CITYTRAILS UPDATE, Jan, 29 2008

MAYOR BAKER GIVES KEYNOTE ADDRESS REVEALING
BEST PEDESTRIAN SAFETY TURNAROUND IN COUNTRY

St. Petersburg, Fla. (January 29, 2008) - Mayor Rick Baker will give the keynote address at the “Getting Transportation & Land Use Decisions that Create Walkable Communities with Mobility Choices”, a joint workshop sponsored by Surface Transportation Policy Partnership (STPP) and Center for Neighborhood Technology in Orlando, on Wednesday, January 30. The STPP organization is same group that has in past years categorized the Tampa Bay area near the top of its list of worst communities for pedestrian safety.

Mayor Baker was chosen to kickoff the conference based on successful policies implemented in St. Petersburg designed at improving pedestrian safety. "St. Petersburg has gone from being at the top of the Mean Streets list to becoming one of the best safety turnaround stories in America. We've
invited Mayor Baker to be the keynote speaker at our national workshop on integrating land-use and transportation in Orlando to tell St. Petersburg's story." Anne Canby, President, Surface Transportation Policy Partnership.

In 2003, under Mayor Baker's direction, the City Council adopted the CityTrails Bicycle Pedestrian Master Plan aimed at improving safety for pedestrians and bicyclists in St. Petersburg. To date, pedestrian crashes have been reduced by 17 percent each year, and bicyclist crashes have been reduced by 15 percent each year since 2004, earning the city a “Bicycle Friendly Community” designation from the League of American Bicyclists in 2006. Additionally, St. Petersburg was the first community in the nation to install the Enhancer, a rapid-flashing beacon at marked crosswalks. These devices are continuing to average over 80 percent driver-yielding compliance, making it significantly easier for residents and visitors alike to cross the road at unsignalized locations. The City has also made additional improvements such as installing countdown pedestrian signals and enhanced markings and traffic signs for mid-block crosswalks throughout St. Petersburg.

More recently, the city has updated its Land Development Regulations that include policies aimed at continuing the success of the CityTrails program in encouraging developments that are sustainable and encourage mobility choices. “We are pleased that St. Petersburg’s City Trails program has become a national model for pedestrian safety,” said Mayor Rick Baker.

CITYTRAILS UPDATE, Oct. 31, 2006

ST. PETERSBURG LIGHTS THE WAY FOR PEDESTRIAN SAFETY AT CROSSWALKS

     St. Petersburg, Fla. (October  27, 2006) - Mayor Rick Baker today demonstrated the city's new mid-block Pedestrian Crosswalk LED "stutter" light warning system. The "Enhancer" as it is called, is the first traffic signal device in the nation that utilizes super bright LED technology and a "stutter flash". In four test locations in St. Petersburg, results show that more than 90% of motorists stop when the LED stutter lights are activated by the pedestrian.

St. Petersburg is the first city in the country to use the system.  When the Enhancer activation button is pushed, a friendly voice explains to pedestrians how to use the crosswalk. At night, the button placards are illuminated so pedestrians can see them. Upon activation, the entire area is illuminated, including where the pedestrian is standing, all signs and the roadway so motorists can clearly see the entire crossing. The "Enhancer" system is radio controlled and solar powered for maximum efficiency.     

"Monday is Pedestrian Safety Awareness Day," explained Mayor Rick Baker. "This new system is another example of how we are working hard to make our streets safe for everyone -- pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists. With the change back to Eastern Standard Time this weekend, and Halloween around the corner, please do your part to help us all stay safe."      

The Enhancer is part of the city's commitment to improve pedestrian and bicycle safety through its CityTrails program by enhancing the safety of pedestrians at mid-block or uncontrolled intersection crosswalks. Pending federal approval (which is expected), the system will be installed at more than 19 intersections across the city by the end of November. Other locations are being evaluated. As part of the CityTrails enhancements to pedestrian safety, 86 pedestrian crosswalks have been upgraded with signs and pavement markings and 79 intersections have had countdown pedestrian signals installed.     

There will be a public demonstration of the new signals on Monday, October 30 during a Pedestrian Safety Clinic at the City-County Connection Center at Tyrone Square Mall from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.    

Testing is being conducted by the city of St. Petersburg's Department of Transportation & Parking, with guidance from the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). Mark C. Wilson, PE Deputy State Traffic Operations Engineer - Florida Department of Transportation advised that "The Florida Department of Transportation supports the efforts of the City of St. Petersburg to enhance pedestrian safety. We are encouraged about the potential benefits of the new Rectangular Flashing Beacon device. The City of St. Petersburg has an excellent plan to combine engineering, enforcement and education to reduce pedestrian injuries".

The manufacturer of the system -- R.D. Jones, Stop Experts, Inc., Venice, Florida -- stated "There is no question in my mind that to gain control of a mid-block pedestrian crossing, and make it safe for pedestrians who use it, that two aspects of engineering are required. The Enhancer - Traffic Control Signal, needs the correct roadway Engineering and The City of St. Petersburg Transportation Department has truly developed and implemented a very solid and clear message to all motorist that approach their mid-block crosswalks.  This has been done through the installation of proper signage, located at the proper distances, roadway stripping, assured clean line-of-sight and clear stopping points which are indicated on the roadway surface.  When the first Engineering aspect has been activated (the Enhancer), the motorist reaction is concise, and non complicated because they have been guided and their response directed correctly due to the second aspect of the Engineering - proper roadway markings."

CITYTRAILS UPDATE, March 24, 2005

It’s been almost a year and a half since the CityTrails Bicycle Pedestrian Master Plan was approved by City Council in September of 2003. We are now well underway with over twenty separate planning, designing and constructing projects to help improve bicycle and pedestrian safety.

To date we have secured federal grants of over $14 million dollars to fund these projects over the next five years. This fiscal year alone over $1 million dollars will be spent to install new sidewalks on collector and arterial roadways, 8 - SMART Pedestrian Crosswalks, 62 – Enhanced mid-block crosswalks, 17 intersections with Countdown Pedestrian Signals, special enforcement details and educational materials. In addition, we plan to add to our exist 10 miles of dedicated bicycle facilities and have over 31 miles of bicycle lanes and trails completed by the end of the month.

One of our first projects just completed is the Rio Vista Trail which included the construction of almost a mile of separated trail and the widening of the foot bridge at the end of 1st Street to accommodate both bicycles and pedestrians. This trail will connect the North Bay Trail at 1st Street / 77th Avenue to 83rd Avenue NE where the State and County will continue with a side path project out to the Friendship Trail.

Another exciting project that has just come about with the help and support of Congressman C.W. Bill Young is the extension of the Pinellas Trail into the City’s downtown. This year $5.6 million was appropriated to buy the CSX Rail corridor, which had previously been unavailable. This has been a major goal for the City to complete this regional facility, connecting the downtown and continuing northerly along the North Bay Trail, ultimately to the Friendship Trail and Tampa.

Along with these two important projects the City has under design two major new trail projects along Clam Bayou and the waterfront parks area of downtown. Combined with our efforts to restripe our major roadways to include bicycle lanes and to add sidewalks where appropriate, the City is well on its way to becoming one of the most bicycle and pedestrian friendly facilities in the United States.

ST. PETERSBURG ON THE PATH TO BEING A PEDESTRIAN FRIENDLY CITY:

Mayor Rick Baker charted a new path today for St. Petersburg's future by introducing CityTrails, a visionary and far reaching plan to make the city safer and more pedestrian and bicycle friendly with $11.5 million in improvements through 2008, including 150 miles of urban trails, new and improved sidewalks and crosswalks, public education and traffic enforcement.

A national report released in 2002 by the Surface Transportation Policy Project cited the St. Petersburg/Tampa metro as one of the top five most dangerous areas for pedestrians.

"Today, St. Petersburg is taking a bold step to become a safer city through the CityTrails program," said Mayor Rick Baker. "This plan will help encourage people to use sidewalks and urban trails. Our goal is for St. Petersburg to be among the safest and best of any urban area in the United States.” As the CityTrails program is implemented, St. Petersburg will have the most extensive system of bike lanes and paths of any city in Florida and will be among the best in the Southeast by the first quarter of 2005.

CityTrails is an urban network of sidewalks, bicycle facilities, and safe crossings. CityTrails, named by Mayor Baker, was the outgrowth of a community-wide strategic visioning process (Vision 2020). As a response to citizen input, the city began to draft the Bicycle/Pedestrian Master Plan in August, 2002. When completed, CityTrails is the next major component of the city’s comprehensive traffic safety efforts, which include the Triple E (Engineering, Education & Enforcement) multi-department initiative launched in 1998 and the addition of a full-time bicycle/pedestrian coordinator hired in 2002.

The result is a master bicycle and pedestrian plan that focuses on five key areas:

• New bicycle and pedestrian trails. Plans call for increasing the number of paths, lanes and trails from the current 10 miles to 93 miles by the year 2008, and ultimately 150 miles.
• New and expanded sidewalks. On major roads, the city will build 38 more miles of sidewalks by the year 2008, totaling 100 more miles of sidewalks by 2020. The city’s Engineering Department has decreased the response time for sidewalk repairs from 30 months down to one month.
• New and improved crosswalks. By the year 2008, enhanced overhead warning signals will be added at 20 crosswalks and 61 additional crosswalks will be upgraded with signs and pavement markings.
• Education of bicycle and pedestrian safety issues.
• Enforcement of traffic laws.

The total cost to implement the plan through 2008 is $11.5 million. CityTrails is being financed primarily with $7.6 million in scheduled state and federal grants, with additional capital dollars provided by the city’s scheduled Penny for Pinellas dollars.