Volunteers needed to tally bikes, pedestrians
Published 10:17 am Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Volunteers are needed to count riders and walkers for the Washington State Bicycle and Pedestrian Documentation Project next month. WSDOT and Cascade Bicycle Club are enlisting the support of volunteers and other organizations, like FeetFirst, and the Bicycle Alliance of Washington, to benchmark the numbers of people bicycling and walking on paths, bike lanes, sidewalks and other facilities across the state on Sept. 27, 28 and 29.
The Washington State Documentation Project occurs annually in the early fall. Bicycle and pedestrian usage of specific intersections in cities throughout the state will be counted and documented, similar to the National Documentation Project.
Counts will be assembled from all over Washington state, but the focus is on several cities including: Bellevue, Bothell, Burien, Issaquah, Kent, Kirkland, Mercer Island, Redmond, Renton, Seattle, Spokane, Tacoma, the Tri-Cities and Vancouver.
If you see your community listed above and want to help with the 2011 statewide counts, contact Ian Macek, WSDOT State Bicycle and Pedestrian Coordinator at maceki@wsdot.wa.gov, or by calling (360) 705-7596.
What is the purpose of this documentation project?
Transportation planning and design at all levels requires understanding of actual conditions. This involves determination of motor vehicle, bicyclist and pedestrian numbers. This data dealing with the characteristics of vehicle or people movement is obtained by undertaking traffic counts.
Just like motor vehicle counts, counting bicyclists and pedestrians at specific locations will help to more accurately estimate demand, measure the benefits of investments, and design projects. This information will also help target safety and mobility projects and improve traffic models.
