
| National Rural Transit Assistance Program | This website promotes the safe and effective delivery of public transportation services in rural areas and encourages more efficient use of public transportation resources. It provides free technical assistance programs and resources including training materials, webinars, newsletters, peer resources and research. |
| Rural Communities Need Better Transportation Policy | This 2021 report assesses state of rural infrastructure and transportation needs of rural populations and proposes 10 recommendations to provide more efficient and economical systems and more equitable options. |
| Executive Summary of A Case Study of Transportation Policy for the Public's Health; Complete Streets Policies in Pennsylvania | Complete Streets policies lay the foundation for safe and convenient travel for all persons by all modes of transportation. These policies have the potential to yield an increase in opportunities for active transportation and to improve the health of the communities impacted. WalkWorks conducted a survey of municipalities throughout the state to examine adopted policies, implemented policies and policies being considered. |
Funding Opportunities
| Title | Description |
|---|---|
| Costs for Pedestrian and Bicyclist Infrastructure Improvements | This 2013 resource for researchers, engineers, planners, and the public reviews how to develop meaningful estimates for pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure improvements. Though somewhat dated, this information can be used to better understand the range of costs of bicycle and pedestrian treatments in a communities and help leaders make informed decisions about which infrastructure enhancements are best suited for implementation. From the UNC Highway Safety Resource Center. |
| PennDOT Safe Routes to School Funding Compilation | PennDOT compiled this list of potential active transportation funding sources when a school or municipality is trying to implement a Safe Routes to School program or activity. |
PennDOT Resources
| Title | Description |
|---|---|
| PennDOT Active Transportation Resources | This PennDOT page outlines a variety of resources related to active transportation and developing an Active Transportation plan, PennDOT Connects, biking, and walking. |
| How-To Guide for Developing Active Transportation Plans | This guide was put together by the PennDOT Statewide Bike/Ped Coordinator to help communities understand the structure, process, and elements of developing an Active Transportation Plan. The last five pages outline a wide array of state and federal funding options. |
| PennDOT Connects | This PennDOT page introduces a more comprehensive process for planning and extended resources and education for municipalities. Through the Connects program, there are more opportunities for local input earlier in the planning process for any given state road project. Concerns such as safety issues, active transportation modes, stormwater management, utilities, historical preservation, and many others can be addressed prior to developing project scopes and cost estimates. |
| PennDOT's Local Technical Assistance Program (LTAP) | The LTAP program is designed to help Pennsylvania's municipalities make the best use of their roadway maintenance dollars. LTAP provides free services to PA municipalities around education, data collection, and on-site technical assistance to communities for road operations and maintenance. Active Transportation topics include an introduction to Active Transportation, information on crosswalks and ADA compliance, mapping resources, integrating Complete Streets Policies with other ordinances, bikeway selection, and more. |
| MPOs/RPOS Metropolitan and Rural Planning Organizations | This PennDOT page lists the Metropolitan and Rural Planning Organizations which interface with PennDOT for regional transportation planning and provide municipalities with access to the various aspects of the transportation planning process, including Transportation Improvement Plans (TIP) and Twelve Year Plans (TYP). Key contacts are provided for all transportation planning and funding projects. |
| PennDOT Districts | This is a map of the 11 PennDOT Districts (numbers go to 12 but there is no district 7), listing the counties covered and linking to the live public-facing page and contact information for each. |
| PennDOT District Planners | This PennDOT page lists the planners working in each PennDOT District, who are the key interface for the development of projects, planning, and connecting the DOT to the MPOs/RPOs. These Planners may or may not be the same person as the Bike/Ped Coordinator for the District. |
| PennDOT Bicycle and Pedestrian Coordinators | This PennDOT page lists the Bike/Ped Coordinators for each of the 11 PennDOT Districts, which are key contacts for planning, funding, design, and construction of multi-modal projects. |
| Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside | The Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside (TASA) provides funding for projects and activities defined as transportation alternatives, including on- and off-road pedestrian and bicycle facilities, infrastructure projects for improving non-driver access to public transportation and enhanced mobility, community improvement activities, and environmental mitigation, trails that serve a transportation purpose, and safe routes to school projects. |
Tactical Urbanism Resources | |
Title | Description |
|---|---|
This page from the Department of Health’s WalkWorks implementation partner, the Pennsylvania Downtown Center, provides a brief overview on Tactical Urbanism – experimental pop-ups or demonstration projects that can be powerful tools to improve safety and public health. | |
Tactical Urbanism in Pennsylvania – Demonstration Projects to Enhance Road Safety and Public Health | This video short documents the Tactical Urbanism efforts of three Pennsylvania communities – Scranton, Oxford, and Hazleton – in 2023 (voice-over script). |
Report on Road Safety Demonstration Projects in Pennsylvania | This full article, from which the above video narration was excerpted, summarizes the 2023 Tactical Urbanism projects in Pennsylvania, the challenges and successes of these efforts, and the value of short-term experimental projects to catalyze long-term change within a community. |
This report captures key findings from interviews conducted with participants of the 2023 Tactical Urbanism projects and provides recommendations for organizing future projects, including increased collaboration between the community and state and local agencies and officials. | |
This guide presents examples of successful Tactical Urbanism efforts across the United States and highlights the coordination of local governments with state officials, including the departments of transportation, local planning agencies, and private entities that make such projects possible. The examples illustrate the feasibility and acceptability of conducting such work in Pennsylvania and are accompanied by a catalogue of resources and implementation guides produced by the sampled states and other private entities. | |
PennDOT is currently updating its Design Manual Part 2 Highway Design (PUB 13 DM-2), including extensive revision to and incorporating of the formerly separate Traffic Calming Handbook. This resource has the potential to provide new tools and processes for improving road safety in Pennsylvania more quickly and effectively than has been possible to date. | |
Art in the Right-of-Way Toolkit
| “Made You Look” is a project of Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) and the Maryland Department of Transportation, now under the Neighborhood Design Center. This toolkit provides insight into process, methods, and materials for increasing safety with eye-catching design and community engagement projects, piloted initially in the City of Baltimore, but now maintained and shared for use by communities throughout the state. |
This guide distinguishes temporary pop-up or demonstration projects from quick-builds, which are rapid implementation of permanent infrastructure. | |
Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission Expo: Experimental Pop-ups | The webpage for the DVRPC EXPO program includes videos detailing several pop-up road safety projects: a two-week bike lane implementation in Narberth, PA; a half-day road diet/bike lane in West Chester, PA; and an additional demonstration effort in New Jersey. |
The Minnesota Department of Transportation’s manual and proof of concept for proper design and installation of traffic calming demonstration projects is “Provided as a resource to assist communities and agencies in implementing short-term, low-cost, temporary roadway projects to promote and advance Safe Routes to School and active transportation initiatives.” (2019) | |
From AARP and the Better Block Project, this publication can help elected officials, planners, policymakers and involved residents use temporary projects to improve communities for people of all ages. The toolkit includes placemaking “recipes” and is a practical guide to demonstrating and implementing positive change. | |
This website is intended to serve as a hub of information about Tactical Urbanism, focusing on the information from the Tactical Urbanist’s Guide to Materials and Design, and highlighting additional resources by Street Plans and other partners. | |
Smart Growth America’s Complete Streets Leadership Academies Report | Teams of local agencies and state departments of transportation worked with Smart Growth America to learn how to plan and implement quick-build road safety projects to “pilot and test new ideas and street designs to activate streets and better support walking, biking, and rolling.” (2024) |
Vermont Guidance Document: Demonstration Projects in State Highway Right-of-Way | The Vermont Agency of Transportation Guide describes the approval process for demonstration projects within Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans)-controlled highway right-of-way (ROW) only. This document is a guidance, not a comprehensive “how-to” or design manual. |