Challenge
Florida is the third largest state in the nation with residents and visitors alike who are using active transportation modes-such as walking and bicycling-more than ever. The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) sought to understand where the most pedestrian and bicycle activity is occurring and to identify safety improvements for these vulnerable road users.
Solution
The Kittelson team led FDOT Central Office’s statewide pedestrian and bicycle network safety analysis. This involved combining pedestrian and bicycle demand indicators in Arc Geographic Information Systems such as poverty rates, frequency of transit service, pedestrian and bicycle activity based on StreetLight data, and context classification with risk indictors on corridors such as the number of lanes, roadway median, posted speed, and signalized intersection density. Spatially joining this data highlighted opportunities for bicycle and pedestrian safety improvements statewide.
The Outcome
A Process to Prioritize Pedestrian & Bicycle Safety Improvements
This analysis completed the “network screening” step of the Highway Safety Manual management process. 30 corridors were identified for next phase analysis, which will include field reviews to address diagnosis, countermeasure selection, and a high-level economic appraisal to move toward project prioritization and implementation.
