May 31, 2019
Do you bike, walk, run, use a wheelchair, scooter, or skateboard or take the bus? Those are examples of active transportation.
About 120 people took part in discussions of active transportation during the Active Transportation Summit May 23rd at the Rochester Riverside Hotel. The goal of the event, which built on summits in 2010 and 2013, was to advance active transportation and recreation for people of all ages and abilities.
Mark Fenton, a public health, planning and transportation consultant, spoke about how community design should make it easy for people to make active choices. He then led attendees in a walk audit of areas streets. Later in the day, Jesse Peers from Reconnect Rochester and Karl Alexander of PACE led a group of people on bikes to evaluate Rochester’s bicycle infrastructure, such as its bike lanes and public bike racks.
Paul Beyer, director of Smart Growth Planning for the New York State Department of State, spoke about the importance of collaboration. He is part of a team making sure that new development in New York is welcoming to people of all ages and follows good community design principles.
A breakout session focused on why and how to get kids riding bikes to, from and at school. Other sessions included women and bike commuting, future streets, designing complete streets, livable communities: great places for all ages and transportation, land use and poverty.
Event sponsors were Healthi Kids, Common Ground Health, Reconnect Rochester, the Rochester Cycling Alliance, the Genesee Transportation Council, the Monroe County Department of Transportation, Flaum Management, Gallina Development Corporation, Barton and Loguidice, LaBella Associates, WDKX, Aging Alliance, Reconnect Rochester, Rochester Bicycling Club, Rochester Cycling Alliance, New York Bicycling Coalition, University of Rochester Medical Center Strong Center for Developmental Disabilities, Woman Tours, Bike MS: Ride the ROC 2019, R Community Bikes, Dream Bikes, Freewheelers and Micro Kickboard.
To learn more about active transportation and complete streets, contact Mike Bulger at 585-224-3171 or mike.bulger@commongroundhealth.org.
News coverage:
Connections – Rochester’s bike lane problem and the benefits of active transportation.
WXXI News – Walk audit highlights active transportation
WXXI News - Rochester has a bike lane problem