New USDOT bike/ped study

It is good to see that the Federal Highway Administration has released "The National Biking and Walking Study: a 15-year Status Report." This study, by the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center, discusses trends and outcomes in bicycling and walking since 1994. I think the news is pretty good.

First and foremost, Americans are hitting the sidewalks and streets on foot and by pedal in record numbers. From 1990 to 2009, the number of trips taken on foot more than doubled from 18 billion to 42.5 billion. Similarly, the number of bike trips increased from 1.7 billion to 4 billion. The link to the complete study is here http://drusilla.hsrc.unc.edu/cms/downloads/15-year_report.pdf
and I highly recommend sharing it with others. This is rich proof of the trend toward more active living and the need for investment in safer multi-modal transportation facilities.

On a second and less pleasant note in our region's Regional Transportation Planning meeting this week a TDOT planner discussed how much less is going to be available for highway improvements and bike/ped facilities in the coming year and following.