Connecticut
Sample
CompleteStreetsPolicy
September2012
PresentedbyConnecticutConferenceofMunicipalities
Tri-StateTransportationCampaign.BasedonadraftpolicypreparedbyElanPlanning.
TableofContents
Preamble...... 2
VisionStatement...... 2
RationaleforCompleteStreets...... 3
Health...... 3
Safety...... 3
Environment ...... 4
FiscalImpact...... 4
Exemptions...... 4
ObjectivesandGuidingPrinciples:...... 5
OptionalActionItems:...... 5
Preamble
InJune2009,ConnecticutGovernorJodiRellsignedthe“CompleteStreets”billintolaw. Thelaw,whichpassedwithanoverwhelmingmarginintheConnecticutGeneralAssembly,requiresthatalltransportationprojectsthatreceivestatefundingmustconsiderusingcompletestreetsdesignfeatures.
Connecticut’sCompleteStreetslaw,whichwasthefirstofitskindinthetri-statearea,dedicates1%oftransportationfundingtobikeandpedestrianinfrastructure,establishesaBicycleandPedestrianAdvisoryBoard,anddirectstheConnDOTCommissionertoprovidereportslistingbicycleandpedestrianaccessprojectsfundedbytheStateTransportationFundandbyfederalprogramsliketheCongestionMitigationandAirQualityProgram(CMAQ).
Theconceptofcompletestreetsisnotnew,butitisbecomingincreasinglyintegratedintonewprojectsandtheregularmaintenanceorrehabilitationoflocaltransportationsystems.
VisionStatement
WiththesigningoftheCompleteStreetsLawbyGovernorRell,region-wideattentionisbeinggiventotheconceptofcompletestreets,whichimpactsthesafety,healthandvibrancyofConnecticutcommunities.The[insertmunicipalityhere]CompleteStreetsPolicywillencouragethedevelopmentofacompletestreetsnetworkthroughoutthecommunitytocreateamorebalancedtransportationsystem.TheCompleteStreetsPolicyshallbeconsistentwith,andassistinachievingthegoalsandrecommendationssetforthinthe[Municipality]ComprehensivePlanandotherpolicydocuments. ThePolicyshallensurethatnewandupdatedpublicandprivateprojectsareplanned,designed,maintainedandoperatedtoenablesafe,comfortableandconvenienttraveltothegreatestextentpossibleforusersofallagesandabilitiesincludingpedestrians,bicyclists,motoristsandtransitriders.
RationaleforCompleteStreets
Theintegrationoflanduseandtransportationiscriticaltothelivabilityofacommunityandregion.Inahighlycompetitiveglobaleconomy,regionsandcommunitiesmustlearntoaddresseachinabalancedmannertomaintainahighqualityoflifeforexistingandfutureresidents,businessandvisitors.Connecticutiscurrentlyundergoingsignificantemploymentandpopulationshifts. Newandexistingresidentsandemployeesoftenhaveanexpectationforahighqualityoflife,whichoftenincludesawalkable,bikeableandvibrantcommunity.Incorporatingcompletestreetsintoacommunitycanassistinachievingthishighqualityoflife.
“Completestreet”designsarearoutineapproachforaccommodatingalltravelmodesforallusers,regardlessofageorability. Thisresultsinabalancedtransportationsystemprovidingchoicesofwherepeoplecangoandhowtheycangetthere.Completestreetsmayincludeelementssuchasdefinedpedestrianandbicyclesspaces,streettreesandbenches,pedestrianscaledlighting,andtransitstopshelters. Theseelementsallowpeopletosafelywalktothelibrary,takethebustothegrocerystoreorbiketothepark.Theyalsoenableseniorsinourcommunitiesto“ageinplace.”CompleteStreetselementshavethecapacitytoincreasebicycle,pedestrianandtransituseofthestreetsystem,whichwouldpositivelyimpactthephysicalhealthandsafetyofthecommunity,theenvironmentalqualityofourneighborhoodsandtheeconomicvitalityofthe[Municipality].
CompleteStreetsarenotaboutbuildingsidewalksandbicyclelanesoneverystreet.Theyarenotaboutmassivetakingsofrightsofway.Theyareaboutsite-specificplanningdecisionsthathelptoreconfigureexistingroadspaceinamannerthatbetteraccommodatestheneedsofusers.Sometimes,it’sassimpleasmovingthewhitelinetocreatemorespaceontheshoulder,ormakingsurethecrosswalklightstaysonlongenoughforanolderpedestriantogetacrosstheroad.
Health
Publichealthofficialshavebecomeincreasinglyawareofournation’sdecliningphysicalfitnessandtheresultingincreaseindiseasessuchasdiabetesandobesity.Muchresearchhasbeenconductedtoidentifyalinkbetweenauto-dependentsprawlandanincreaseinsedentarylifestylediseases. Researchindicatesthatcountriesthatinvestinamoremulti-modaltransportationsystem(biking,walking,transit)havehigherratesofbicyclingandwalkingaswellaslowerratesofobesity.Itisbelievedthatthemostpracticalandeffectivewaytoimprovepublicfitnessistoincreasewalkingandbicycling.[i]
Walkingandbikingcandecreasetheriskofdiseasesrelatedtoinactivitysuchasasthma,hypertensionandobesity.Inadditiontotheirhealthbenefitstoindividuals,walkingandbikingdecreaseautomobiledependence,inturnimprovingairqualityandtheoverallhealthoftheenvironmentwelivein.
Safety
Agenerationago,walkingandbicyclingtoschoolorworkwasacommonpractice.
Today,however,thenumberofpeoplewalkingandbicyclingtolocaldestinationshasdwindled.Amajorfactorinthistrendisaconcernforsafety. RecentConnecticutDepartmentofTransportationstatisticsnotethat121pedestrianswerekilledonConnecticutstreetsinthethreeyearsfrom2008through2010. 31.4%oftheseaccidentswereinNewHaven,althoughthepopulationofNewHavenaccountsforonly24%ofallpeoplelivinginConnecticutasof2010. From2007-2009,therewere94pedestrianfatalitiesinConnecticut. Ofthese94fatalities,35%were60yearsandolder. Throughoutthestate,from1999to2008,31%ofallpedestriansinvolvedinaccidentswereaged10-24and49%ofpedestrianskilledwereovertheageof60.[ii]Providingwell-definedpedestrianandbicyclefacilitiescoupledwithaneducationalprogramisawaytohelpaddressthesafetyconcernsoftenraised.
Environment
Increasedgreenhousegaslevelsarenegativelyimpactingtheearth.Transportationaccountsfor34%ofgreenhousegasesandforeverygallonofgasolineburned,20poundsofcarbondioxideemissionsisproduced.[iii] Theauto-centricmannerinwhichourcommunitieshavegrownisacriticalfactorsupportingtheconsumptionofcarbon-basedfuelsintheU.S. Implementingacompletestreetspolicycanhaveapositiveimpactonourenvironmentbyreducingthecommunity’srelianceonavehicularmodeoftransportandofferingviabletransportationoptionssuchaswalking,bicyclingandpublictransit.
FiscalImpact
Designingcompletestreetsisnotadditionalworkforplanners,architectsandengineers;itisdifferentwork. Thepractitionersofthesedisciplineshaveinthepastbeenaskedtosolveaparticularproblem—namely,safelyandefficientlymovingthemaximumnumberofcarspastagivenpointintheshortesttime. TheCompleteStreetsPolicysimplyredefinestheproblem. UnderthisPolicy,theseprofessionalsarerequiredtousetheirknowledgeandskillstodesignroadsandaroadnetworkthatsafelyandefficientlymoveallusers,motorizedandnon-motorized. Thefiscalimpactismitigatedbytheuseofupdatedplanningpractices,preventionofdelaysinthedesignprocessandeliminationoftheneedforcostlyretrofits.
Thecostsassociatedwiththeroutineaccommodationofalternativetransportationmodes(i.e.walking,bikingandtransit)generallyrepresentasmallpercentageofacommunity’soverallbudget. Infrastructurecostsarereducedbyrequiringlesspavementperuser,whichinturnreduceslong-termmaintenancecosts.Theresourcesthatarespentequateintoalong-terminvestmentinthefinancialandphysicalhealthof[Municipality].
Additionally,thechoicesthatcanresultfromacompletestreetspolicycanimproveandmaintaintheeconomicvitalityaswellassupporttheeconomicvibrancyof[Municipality].Thedowntownareacancontinuetobeatargetforgrowthandtosupporttourismintheregion.Streetsaccommodatingpedestrianandbicycleactivityarewelcomingandencourageresidentsandvisitorstolingeratlocalbusinesses,providinganimportantcontributiontothetaxbase.
Exemptions
Wherethe[Municipality]oraprivatedeveloperdecidesthataccommodatingallusersisimpracticalorburdensome,theymaydocumenttheirdeterminationtobeexemptfromthepolicy’srequirements.Thisdocumentationwillbefilledoutandpostedforeachnewstreetandsidewalkproject.Itlistswhothedecisionmakersareontheproject,andthewaysinwhichalluserswereaccommodated,orthereasonstheywerenot.Costmaybeconsideredavalidbasisforanexemption.
ObjectivesandGuidingPrinciples:
A.Incorporatelocallysensitive“bestpractices”fromUnitedStatesDepartmentof
Transportation,FederalHighwayAdministration,AmericanAssociationofState
HighwayTransportationOfficials,InstituteofTransportationEngineers,ConnecticutDepartmentofTransportation,AmericanswithDisabilitiesActandotherappropriateentitiestoenablecitizenstosafelytravelbyalltransportationmodes,includingbicycling,walkingandtransitridership.
B.Promotethesafeuseofourmulti-modaltransportationsystembyincreasingtheawarenessofallusersthroughanappropriateeducationalprogram.
C.Reinforcecollaborationwithpartnersatthelocal,schooldistrict,county,stateandfederallevelstoensureappropriateconnectivityforalltravelmodes.
OptionalActionItems:
Short-Term
1.The[Municipality]shallappointaCompleteStreetsAdvisoryBoardtoprovideinputonpublicprojectstofurthertheCity’scompletestreetsphilosophy.TheBoardwillbesolelyadvisoryinnatureandwillconsistof[seven]members.AliaisonbetweentheAdvisoryBoardand[Municipality]isstronglyencouraged.TheAdvisoryBoardmeetingswouldbeopentothepublicandwouldallowforpublicinput.TheAdvisoryBoardwouldmeetaminimumoftwiceperyearandonanas-neededbasisascalledonbythe[Municipality],theLandUseBoardsorattheinceptionofpublictransportationprojectswithinthe[Municipality]limits.
2.Provideinformationaboutthe[Municipality’s]completestreetspolicyandtheCompleteStreetsAdvisoryBoardonthewebsiteforeasypublicaccess.
3.Promotethesafeuseofamulti-modaltransportationsystembyincreasingtheawarenessofallusersthroughanappropriateeducationalprogram.TheCompleteStreetsAdvisoryBoardcouldleadthiseffortwithassistancefromthePlanningOffice,localorganizations,andtheschooldistrict.Additionally,staffshallattendperiodicworkshopsandtrainingtoremainwell-informedofchangesinthefield.
4.Developa“completestreets”checklistforallpublicprojectsundertakenwithinthe[Municipality]tobereviewedbytheCompleteStreetsAdvisoryBoardduringtheprojectplanninganddesignphase.ThechecklistmayalsobeincludedinapplicationsbeforetheLandUseBoardsforthereviewofprivatedevelopmentprojects.TheCompleteStreetsAdvisoryBoard,inconjunctionwiththePlanningOfficeandLandUseBoards,willdevelopthechecklist.
5.CoordinatewiththeSchoolDistrictandDepartmentofPublicWorkstoachievesharedgoalsrelatedtoSafeRoutestoSchool.The[Municipality’s],CompleteStreetsPolicywillresultinafully-connectedtransportationnetworkforallmodesoftransportation.Whilenoteverystreetcanbedesignedperfectlyforeveryuser,thedevelopmentofSafeRoutestoSchoolwillallowfor“aninterwovenarray”ofstreetswhichadequatelyserveallmodesoftransit.
Mid-Term
6.Conductacompletestreetsauditexaminingtheaccessibility,safety,connectivityandqualityofplaceforanareainthe[Municipality]thatincludeskeycommunityfeaturesanddestinations. ThePlanningOfficecouldleadthiseffortincoordinationwiththeCity’sLandUseBoardsandCompleteStreetsAdvisoryBoard.ThisinformationcouldbeincorporatedintoacompletestreetsgapanalysismapandafutureBicycle,PedestrianandPublicTransitPlan.
8.IdentifycurrentregulationswithintheCity’sZoningOrdinanceandSubdivision
Regulationswhichareconsistentwitha“completestreets”approachtoroadwayandstreetscapedevelopment.Providerecommendationstofurtherenhanceguidelinesandrequirementsforprivatedevelopmentprojects.Alsoidentifypossibleamendmentstothezoningordinanceandsubdivisionregulationsthatcanfurthersupportcompletestreets.
Long-Term
10.CompleteaBicycle,PedestrianandPublicTransitPlanincludingamap,illustratinggapsinpedestrian,bicycleandtransitfriendlycomponents.TheresultsofthecompletestreetauditcouldbethebasisforthisplanandcouldassistinidentifyingcompletestreetsneedsandprioritieswithintheCity. SuchaplanmayalsoincluderecommendationsforenforcementthroughouttheCityrelatedtocompletestreets.
1
i“If Health Matters: Integrating Public Health Objectives in transportation Planning.” Todd Litman. Victoria Transport Policy Institute. Aug. 2009.
iii“Older Pedestrians at Risk,” Tri-State Transportation Campaign (2011). Available at:
[iii]Growing Cooler: Evidence on Urban Development and Climate Change.Reid Ewing, et al. Urban Land Institute.