This week’s release of Dangerous by Design has prompted several newspapers to editorialize in favor of tough pedestrian safety measures that address the urgency of the 47,000 killed and 688,000 injured on unsafe streets between 2000 and 2009.

The report generated ample coverage in Florida, home to the nation’s four most dangerous metropolitan areas for pedestrians: Orlando, Tampa, Miami and Jacksonville. Statewide, 5,163 Floridians were killed between 2000 and 2009, at a cost of $22.2 billion.

The Orlando Sentinel weighed in Wednesday, warning: “If you like to walk in Florida, the bad news just keeps coming,” continuing: “What’s attractive about living in a place where it’s dangerous to even walk?”

The Sentinel also turned its attention to Florida’s elected officials who are in a position to make a difference:

Can we look to our current leadership to correct this dubious distinction? Well, U.S Rep. John Mica wants to lift the requirement that 10 percent of federal gas tax proceeds be spent on things like sidewalks and bike lanes. And Gov. Rick Scott’s new Secretary of Transportation, Ananth Prasad, recently testified before Congress that, when money’s tight, it might not make sense to build — you guessed it — sidewalks and bike trails.

(Ed. note: The Sentinel figure is too high — in fact, about 1.5 percent of total federal transportation dollars go toward making walking and biking safer.)

The Gainesville Sun reached a similar conclusion in “A death defying act: Walking across Florida’s mean streets,” saying: “Facilitating the fast movement of automobiles is a far higher priority than saving lives.”

In West Virginia, several newspapers covered the report and the Charleston Daily Mail ran an editorial titled “Protecting pedestrians should be a priority.” They wrote:

Improving safety for pedestrians is essential if the state is going to promote walking as part of any program for healthier living. Given this state’s abysmal rankings in most health categories, the issue seems worthy of government attention.

West Virginia is the home of Nick Rahall, the top Democrat on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, as well as key Republican Shelley Moore Capito, who this week announced her intention to fight for pedestrian safety in the next transportation bill. The state ranked 24th out of 50 in overall pedestrian danger index.

Up north, the Philadelphia Inquirer noted Pennsylvania’s relatively favorable ranking overall while imploring Mayor Michael Nutter to continue efforts toward promoting a walkable city. Philadelphia has already expanded bike lanes and instituted a Complete Streets policy.

And in Hawaii, which had the highest fatality rate among senior pedestrians, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser similarly urged renewed focus on the needs of all road users.

Failure to adopt a policy that helps seniors and all citizens use transportation without undue hazard would be a mistake, more costly in the long run and a contradiction in a state that prides itself on its year-round enjoyment of the outdoors.

You can view more state rankings on our report map here.

UPDATE: The Detroit Free Press, hailing from the cradle of the American auto industry, echoed similar themes this weekend, editorializing: “Designing walkable streets and public places is important to building healthy, livable cities that attract talented employees, innovative businesses and creative entrepreneurs.”

Also, several lawmakers responded in the wake of the report.

In the days since our comprehensive bridge report (The Fix We’re In For) was released, at least one governor has promised action and several newspaper editorials have urged their states to prioritize repair and address the growing backlog of deficient bridges.

In Pennsylvania, with the worst bridges in the country, there was little surprise that the report would make big headlines. New Governor Tom Corbett told the Pittsburgh Post Gazette that his transportation secretary will be creating a task force to look at the issue and come up with funding strategies to repair bridges — even telling the Tribune Review he’d consider selling state-owned liquor stores to pay for it. He’s also pledging to continue an accelerated bridge repair program created under former Governor Ed Rendell that has helped in recent years.

Today, the Post Gazette published an editorial on the issue focusing on what the state can do to help move Pennsylvania down the rankings in the coming years.

As if Gov. Tom Corbett doesn’t have enough financial challenges, last week brought a reminder of another problem that is not going away and will only get worse. According to Transportation for America, a coalition of groups working for national transportation reform, Pennsylvania still leads the nation in structurally deficient highway bridges.

What is depressing about this finding issued last Wednesday is that Gov. Ed Rendell made a priority of fixing bridges. By selling bonds and using federal stimulus funding, the Rendell administration did a lot of good work on bridges, without which the situation would be more dire. But, as this report shows, it’s hard to make up for years of neglect…

…The fact that Pennsylvania remains No. 1 in bad bridges can’t be blamed on Mr. Corbett, but the headlines that would come if a Minneapolis-type bridge disaster happened here would be part of his legacy. This latest report is a reminder that finding creative funding for bridges isn’t just a challenge — it’s a necessity.

As the Post Gazette hints at, states have a lot of power within the federal framework to do a better job with repairing their bridges. As our report notes, states aren’t even required to spend all of their bridge repair money on bridges. But a large part of the solution to this problem will come from Congress and the next multi-year transportation bill. That bill must provide more funding for bridge repair and it should hold states accountable for fixing their bridges with that money.

Until then, states with older infrastructure and a large backlog of deficient bridges, like Pennsylvania, will be fighting this battle at a bit of a disadvantage.

(Ed. note: The Times-Picayune in New Orleans offered a similar editorial)

Pottstown is a town of just over 20,000 people located about 40 miles northwest of Philadelphia. The community has struggled to find a new identity and revitalize its economy since the decline of the iron and steel industries. They have found some success leveraging the area’s convenient access to the Schuylkill River Trail, a multi-use trail that connects Philadelphia to nearby communities.

The Bike Pottstown bike sharing program was launched in June of 2008 with 30 beach cruiser bikes all painted yellow and accompanied by a lock and a basket. Managed by Preservation Pottstown, a local non-profit organization within the borough, the program operates six days a week out of Tri-County Bicycles, a local independently owned bike shop. Anyone with a valid ID can rent the bikes and ride anywhere in the Pottstown until the end of the day. The bikes are free of charge and by December 2009 had been shared over 2,000 times.

“Bike Pottstown is a community bike-share program,” said Tom Carroll, president of Preservation Pottstown. “By having it operate out of this location, and eventually out of others as well, it brings the program to more people in the community, and, hopefully, will bring more community support to the program.”

The only free bike sharing program in the greater Philadelphia region, Bike Pottstown has been featured in numerous newspapers, magazines and television news segments. The media attention has been a win-win for the community, bringing needed tourism and renewing local enthusiasm for bicycling as a source of exercise and transportation. Bike Pottstown is removing cars from the road, promoting physical fitness and providing residents with more options for commuting to work, although most use the program recreationally.

Bike Pottstown was able to get off the ground because of a $30,000 grant from the Pottstown Area Health and Wellness Foundation. The funding paid for the infrastructure study, bicycles and the first year of operating costs. Subsequent annual operating costs are paid for through promotional items, sponsorships and donations.

Bike Pottstown Facebook Page

Pottstown bike sharing bikes. Photo courtesy of Bike Pottstown.

—-

Editor’s Note: Our new report on smarter mobility demonstrates how existing and emerging technologies can squeeze more capacity from over-burdened highways, help commuters avoid traffic delays and expand and improve transportation options, all while saving money and creating jobs. Many of these smart transportation solutions are already fueling innovation throughout the country, through both the public and private sector. These 14 case studies from around the U.S. and the world demonstrate the community benefits smart mobility solutions are giving regions, cities, and businesses.

Read the ITS Case Study Series

Harnessing technology makes it easier for some our most vulnerable neighbors – older adults and persons with disabilities – to use public transportation. Pittsburgh’s ACCESS project demonstrates how low-cost technology improves service, alleviates the concerns of waiting customers and saves money.

ACCESS is a door-to-door, advance reservation, shared ride transportation service serving primarily older adults and the disabled in Pittsburgh and the surrounding area. On-demand transportation services are provided from 6:00 a.m. to midnight, seven days a week, with additional hours on selected routes. There are no restrictions on the purpose or number of trips, but riders are required to share the vehicle with others.

The ACCESS network integrates several non-profit, for-profit and public transportation providers from 10 locations.

“People ride for a bunch of different reasons, which is good,” Gerry Miller, operations manager for Town and Country Transit, told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “To have people with disabilities be able to live independently because of the service is a great thing.”

The agency has installed a low-cost, real-time information system to support drivers’ schedules and improve on-time arrivals. The system allows ACCESS to more easily make trip-by-trip eligibility determinations and provide detailed information to customers seeking fixed routes. ACCESS also generates automated telephone calls that announce arrival times for waiting customers.

ACCESS conducted a series of surveys to track customer satisfaction with the new system. In 2009, the average weekday ridership for ACCESS was 5,832.

For more information: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

—-

Editor’s Note: Our new report on smarter mobility demonstrates how existing and emerging technologies can squeeze more capacity from over-burdened highways, help commuters avoid traffic delays and expand and improve transportation options, all while saving money and creating jobs. Many of these smart transportation solutions are already fueling innovation throughout the country, through both the public and private sector. These 14 case studies from around the U.S. and the world demonstrate the community benefits smart mobility solutions are giving regions, cities, and businesses.

Read the ITS Case Study Series

Check back each day for a new post and read the full series of livability case studies as they’re posted. The intro can be found here.

Lancaster County, Pennsylvania

Lancaster County officials preserved acres of open space and planned effectively for future development with significant input from the community.

Lancaster County has faced the same squeeze as rural areas across the country: new growth, coupled with a yearning to maintain farmland and open space. The County Planning Commission sought to plan for the future without compromising what residents wanted to keep.

Envision Lancaster County was a “comprehensive, multi-staged countywide plan to…maintain the county’s distinctive sense of place over the next 25 years,” according to the EPA. The visioning process “directs new development to existing towns to protect the farmland, rural areas, and natural landscapes that define the county’s character.”

The plan recognizes that maintaining open space and welcoming growth is not an either-or proposition. Commissioners emphasized a “balance between protecting natural resources and farmland and encouraging growth and development in appropriate areas.” The “Rural Areas” component of the plan is modeled after similar urban efforts that target new development in town centers and areas where retail and services are most accessible.

“Smart growth in Lancaster County thrives due to citizens’ dedication to maintain its unique sense of place,” said Harry Loshnowsky, an East Hempfield Township resident.

Source: Environmental Protection Agency.

Hopefully this will be a new regular feature here on the blog. We asked for transportation photos from all of you across the country, and they’ve slowly started trickling in to our inbox and Flickr group.

So we’re going to try and feature an interesting photo here every week or so from the Flickr pool.

Today’s photo comes from Flickr user erokore. Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl was out for a bike ride on some newly installed bike lanes in 2007. (Let’s hope he asked before borrowing that police bike — he’s even wearing a police helmet!)

Find out more about submitting your photos, join the Flickr group and add your favorite transportation photos to the pool. And tell us your story at photos@t4america.org

And for those of you in Pittsburgh who want more bike knowledge, check out T4 America campaign member Bike Pittsburgh. (As well as our other PA members.)