Women: The Indicator Species of a Great Cycling Environment

Caption: Beauty and the Bike is a documentary and project that 

introduces teenage English girls to cycling.  Learn more here.

How do you know that your city has a great environment for biking?  An article in the Scientific American argues that the presence of women cyclists is one of the most important indicators.

How to Get More Bicyclists on the Road reports that in some of the most bike-friendly cities in Europe women make up more than 50% of riders.  The U.S. Census does not collect data for non-commuting riders but if you look at the number of women bike commuters (24%) you begin to wonder if there really is a correlation between the number of women biking and the degree to which a city is bike-friendly. 

The correlation makes sense because we know that lack of real and perceived safety is one of the biggest barriers to cycling and, as the article points out, women are generally more risk averse than men.  Therefore the presence of women cyclists should indicate a more bicycle-friendly environment. 

But more than just an indicator, having more women cyclists has a lot of positive impacts. Women run the most errands, and mothers take the most trips, so getting them out of cars could have a positive impact on air quality and reducing congestion (STPP, 1999).  We also know that about 48 percent of all trips are three miles or less--trips that could easily be done by bike (Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, 2008).  If we build more bike-friendly cities it will be good for women, freeing up highly coveted time to spend on other aspects of their daily lives and it will also be good for everyone else.

Sources: 

1. United States Census Bureau. Sex of Workers by Means of Transportation to Work (American Community Survey 2006-2008).

2. Surface Transportation Policy Partnership. (1999).  High Mileage Moms

3. Rails-to-Trails Conservancy. (2008). Active Transportation for America:

A Case for Increased Federal Investment in Bicycling and Walking

Cities for Cycling: New Resource for Design Best Practices

As we work to encourage biking as a form of active living it is important that we build bicycle facilities that are effective and appropriate for those biking.  So what are the best practices and design elements around the country for designing our streets for biking?  The National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) is very interested in this question and is publishing best practices fact sheets on their website.  

Read NACTO's fact sheets of best practices

Visit the Bicycle and Pedestrian Information Center for more case studies

Recommended Holiday Reading

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The holiday season often brings the precious gift of down-time. We have started to compile a list of books that we recommend you crack open by the fire side. Here we go:

The Death and Life of Great American Cities written by Jane Jacobs in 1964 to this day stands as the quintessential book on town planning. It's a critique of many of the prevailing trends in development/planning and vision for how and why we should think differently about the connection between the design of cities and the well-being of people who live in them.


The Great Neighborhood Book written by Jay Walljasper and published through the Project for Public Spaces is essentially a Do-It-Yourself guide book for improving your neighborhood. It's an unapologetic love story about the virtues of living in a strong community.


City Comforts written by David Sucher is a visual guide to the details, large and small, which make for livable neighborhood environments. The lessons to be learned from this book can be applied to all contexts: large cities and smaller towns alike.

Happy Reading! If you have suggestions of your, post a comment with your recommendations.

Public Transportation in St. Louis NEEDS YOU!

Caption: Public transit is a critical piece of regional walkability and bikeability

"People are surprised to hear that transit is a priority for Chesterfield, but we have 26,000 jobs. Many depend on public transportation. Transit attracts jobs and investment. It's also good for the region — and what's good for the region is good for Chesterfield."

-John Nations, Mayor of Chesterfield, MO as quoted in the Post-Dispatch

Just over a year ago, St. Louis County voters narrowly defeated a ballot measure, Proposition M, that would have created a half-cent sales tax (nearly $80 million per year) to support public transit operations and maintenance. The ballot measure was necessary to keep MetroBus and MetroLink services running. As a result, when the measure was defeated, Metro was forced to significantly reduce service throughout its service area, including canceling bus routes and decreasing the frequency of buses and MetroLink. The St. Louis cutbacks were so significant that they made national headlines.

Thanks to bi-partisan support in Jefferson City, the MO legislature allocated $12 million of stimulus funds to temporarily restore some of the transit service that had been cut. However, that emergency allocation was just a short-term solution. In order to sustain Metro's operations in our region, St. Louis County voters need to approve a dedicated sales tax to ensure that MetroBus and MetroLink continue to be strong components of our regional multi-modal transportation system. St. Louis City voters approved a public transit tax in 1997, but it was contingent on the passage of a County tax. Since the County hasn't passed a tax, the City tax hasn't gone into effect.

For 22 years, Trailnet has been promoting biking and walking as important modes of transportation. In a large metro area, like St. Louis, you can't talk about walking and biking without talking about public transportation. Metro's bus and light rail services are the foundation that regional walkability and bikeability are built on.

Trailnet is proud to be a coalition member of The Greater St. Louis Transit Alliance. The Alliance is currently working to once again put Proposition M on the ballot for April, 2010, and we need your help! Come out Dec. 15 to the St. Louis County Council Meeting to support putting the initiative on the ballot on April 6. The meeting is held at 6pm at:

County Administration Building
41 S. Central Ave
Clayton, MO 63105

To learn more about the state and fate of St. Louis public transit, visit the Greater St. Louis Transit Alliance's website or the Post-Dispatch's editorial from last week.

The Fun Theory

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Volkswagen recently launched a new initiative and website called The Fun Theory that is "dedicated to the thought that something as simple as fun is the easiest way to change people’s behaviour for the better. Be it for yourself, for the environment, or for something entirely different, the only thing that matters is that it’s change for the better."

Through this new website, Volkswagen is essentially hosting what we hope becomes a growing exchange of ideas about how to change people's behavior. In addition to the video above, there are two additional videos on the Fun Theory main page. All three of the concepts are, well, fun, funny, and engaging. And as the videos show, they were effective at changing people's behaviors. The question that we have after watching the videos is: Will the behavior changes last? Are people motivated to change their behaviors due to the novelty of the ideas (which will no doubt wear off) or will the changes last as long as the "fun" options exist?

To create long-term behavior changes, we need to address all the things that drive people's decisions, including cost, ease of access, knowledge, social pressures and social trends, and enjoyment. When it comes to promoting active lifestyles and healthy eating, the preferred options need to not only be fun, but just as accessible, cheap, and easy as the unhealthy options. The same should apply to Volkswagen's Fun Theory projects.

Happy Thanksgiving from Trailnet!

Thanksgiving dinner courtesy of the bicycle-powered rotisserie.

Happy Thanksgiving from Trailnet! Eat well, soak up some quality family time, and take advantage of the days off to be active. We'll catch you on the flip-side, well-rested and re-energized from the great food and long walks, runs, and/or bike rides.

Good News for Bike/Ped Funding

Caption: The street shown above include bike lanes, sidewalk, and pedestrian curb cuts, all of which are supported by the government's proposed policy statement

The Obama administration just took another step to support funding for pedestrian and bicycle accommodations that support public transportation. If you haven’t heard the news, this could make significantly more funding available for non-motorized infrastructure projects in the next few years. Since good news is meant to be shared, please pass this onwards. See below for info sent out by the National Complete Streets Coalition:

The Obama Administration isn't letting the delay in transportation reauthorization prevent them from doing more to encourage walking, biking, and taking public transportation. The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) just issued a "Proposed Policy Statement on the Eligibility of Pedestrian and Bicycle Improvements under Federal Transit Law." The statement makes the case for investing in bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure around transit stops and stations in order to increase ridership and improve livability. Importantly, it clarifies the use of transit funds for these types of projects: the new policy would make all pedestrian improvements with 1/2 mile and all bicycle improvements within 3 miles of a stop or station eligible for funds from several transit programs. In explaining support for these types of projects, FTA quoted Secretary LaHood's summer testimony that mentioned complete streets.

Federal Highway Administration has also posted program guidance on their website to clarify that Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) Program funds can be used for bicycle and pedestrian projects and programs. The League of American Bicyclists discusses how CMAQ funds can be used for bicycle and pedestrian projects in your community in a timely new report.

It's time to BAN texting-while-driving

Caption: Screeeeeetch! Boom!

You have probably heard many stories about the dangers of texting-while-driving. Perhaps you have even seen the gruesome videos that show mangled cars and worse. As an organization that promotes walking and biking, we at Trailnet are acutely aware of the dangers of this new American past-time because our constituents do not travel in reinforced steel boxes. Instead, our constituents travel au naturale, on foot, on bike, and in wheelchairs.

A recent AP article tells of a New Jersey cyclist that was struck by a driver who was too busy texting about a drug deal to notice the cyclist's bright reflective vest. Read it for yourself:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091118/ap_on_re_us/us_texting_crash_drug_charges

Also, Transportation for American recently released the report Dangerous By Design that chronicles the thousands of annual pedestrian deaths caused by poorly designed roadways. This is yet another reason why every city, metro area, and state needs to adopt a Complete Streets policy. Check out the report below:
http://t4america.org/resources/dangerousbydesign/

Poorly designed streets + drivers not paying attention = a caustic environment for the ~30% of American adults who don't drive...not to mention the 100% of children who don't drive

If you agree that it's time to make texting-while-driving illegal, we encourage you to contact your local and state elected officials with your concerns.

Yours in solidarity for common sense,
-Trailnet

Livable Streets Network

Caption: The Livable Streets Initiative Website

The Livable Streets Initiative is an incredible resource for anyone and everyone interested in transforming their community. The initiative website includes a library of films that are profoundly educational and inspiring, a series of blogs from major American cities, and a community forum.

As you'll see, the Livable Streets Initiative is a living dialogue about how to create better communities for people, health, and the environment. It is a great place to learn, to explore, and to connect with people, projects, and ideas around the world.

Check it all out at:
http://www.livablestreets.com/

To wet your appetite, check out the following video below:

URBANEXUS provides lively discussion on retaining and attracting creative individuals in St. Louis

What does "creative-type" mean? Does categorizing individuals as "creatives" do more harm than good as we try to promote creativity?  What can we do to foster creativity and move things forward in St. Louis' creative world?

These were just a few of the questions that led to provocative conversation at the September 23 URBANEXUS discussion "Livable St. Louis: What it Takes to Retain and Attract Creative Individuals."  The discussion was part of Next American City's national URBANEXUS salon series and was co-hosted by Trailnet and local partners Great Rivers Greenway, STL-Style, Urban Land Institute, Metropolis St. Louis, and Will Cycle for Charity. 

One-hundred people attended the event at Left Bank Books' downtown discussion to hear local panelists share their views on the role of creativity  and the people who create in St. Louis. Panelists included Jasmin Aber, adjunct professor at Washington University’s Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts and shrinking cities researcher; Alderman Antonio French; Leslie Proud, Vice President of Metropolis St. Louis; Galen Gondolfi, non-profit community development practitioner who supports community-based reinvestment on Cherokee Street; and myself who provided perspective on the role of bikeable and walkable communities.  

Trailnet invited Next American City to bring URBANEXUS to St. Louis because we knew that such a discussion could inject vital energy into the community of St. Louisans who are working hard to make St. Louis more livable.  We are happy to report that this is exactly what happened.  We had great attendance, the crowd was up for an extended Q&A session, and people continue to talk about ways to have similar discussions in the future.

The energy from URBANEXUS should not be squandered, but built upon.  One way we are hopeful the discussions can continue is through the regional collaboration Livable St. Louis, initiated through a partnership between Trailnet and St. Louis University. The collaborative will bring people together from a variety of sectors and fields to share and implement best-practices for built environment and policy change as a strategy for fostering active lifestyles and healthy eating. Livable St. Louis is slated to launch in early 2010.

Jennifer Allen

Report Suggests Soda Tax Could Curb Obesity and Generate Revenue for States

Caption: A soda tax could generate the needed funds to combat obesity

A recent article in the New England Journal of Medicine suggests that a small soda tax could help curb obesity and generate millions of dollars in revenue for cash-strapped states.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation provided a summary of the report online including a link to the full report:
http://www.rwjf.org/childhoodobesity/digest.jsp?id=22681


Soda Tax Calculator
Very much related, the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity created an online tool that calculates the amount of money states could generate from a soda tax. For example, if Missouri adopted a soda tax of 2 cents per 20-ounce soda, the state would raise over $36 million in 2010 alone. You can access the soda tax calculator here:
http://www.yaleruddcenter.org/sodatax.aspx

Isn't it Ironic?
One of the reasons soda is so darn cheap is because the US government subsidizes the production of corn and therefore, the production of high-fructose corn syrup, which is the second ingredient in soda. In fact, the cost of soda has decreased by over 20% while the price of fresh fruits and vegetables increased by nearly 40%. Now, the government is considering taxing these sugary sodas.

So in essence, the government is paying to make soda cheap and then taxing soda to raise money to solve the problems that soda contributes to, such as rampant obesity and type II diabetes. There's a lesson in unintended consequences somewhere in there...

Big Food vs. Big Insurance

Food Policy = Health Policy

Author Michael Pollan recently wrote an editorial arguing that the proposed health care reform has the potential to trigger major agricultural reform.

It's simple, he suggests: If the big health insurance companies are no longer able to turn away people due to "pre-existing conditions", they will have significantly more motivation to prevent diseases to avoid spending tons of money treating diseases. Since many of the most prevalent diseases, such as heart disease and type II diabetes, result from eating unhealthy foods, the insurance companies will become allies for healthy eating. They will have a new found incentive (saving money), to encourage people to eat healthier foods and to encourage the agricultural sector to produce high-quality, low-cost fresh foods.

It's a compelling editorial written by one of this decade's foremost thinkers on food. Check it out: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/10/opinion/10pollan.html

CDC Community Strategies Guide

Caption: The cover of the CDC's new community obesity strategies guide, released July 2009

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention recently released a new resource that we want to share with you. The document outlines a series of obesity prevention strategies that are recommended for communities. Each strategy presented in the document is accompanied with ideas for implementation and measurement.

You can download the document as a pdf directly from the CDC website below:
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/PDF/rr/rr5807.pdf

Or visit an online (less pretty) version here:
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/rr5807a1.htm
www.cdc.gov/mmwR/PDF/rr/rr5807.pdf

A BOLD New Public Health Ad Campaign

Caption: NYC Health Department's blunt new ad campaign

BOLD, right? New York City Health Department just rolled out the "Don't Drink Yourself Fat" ad campaign to encourage people to cut back on soda and other high-calorie drinks.

Accompanying the new bold campaign was a strong statement from NYC's Health Commissioner, Thomas A. Farley: “Sugary drinks shouldn’t be a part of our everyday diet. Drinking beverages loaded with sugars increases the risk of obesity and associated problems, particularly diabetes but also heart disease, stroke, arthritis and cancer.”

To learn more about the campaign, visit:
http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/pr2009/pr057-09.shtml

To read an editorial discussing the likely impact of this campaign or a soda tax to change behaviors, visit:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/14/opinion/14mon3.html?th&emc=th

A year and a half ago we wrote a post titled We Let Kids Drink This Stuff?! about the impacts of soda on school children. The post links to a compelling description of what soda actually does to our bodies when we drink it. Check it out.

Finally, here is another graphic from NYC's new ad campaign:

Re-Envisioning the Corner Store

Photo Credit: Dawn Majors from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch

For decades corner stores served as the cornerstones of community life in American cities. They sold needed goods to local residents, served as important social hubs, and added an element of vibrancy to local streetscapes.

In the last several decades, the corner store has become something different altogether. In many urban neighborhoods, suburban towns, and rural main streets, corner stores now corner the market of junk foods, lottery tickets, booze, and cigarettes. Where corner stores used to provide local residents with access to important life necessities, they now only provide for our vices.

A New Vision
Two intrepid St. Louisans have taken to re-envisioning the corner store as a community asset, instead of a detriment to public health and safety. Shawn Mckie and Angie Beatty launched The Juice Box corner store, selling healthy foods and hosting community events. Shawn and Angie wanted to not only get back to the roots of the corner store as a community hub, but also address a pressing community need -- providing much needed access to healthy foods. The Juice Box is located in St. Louis City at 3003 Arsenal Street, in a community where junk food options significantly outnumber healthy options, which is the situation in most American communities. With adult and childhood obesity rates at an all time high, The Juice Box is an important and innovative step towards the creation of Healthy, Active & Vibrant Communities.

Shawn and Angie were recently selected as Echoing Green Fellows for their social entrepreneurial work with the Juice Box.

To learn more about the award-winning Juice Box and it's founders, Shawn and Angie, check out this great article:
http://tinyurl.com/juiceboxcornerstore