One Less Trip, Five More Glasses of Water

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Remember that time when I promised that in honor of Carfree Week I would attempt to abide by One Less Trip rule over the weekend and replace one trip that I would normally take by car with an alternative mode? That was before I found out that we were in for a late-September heat wave, complete with 100+ temperatures. So I hope you all really appreciate the fact that I refused to let myself off the hook and managed to actually abide by my rule. A few lessons from my alternative mode travels:

Day 1: Street Trees
I don't know why we have no street trees in my neighborhood. Heck, we're called Woodland Hills. Maybe the City of LA is like Ventura County, and cuts down all its street trees because it can't afford to maintain them. Maybe there never were any trees along Ventura Boulevard to begin with. At any rate, I would have appreciated a few for Friday's two-mile walk to the hair salon/Target. Granted the heat hadn't really hit yet, and it was merely a balmy 95 degrees on the sidewalk. Still, my neighborhood is consistently one of the hottest in the valley, and you've got to assume that the lack of greenery is one cause.

Day 2: Missed Opportunities

For Saturday's alternative mode trip I broke out the bicycle and headed to the farmer's market (leaving especially early to beat the heat--and so that I wouldn't miss my favorite cinnamon rolls from the french pastry stand). Riding alongside the freeway gave me ample opporunity to contemplate the absurdity that is Caltrans' fenced-off right-of-way (see below). Not only is there no sidewalk on this side of the road (though I saw plenty of people walking in the dirt next to the curb), the chain link fence deprives this neighborhood of what otherwise has the makings of a really cool linear park. Not that I expect that kind of creative thinking from the people who brought us the 110, but in a city known for its lack of park space this is a real waste.

Streets for Feet

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Kudos to the Hollywood Community Studio (and especially my friends Jessica and Kristen) on the success for their Streets for Feet park project. A lovely way to celebrate this month's carfree activities (Park(ing) Day, International Carfree Week, etc), the project shut down two blocks of Hudson Avenue in Hollywood and turned it into a pedestrians-only space complete with cafe tables, plants, sidewalk art--and of course, hula hoops. With land for park space at a premium, creative projects like this can use existing resources to give Angelenos the parks they deserve (and of course improve neighborhood walkability.

As Jessica Cowley explains:

I think the demonstration project was a great way to start a dialogue with community members about open space, and get folks to think about how we might be able to make our streets into spaces for more than just cars....everyone I spoke to had positive things to say about the project, from residents of the Hillview (the big pink apartment building that fronts one side of Hudson) to visitors from Denmark, who were pleasantly surprised to find a pedestrian plaza in what they see as a very car-centric city.

You can get the full wrap-up of the project, including results of the community survey and (more) photos from the HCS website.

This Week on Foot

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As one by one universities across the country start a new school year, many of them are looking to improve walkability for their students. 'Pedestrians, pay attention,' new USF campaign urges, while Mashable.com explains How Universities Can Win Big with Location-Based Apps that point out the walkable features of their campuses.

In New York, the World Reacts to Union Square Pedestrian Plaza, Bike Lane while jealous Albert Street stakeholders push for pedestrian mall of their own. Georgia follows New York's good example where a City to install hawk lights at bike trail intersections, while in Missouri Independence Starts New Road Harassment Law.

Elsewhere, things are not so good. Here in California a Vehicle strikes and kills pedestrian on PCH, while in Hong Kong Police target jaywalkers in road safety blitz. And I'm not sure if I should be encouraged or horrified that Bentley to recall cars over fears 'Flying B' could impale pedestrians.

But on a happy note, our walking friends up north have had a good week, where Walk SF goes pro as pedestrians get priority. Congratulations Walk San Francisco!

Celebrate World Carfree Day

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Sandwiched between last Friday's Park(ing) Day and the upcoming International Walk to School Day (October 6) is World Carfree Day. For a summary of some of the events worldwide, check out The City Fix.

Since I have a notoriously UN-carfree commute (trust me, I've tried to find alternatives to driving), I'm brainstorming ways to cut down my car trips this weekend. My "One Less Trip" philosophy, which I just now made up, suggests that you challenge yourself to reduce your vehicle miles traveled by replacing just one trip a day that you would normally make by car with an alternative mode. Since I already try to make a lot of my non-work trips on foot, this may involving me braving LA's streets on a bike. I'll report back on Monday...

Designing for Pedestrian Safety

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Want to learn more about how to design roads to keep pedestrians safe?

For those in the LA area, Metro invites you to participate in a 2-day Designing for Pedestrian Safety Workshop funded by the Federal Highway Administration. The workshop will include a walking field trip to a problem area to help participants understand and identify obstacles to walking. All workshop sessions will cover the same content and will be held at:

Metro Headquarters, One Gateway Plaza
Los Angeles, CA 90012
8:30am – 4:30pm.

Dates include:

Monday, November 15 & Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Wednesday, November 17 & Thursday, November 18, 2010
Monday, December 13 & Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Wednesday, December 15 & Thursday, December 16, 2010
Monday, January 10 &Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Wednesday, January 12 & Thursday, January 13, 2011

To register for the workshop, please email Metro and include your name, organization, department, job title, phone number, and email/mailing address. Or contact Adela Felix at (213) 922-4333 or Julie Leung at (213) 922-4373.

Also, don't forget about the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center's ongoing webinar series on designing for pedestrian safety. There are still a few webinars left in the eight-part series, and you can always watch previous sessions online. For more information and to register click here.