Texas A&M Transportation Institute» bicycle

Walk This Way — and Bicycle Too

Chris Sasser — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 15:20:33 +0000

CAMPO, TTI Use Pedestrian/Bicycle Counts to Improve Transportation Network

A worker completes installation of a bike traffic counter device.

The Live Music Capital of the World has one more thing to sing about — its pedestrian and bicycle pathways.

The Austin area is committed to environmental protection and has made great strides in incorporating pedestrian and bicycle traffic into its transportation plans. Travelers using nonmotorized means enjoy scenic paths throughout the area — created with utility and safety in mind, in addition to their visual charms. Though patrons of these pathways see the effort’s success, it can be hard to quantify. Enter the Texas Transportation Institute (TTI).

TTI assisted the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (CAMPO) in examining pedestrian and bicycle pathways. To see if a transportation improvement has actually had a positive effect, you first need baseline data — how many pedestrians and bicyclists used the path before the improvement? After the improvement, you gather data again — has the improvement drawn more users, and was the benefit worth the cost? Figuring out how to gather this information was the job of TTI researchers.

“We gathered data at 15 locations in the Austin area,” says Joan Hudson, TTI associate research engineer. “Using TTI and City of Austin cameras, we took video counts of traffic using the pathways.”

Video counts of traffic, which entail a person watching the video and counting each user, is labor intensive, so the research team also tested and evaluated new equipment for automated traffic counts. Based on these tests, CAMPO purchased two permanent counters and installed them in downtown Austin, allowing for ongoing data collection and analysis.

“We need at least one year of data to begin to identify possible use trends, which include seasonal variations and how traffic fluctuates over the day, week, etc.,” says Hudson. “The permanent counters will give CAMPO important baseline data on how people are using the route and will let the agency forecast future use.”

Workers test the traffic counter equipment by riding a bicycle through the sensor area.

CAMPO also purchased portable counting equipment for use in evaluating areas for prospective improvements, such as adding a shoulder or bike lane to a roadway. Information from counters allows the agency to compare different improvement projects, in addition to later evaluating the success of the project through comparison of before-and-after data. TTI also developed tools to identify missing links in the pedestrian/bicycle network and to forecast usage.

“The forecasting method TTI developed allows us to evaluate projects and their impact on the transportation system,” says Greg Griffin, senior planner with CAMPO. “With the tools TTI has provided, we can get objective data about demand that we can use in combination with public involvement for long-range planning. This is the first step in equalizing the transportation modes.”

“The first installation of the two permanent bike/pedestrian counters was on the new Lance Armstrong Bikeway at W. 3rd and Shoal Creek, which is very near Lance Armstrong’s bicycle shop called Mellow Johnny’s. We had just turned on the equipment after installation and were ready to test when here comes a sharp-looking bicyclist — Lance himself. So the first Eco Counter installation in Texas was on the Lance Armstrong Bikeway, and who is the first person to be counted but Lance Armstrong himself.”Joan Hudson, TTI Associate Research Engineer

For more information:

Joan Hudson
(512) 467-0946
j-hudson@ttimail.tamu.edu

Designing Context-Sensitive Solutions for Urban Thoroughfares

Chris Sasser — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 14:24:03 +0000

Recommended practice yields a desirable project the first time through rather than costly delays due to opposition.

Our oldest means of transport — our own two feet — is making a comeback. In the interests of sustainability, transportation planners and engineers are trying to more thoroughly and effectively integrate pedestrians and bicyclists into thoroughfare design. To help guide this effort, the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) and partners like the Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) have developed a recommended practice for the design of walkable major urban thoroughfares.

Besides mobility, urban thoroughfares have economic and social functions as well, functions often forgotten in the age of the automobile. ITE‘s recommended practice centers on context-sensitive solutions (CSS) — meaning that planners consider all potential uses and benefits of the thoroughfare in their design.

“The process brings together stakeholders affected by the street to discuss the goals, objectives and issues of the community,” says Brian Bochner, TTI senior research engineer and the technical project director. “This process builds ownership and consensus for the efforts to develop or revitalize the street.”

For example, a transportation agency might need to make some changes to the roadway. That may also provide an opportunity for area businesses, the community and users of the roadway to discuss beneficial changes, such as improved lighting, wider sidewalks, etc.

“What’s new about this concept is that, from the very beginning, agencies are listening to the stakeholders who live and work there, as opposed to just looking at mobility needs,” says Beverly Storey, TTI associate research scientist. “They’re listening early in the process, before design, and everyone works together toward their mutual goals.” This approach can also save money by avoiding costly changes to design or construction, and can help agencies leverage funding.

Sponsored by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the effort to compile best practices for CSS began in 2003 in a joint effort by ITE and the Congress for the New Urbanism. Contractors TTI and Kimley-Horn led the creation of the final recommended practice, Designing Walkable Urban Thoroughfares: A Context Sensitive Approach: An ITE Recommended Practice, published in 2010.

Part of TTI‘s role in the project was to identify issues of interest, work with a wide variety of stakeholders and help find consensus on best practices. TTI also performed outreach, giving workshops around the country to introduce the concept and get participant feedback.

“Publication of the ITE Recommended Practice served as a significant milestone for the advancement of context-sensitive design principles and concepts within the traffic engineering profession,” says ITE Deputy Director for Technical Programs Philip J. Caruso. “The Texas Transportation Institute played a key role in transforming these principles and concepts into clearly defined guidelines and technical tools.”

FHWA and EPA have accepted the document, and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials has also accepted it as compatible with its standards. Texas and other states have incorporated all or part of it in their design policies or manuals.

Walk, bike and be counted

Chris Sasser — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 20:46:45 +0000

Automated sensors are watching out for you

Take a walk down most busy urban streets and you’ll see any number of traffic devices to help keep pedestrians and bicyclists safe — pavement markings, crossing signals and warning signs. What you don’t see is what goes on behind the scenes.

Several traffic safety devices need sensors that can detect pedestrians and bicyclists reliably and accurately. The effectiveness of these safety measures depends on how well the sensors actually work. Recently, researchers at the Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) developed a real-world test bed to evaluate pedestrian and bicyclist sensors, with funding from the Southwest University Transportation Center.

Intersection-Based Sensors

At some intersections, pedestrians can push a button, which tells the signal controller to provide a walk signal. With accurate sensors, pedestrians wouldn’t even have to do that.

Detecting a pedestrian, the signal controller could give the walk signal and even extend the pedestrian walk time, which would be especially useful for people who walk slower than average, such as the physically disabled and the elderly. The signal controller could also provide an advance warning to pedestrians or motorists of potential conflicts.

TTI Research Engineer Dan Middleton worked on the project with Research Engineer Shawn Turner. “A more important application of the sensors is at places where there are no signals, such as at a crosswalk or unsignalized intersection,” says Middleton. “On a busy street, a pedestrian will wait for a gap. But the longer the pedestrian waits, the more likely he or she is to take more risks and start the crossing in a short gap of traffic.”

At these areas, sensors can trigger flashing beacons to warn motorists that pedestrians are in the crosswalk or intersection. Motorists would have time to slow down and stop for pedestrians, especially in high-speed areas.

Trail Counters

Transportation agencies need data on the number of pedestrians and bicyclists using crosswalks, sidewalks, paths and trails. Traffic counts can tell them the potential crash exposure for a given trail and if the trail needs further safety enhancements.

“If agencies make improvements, they want to be able to show that fewer people are getting injured,” says Turner. “However, once the improvement is in place, more people may be using the trail because they feel safer. Just looking at the number of crashes before and after an improvement can be misleading. We need to look at the crash rate, which accounts for more (or fewer) people crossing the street after the improvement.”

With the current emphasis on promoting alternatives to vehicle travel, especially modes that have less of an impact on the environment, agencies are taking a closer look at including pedestrians and bicyclists in their transportation plans.

“We need to study walking and bicycling in the same way we study vehicles,” says David Ragland, the director of the Traffic Safety Center at the University of California-Berkeley, who is also doing research into the pedestrian and bicycle modes of transportation. “We have a set of requirements in place to measure vehicle volumes, and we need the same for pedestrian and bicycle counts. Those measurements are used for resource allocation, as well as risk assessment and planning.”

“We need to study walking and bicycling in the same way we study vehicles. We have a set of requirements in place to measure vehicle volumes, and we need the same for pedestrian and bicycle counts. Those measurements are used for resource allocation, as well as risk assessment and planning.”David Ragland, Traffic Safety Center Director, University of California–Berkeley

For more information:

Shawn Turner
(979) 845-8829
shawn-turner@tamu.edu

Texas A&M Transportation Institute» bicycle

Walk This Way — and Bicycle Too

CAMPO, TTI Use Pedestrian/Bicycle Counts to Improve Transportation Network

This Issue

Implementation: Where the Research Meets the Road

On this page:

For more information:

Designing Context-Sensitive Solutions for Urban Thoroughfares

This Issue

Implementation: Where the Research Meets the Road

On this page:

For more information:

Walk, bike and be counted

Automated sensors are watching out for you

Intersection-Based Sensors

Trail Counters

This Issue

Bringing Safety Home

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For more information: