Transcript

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 ACTIVISM | her ground

OutdoorEnthusiasts UNITE

By Holly Beretto

A group of Clear Lake area residents recently joined forces with the City of Houston on a

ride to discover ways to make bicycle routes safer.

Bikeways and walkways encourage quality of lif

e in the Bay Area

Residents of—and visitors to—the Bay Area don’t

need anyone to tell them there’s a huge outdoor life

component to the water-bordered lands south of 

Houston’s concrete canyons. It’s not unusual to see kayakers

on the water and families enjoying the parks.

It is, however, a trie more difcult to cycle along the

area’s roadways, or walk from home to shops. Now, the City

of Houston is looking to change that.

 A proposed study is in the works to take into

consideration the safety and mobility needs for cyclists and

pedestrians in the Clear Lake area. It’s a collaborative effort

between the City of Houston Department of Public Worksand Engineering and the Houston-Galveston Area Council,

each of which is providing $50,000.

“This study is part of Houston’s continued effort to

connect centers of great cultural, economic and educational

signicance, as well as wonderfully diverse residential

neighborhoods,” says Dan Raine, the bicyclist-pedestrian

coordinator in Houston’s public works and engineering

department. “The city of Houston nominated this segment

of Clear Lake for study in order to develop potential

improvement projects to enhance the feasibility and

functionality of walking and biking trips between the various

commercial and residential land uses, with an emphasis on

providing connections to major employer centers.”

 The initial goals of the project focus on providing

opportunities for bikers and walkers of all levels, so that

any bikeways or walkways built ensure the safety of area

residents, and providing greater connectivity for bikers andwalkers between destinations.

Raine says that while Clear Lake has beneted from several

transportation improvements, few of those enhancements

have been for pedestrians and cyclists. He concedes that even

though most of the area’s roadways have sidewalks, several

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15August 2011

factors limit where walkers can safely cross streets, which

discourages walking.

“If these deterrents to walking and bicycling can be

identied and addressed, the resulting projects would

contribute signicantly to public health and quality of life.”

Quality of life issues have long been important to the

Houston metro area’s residents, and mobility factors

89% of respondents of a recent project survey indicated that they would bike

10 minutes to a destination if they felt they could do so safely; however, only

11% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that they currently feel safe

biking in Clear Lake. Many of the places to which people would like to walk

and bike—such as schools, stores, and jobs—are located along the busiest,

fastest roads in the area.

The Clear Lake area is rich with destinations, including neighborhoods,

restaurants, malls, jobs, parks—even a space center! The Clear Lake Pedestrian

and Bicyclist Study is envisioning ways to connect these destinations to make

walking and biking to them fun and safe for all users.

Map of Study Area

Ma of pedestrian/bicycle Crash Sites

Your feet mirror your general health. Conditionssuch as arthritis, diabetes, nerve and circulatory

disorders can show their initial symptoms in thefeet - so foot ailments can be your first sign of 

more serious medical problems.

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17August 2011

air pollution along with relieving stress, reaping benets

through the safe passage of people to and from work, school

and activities.”

Raine says the area’s large employers have long

encouraged their workers to live healthy lifestyles, and he

believes that creating opportunities for walking and biking

would not only enhance the health of area residents, but

would also improve air quality and bring people together to

create a greater sense of community.

 To that end, several public meetings have been held aimed

at making sure residents understand what’s happening and

giving them a venue to make their own thoughts heard.

Feedback from the meetings thus far has been positive,

and residents offered support for the study and offered their

ideas about the community’s needs, including a desire to xthe walkways and paths already in place, better maintaining

those pathways, and improving sidewalks and road

shoulders.

 The next public meeting will be held Sept. 7 at the Clear

Lake City Community Association building at 16511 Diana

Lane. It starts at 6:00 pm and the public is encouraged

to attend. There’s also an online survey anyone can take,

and Raine says both the City of Houston and HGAC are

interested in community feedback. It’s accessible throughwww.walkbikeclearlake.com

Raine is optimistic about the study and its implications.

“The results will identify pedestrian and bicyclist safety and

mobility issues, as well as develop and prioritize a series

of immediate, short- and long-term improvement projects

that will be eligible for implementation with funding made

available through future calls for projects from the HGAC’s

 Transportation Improvement Program.” 

heavily into how area residents view it. For nearly the last 30

years, Rice University has conducted the annual “Houston

 Area Survey,” a look at the attitudes and opinions of area

residents. Throughout the survey’s history, trafc and

mobility have routinely ranked among the most important

challenges to the region. The survey is now run under the

auspices of the university’s Kinder Institute for Urban

Research, and in the 2010 survey, 41% of respondents said

they’d choose to live in a smaller house “in a more urbanized

area, within walking distance of shops and workplaces.”

Respondents always rate Houston highly as a place to live,

and they support better land-use initiatives to improve

quality of life.

Raine says that in addition to the health benets, there aremultiple other enhancements to quality of life that making the

Bay Area more pedestrian and bicycle friendly can provide.

“Using walking or biking for local trips provides a

healthier and more aesthetically pleasing alternative to

motorized transportation,” he says. “And it helps to alleviate

if your communty were bcyce frendy, woud you

opt for t mode of tranportaton? Attend te

sept. 7 meetn, connect wt oter outdoor

entuat and cyct, and ve bkn a try.

10 REASONS TO TRAvEL bY bIKE

Free ar condtonn…t’ caed wnd!

Peda power burn caore, not money

and aone.

No tnky, toxc emon eft bend.

Tt ort and top are coo.

Take your tre on te road…wtout te rae.

Free parkn everywere.

No car payment, car nurance or peedn

tcket.

Fee ke a kd aan.

lmt exceve purcae at te rocery tore.

Totay rpped and bun gatrocnemu

muce.

 Attend the Sept. 7 Meeting! For more information about The Clear Lake Pedestrian

and Bicyclist Study visit www.walkbikeclearlake.com.

Attendees at the July

20 meeting offeredvaluable input and ideas

to improve walking

and biking routes in

the Bay Area. All are

encouraged to attend

the next meeting on

Sept. 7 at the Clear

Lake City Community

Association building

on Diana Ln.

     P     h    o     t    o    s    c    o    p    y    r     i    g     h     t     S     t    e    v    e     P    e     d     i    g    o     2     0     1     1     T    e    r    r    a    n     C    a    m    e    r    a

Busy streets, poorly maintained

bicycle paths and narrow

sidewalks were noted and

discussed along the ride route

with future improvements to

be determined by the study

group’s input.


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