The western Kansas city of Colby is making progress on an initiative to provide safe places to walk and bike in their community. They have the stated goal of making Colby “The Most Walkable Community in Kansas”!​

The Colby Walking Trails project includes a 2.2-mile long trail to be used for walking, running and biking, as well as a state-of-the-art playground.

The community-organized project is being designed and developed by Colby’s Active Community Design Committee, and is being built with the help of local individuals and businesses. They are using an organic aesthetic for signage: mile markers, bridge signs, and the entrance sign will all feature rough-cut limestone and a color palate found in nature.

The team has put together a presentation about the project, which provides information about what’s been done, what is planned, and the help that is still needed.

Here’s a photo of the trail:

Here’s a map of the trail:

(Images courtesy Colby Walking Trails.)

Thomas County Coalition

The Thomas County Coalition is working to improve the health of people in Colby and the entire county, through education campaigns and initiatives such as the recent Walk/Bike To School Day on March 6th:

(Image courtesy Thomas County Coalition.)

The Thomas County Coalition is planning additional activities for National Bike Month (May).

Colby Walking/Biking Master Plan

Earlier this year, leaders and members of the community met to discuss the possible creation of a Walking/Biking Master Plan for Colby. They hope to develop an “Active Transportation Group” (ATG) that will provide insight on possible future routes and trails.

It’s great to see so much enthusiasm, community participation, and ambition for active transportation in Colby!

The Kansas Bike/Ped News is published by KanBikeWalk, a non-profit, statewide organization whose mission is to promote a safe bicycling and walking environment for Kansans through education and advocacy.Join KanBikeWalk and help to make Kansas a great place to walk and bike!

The following is a roundup of Kansas bicycle and pedestrian news for April 2013:

Join the 2013 National Bike Challenge

This summer, more than 50,000 Americans are riding more than 20 million miles in the National Bike Challenge. This free online program encourages biking for transportation, fitness and recreation. Ride solo, create a team, or pedal as part of a workplace to get healthier, have fun and become part of a national online community. Plus, every month you’ll be eligible to win great raffle prizes! [learn more]

KS Congressional Delegation Fails to Support Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety

As of late March, 69 Representatives — including both Republicans and Democrats, from all over the nation — had signed a letter of support to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, asking the U.S. Department of Transportation to set a national goal to reduce bicyclist deaths. None of the Kansas Representatives — not Tim Huelskamp, not Lynn Jenkins, not Kevin Yoder, Mike Pompeo — signed the letter of support, even though many of them have expressed support for biking and walking in the past. Neither Kansas Senator — Jerry Moran or Pat Roberts — has signed a similar letter of support in the Senate. [link]

Wichita Residents Urged to Walk or Bike to Combat High Ozone Levels

“The city of Wichita is implementing a new plan for the 2013 ozone season in an effort to reduce the impact on area ozone levels. ‘Really think ahead and make as shortest trip as possible or think about, do you really need to drive to your errand? You could walk or bike, anything that reduces the amounts of energy that you use.’ When ozone is formed in the air that we breathe; it can affect our health. ‘It harms our lungs and so that’s the ground-level ozone we’re concerned about.’” [link]

Mayor Wants to Improve Bicycling and Walking in Louisburg

“Louisburg Mayor Travis Thompson presented his vision for the city during the Monday night city council meeting. The Mayor’s vision included “improving pedestrian and bicycle traffic”. The city is holding a town hall meeting at 3:30 p.m., April 27 at the Louisburg Library, which would be a good opportunity for the public to speak up. [link]

Marysville Residents Develop Vision for Downtown

“Many in the crowd expressed strong support for maintaining and improving the downtown’s historic character while adding modern amenities, technology and more retail. Several expressed hope that the Blue River Rail Trail north of Marysville could be connected soon to downtown Marysville’s bike and pedestrian trail. The visioning statement will be completed in May.” [link]

Wichita Considering Converting Bridges to Pedestrian Only

“The 10th and 15th street bridges that go under I-135 will be closed for three weeks starting Monday so city officials can determine whether the structures can be converted to pedestrian bridges. Public comment will be solicited during the District 1 advisory board meeting at 6:30 p.m. on May 6 at the Atwater Neighborhood City Hall, 2755 E. 19th St.” [link]

Kansas City, Kansas Complete Street Project Gets Underway

“Bike lanes will be added along with new sidewalks, street lighting, curbs and storm drainage, including through the I-35/Mission Rd interchange area. Construction is planned for a Fall 2013 completion. Please ride and walk carefully through this area.” [http://www.kanbikewalk.com/news/southwest-blvd-complete-street-project-gets-underway/]

No New KDOT Bike/Ped Projects Let

From the “not news” department: The Kansas Department of Transportation approved April bids for state construction and maintenance projects, and once again, there were no bike/ped related projects on the list. The (predominantly highway) projects totaled nearly $25 million dollars. [link]

First Bike Lanes Open in Salina

“New bike lanes have been marked and signed along a section of North Ohio Street in Saline County, just north of the city of Salina.” [link]

City of Shawnee is a Silver Bicycle Friendly Business

“The League of American Bicyclists has released their latest Bicycle Friendly Business (BFB) list. Congrats to the City of Shawnee for becoming the second Silver BFB in Kansas!” [link]

Pedestrian Critically Injured in Wichita

“A pedestrian was taken to the hospital in critical condition after he was hit by a vehicle in south Wichita, a Sedgwick County dispatch supervisor said. The collision was reported at 8:43 p.m. Saturday in the 2200 block of South Broadway, near Kinkaid.” [link]

K-68 Open Houses in Miami County

The Kansas Department of Transportation is hosting two public open houses for the Miami County K-68 Expansion Project, in Louisburg (May 6, 5-7pm at the American Legion) and Paola (May 7, 5-7pm at the Paola Community Center). Bicyclists frequently ride along K-68, and cross K-68 at several points, so cyclists need to speak up and advocate for continued safe passage along and across the new K-68. [link]

Wichita Bike-Ped Bridge Across The Little Arkansas River

A Public Meeting/Open House for Phase 2 of the Southwest Blvd/Merriam Drive corridor improvements (S 10th St west to S 24th St -Lamar) has been announced to discuss the continuation of the Compete Street design now underway in Phase 1.  Phase 2 will include the section along the Boulevard Drive-in Theatre, home of the Bike Week’s Bike-In Movie sponsored by the Rosedale Development Association being held on Thursday, May 16. All bicyclists and pedestrians who ride and walk this corridor and those who would after the improvements are complete need to attend to speak up for the progressive design being undertaken by the Unified Government of Kansas City Kansas/Wyandotte County.  The project is proposed to include new bike lanes, sidewalks, street lighting, curbs and storm drainage.  Some local businesses along the corridor have raised concerns to the project, as it will affect their current unrestricted use of the public right-of-way for parking and drive entrances.  This unrestricted use of the public right-of-way has resulted in increased risks to bicyclists and pedestrians who need or want to use the roadway and a rather unsightly streetscape.  The public meeting/open house will be held:

Date:  April 30, 2013

Time:  4:30-7:00 PM

Location: Rosedale Development Association (Map)

1403 Southwest Blvd

Kansas City, KS 66103

Construction began this week on Phase 1 of the Southwest Blvd, Merriam Drive Complete Streets project by the Kansas City Kansas//Unified Government. Phase 1 rebuilds Southwest Blvd from Iowa St (Holy Name Church) west to S 10th Street (the curve at top of the hill where Merriam Drive begins). Bike lanes will be added along with new sidewalks, street lighting, curbs and storm drainage, including through the I-35/Mission Rd interchange area. Construction is planned for a Fall 2013 completion. Please ride and walk carefully through this area as, take extra caution in congested areas.

The 2013 National Bike Challenge runs from May 1st through September 30th. If you haven’t signed up yet, please do so at nationalbikechallenge.org, and start logging your miles!

KanBikeWalk is the statewide coordinator for the National Bike Challenge, and we’re working hard to get the word out, but we can’t do it alone. We need your help.

We need to contact all the bike clubs, health organizations, community clubs, civics organizations, cities, and businesses in the state, to ask them to tell their members, their employees, their customers, about the National Bike Challenge. Ask them to print out the flyer and post it to bulletin boards, ask them to include it in their paper and electronic newsletters, ask them to encourage everyone they know to ride their bikes and log their miles.

Here are some images that individuals, organizations, and businesses can use to publicize the National Bike Challenge. Feel free to copy these images and share them widely — to Facebook, to Twitter, by email, whatever.

This is the main 2013 National Bike Challenge poster, formatted to print on 8.5″x11″ paper. Please download the PDF, print in either color or black-and-white, and distribute widely.

Here are some additional images, in various formats, from the official National Bike Challenge marketing materials:

Use this 600×200 banner image for your e-news, email blasts, or web page. Download and save on your computer for use. Link this web banner directly to nationalbikechallenge.org.

Use this 200×200 button image for a smaller space on your website or e-news and link it directly to nationalbikechallenge.org.

Other marketing material available include an 11 x 17 Poster, an 8.5 x 11 One Pager, and a Postcard. All of these are in PDF format for easy printing.

If you have questions about the National Bike Challenge, please refer to the Frequently-Asked Questions (FAQ), the Guide for Groups, the Guide for Businesses, as well as the Official Rules and information on awards and the prize program.

If you’re looking for content for a newsletter, this Guide to Bike Safety is a great starting point, and may be freely republished and redistributed.

Together, let’s spread the word, and get Kansas riding!

The month of May is the annual celebration of cycling known as National Bike Month, with innumerable events and promotions around the country.

May also marks the launch of the 2013 National Bike Challenge!

This summer, more than 50,000 Americans are riding more than 20 million miles in the National Bike Challenge. This free online program encourages biking for transportation, fitness and recreation.

Ride solo, create a team, or pedal as part of a workplace to get healthier, have fun and become part of a national online community. Plus, every month you’ll be eligible to win great raffle prizes!

It’s easy, and it’s free. The National Bike Challenge is hosted by Endomondo, a web service that makes it really easy to participate.

There are several ways to log your trips:

– If you have a GPS device (such as the popular Edge series of cyclocomputers from our friends at Garmin), simply plug in your device after each ride, and upload your ride data to Endomondo with just a few clicks.

– If you carry a smartphone, download the free Endomondo app for your device. The app will let you record your ride and easily upload it to the web. Available for Android, iOS, and other popular platforms.

– You can also log your rides manually. Just go to nationalbikechallenge.org and click the “Log Miles” button.

The National Bike Challenge runs from May through September, but you can go ahead and get set up and start logging your miles. When you sign up, you have the option of joining a team or workplace or school.

Every time you get on your bike the miles count. Whether they are for fitness, fun, or transportation make sure to join and log them on nationalbikechallenge.org. Miles pedaled on a stationary bike or trainer do not count.

Everyone who participates is automatically entered into the prize program. Points are accumulated each day you ride at least 1 mile, and the more you ride, the more prizes you’re legible to win each month. There will be over 300 prizes distributed throughout the challenge period.

KanBikeWalk periodically takes a look at what communities around the state are doing to serve bicyclists and pedestrians — what they’re doing well, what could be improved.

This photo from February 2012 shows a crosswalk in downtown Chanute, Kansas:

This definitely falls into the “could be improved” category!

The most obvious problem is that the crosswalk does not line up with the sidewalk ramps, so that someone using a wheelchair would have to negotiate some tricky right-angle turns. And the steep angle of the ramp would make it even more difficult.

This photo (also from February) shows a painted sign on the sidewalk that reads “No Bicycles or Skateboards”. The problem is, the sign is inaccurate — Chanute city code prohibits riding bicycles or skateboards on downtown sidewalks, but it’s perfectly permissible to walk a bike (or skateboard) along the sidewalk, which someone would want to do, for instance, to park their bike while shopping at downtown retailer (well, if there were any bike racks).

On a trip back to Chanute in October, I was pleasantly surprised to find a great improvement:

The crosswalks, curbs, and storm drainage have been completely refurbished!

The nasty storm drains have been moved away from the corner, and each corner of the intersection has ADA-compliant accessible ramps, along with freshly-painted crosswalk stripes.

In addition, there are new push-to-cross buttons and signage at each corner.

And the unfriendly (and misleading) “No Bicycles or Skateboards” text is gone as well.

There’s even a very nice street mural in the center of the intersection, denoting the fact that Chanute is the center of Google Earth. According to Dan Webb, the Software Engineer who created Google Earth for Mac OS X:

If you’re in the U.S. and you have a Mac, try this: Launch Google Earth, wait for the zooming to stop, and then press the + button to zoom closer. You’ll arrive at the small town of Chanute, Kansas, nestled in the southeast corner of the state. I doubt you’ve ever noticed this before now. But even if you have, you’re probably wondering — why Chanute? The people in Chanute are as friendly as they come. Stop by sometime and say hello — and be sure to tell them Dan sent you. [read more]

How cool is that?!

Well done, Chanute!

(Photo Credit: Lawrence Journal-World)

KU has announced an $11 million dollar reconstruction of Jayhawk Blvd to improve pedestrian and bicycle accessibility and safety, roadway infrastructure, utilities, bus circulation and to restore the historic tree-lined character of the original Jayhawk Blvd. The project will begin after Commencement and take place in 4 phases during the summers between this year and 2016.

The proposed center bike lane, modeled after Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, DC, will minimize conflicts between bike riders, buses maneuvering along the curb and students as they enter and exit buses on Jayhawk Blvd. Since there are currently no bus routes turning left across the proposed left turn lanes, this sounds like the right solution, should make KU much safer to bike through and move KU forward in becoming a bicycle friendly campus.  The center bike lanes will also fill a current gap in the Lawrence/KU bike plan.

To learn more, read the article at the Lawrence Journal-World.

While at the National Bicycle Summit in early March 2013, KanBikeWalk representatives had, among other things, one simple request for each of Kansas’ six Congressional delegates. The ask was to sign a bi-partisan letter of support for the establishment of safety performance measures for bicycle and pedestrians affected by the use of federal transportation funds on various infrastructure projects. All other modes of transportation have established safety measures except bicycles and pedestrians.

Seems simple, practical, and non-partisan. Right? Apparently not. This was not a request to vote for funding or to even require the Federal Highway Administration to take action. It was a request to simply express their support for the establishment of safety measures critical to the future of bicycling and walking in Kansas. Yet, from their lack of action, neither Senator Moran nor Senator Roberts think bicycle and pedestrian safety is as important as motorist safety. And our Representatives Huelskamp, Jenkins, Yoder or Pompeo do not think bicycle and pedestrian safety is as important as motorist safety even though bicyclists, pedestrians and motorists are all legal users of the roadway. We’ve always known we were not equal on the roadway by shear physics. But the value of every life on the roadway should be equal no matter what ones mode of using the pubic roadway.

All this while bicycle and pedestrian fatalities and injuries are on the rise as a percent of motor vehicle crashes in Kansas. I wonder how many more sons, daughters, sisters, brothers, fathers, mothers, grand parents, neighbors or co-workers have to die riding or walking on Kansas roadways for our safety to become important enough for the Kansas’ Senators and Representatives to do what’s right for all Kansans and their families?

The Kansas Bike/Ped News is published by KanBikeWalk, a non-profit, statewide organization whose mission is to promote a safe bicycling and walking environment for Kansans through education and advocacy.Join KanBikeWalk and help to make Kansas a great place to walk and bike!

The following is a roundup of Kansas bicycle and pedestrian news for March 2013:

KanBikeWalk at the National Bike Summit

KanBikeWalk had three board members attended the National Bike Summit earlier this month in Washington, D.C. The Kansas delegation hobnobbed with representatives from a variety of other advocacy organizations from around the nation, attended training sessions to improve our advocacy efforts, and visited the offices of United States Senators Jerry Moran and Pat Roberts, and Representatives Tim Huelskamp, Lynn Jenkins, Mike Pompeo, and Kevin Yoder, to discuss bicycle and pedestrian transportation issues. [link]

Hit-and-Run Kills Pedestrian in KCK

On February 26th, Kimyonis Palmer was struck by a vehicle on Quindaro Boulevard in Kansas City, Kansas. While the driver fled the scene, Ms. Palmer and died from injuries sustained in the collision. Police are investigating, and asking for the public’s help in locating the killer. Anyone with information shoud call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS or text 274 637 and include the code TIP452 in the message. All calls and texts remain anonymous. [link]

Elderly Pedestrian Killed in Topeka

On March 15th, 74-year-old James Hurren was struck and killed by a pickup while trying to cross Topeka Boulevard. It appears that the cars in the right lane stopped to let the man cross the street, but the pickup in the left lane did not. The area where the man was struck doesn’t have sidewalks or crosswalks. [link]

Why Clear Sidewalks?

One of our KanBikeWalk board members has shared a personal story about a hit-and-run collision that shattered a body, due to an uncleared sidewalk: “It never ceases to amaze me, how much time, energy, and incredible expense ($6 million just for KDOT) we expend clearing our streets so that our machines can move freely, yet we invest so little in providing safe passage for our most vulnerable citizens. Please, if you have sidewalks, clear them. And please encourage your community to clear its sidewalks and trails and bike lanes, and not pile snow up at the intersections.”

Prairie Spirit Trail 100 & 50 Mile Ultra Race Was March 23rd

There was a new event happening on the Prairie Spirit Trail this year, an “ultra race”, in which participants run 50 or 100 miles. With the Prairie Spirit Trail being just over 50 miles long, it’s the perfect venue for such an event. The Prairie Spirit Trail 100 & 50 Mile Ultra Races took place on Saturday, March 23, 2013, starting in Ottawa. Organizers hope to make the Ultra Marathon an annual event.

Driver Arrested After Hitting Hutchinson Boy On Bike

An intoxicated driver was arrested on March 7th after hitting a Hutchinson boy on a bicycle. The driver of the pickup was arrested for DUI, aggravated battery and no insurance. [link]

North Lawrence Collision Leaves Pedestrian with Serious Injuries

A pedestrian was struck by a vehicle near the intersection of North Second and Lincoln streets in Lawrence on March 16th. Lawrence Police are investigating. [link]

Walking Guru Visits Crawford County

Mark Fenton, known as “America’s Walking Guru”, who is a nationally-recognized public health, planning, and transportation consultant, visited Crawford County, Kansas on March 25-27, performing walkability audits in Girard and Pittsburg, and speaking to to community leaders about how to make their cities more walkable, bikeable, and economically and physically vital places to live. Fenton has previously consulted with a number of other Kansas communities, including Olathe, Lawrence, and Hutchinson. A trip to Iola is tentatively planned for September of this year. His visit to Crawford County was made possible by a healthy community initiative grant thru Live Well Crawford County. Two KanBikeWalk board members, Dale Crawford and Randy Rasa, participated in the walkability audits and community meetings.

Design Plays Key Role in Creating Healthy Communities

“Residents of new housing developments increased their exercise and their wellbeing when they had more access to shops and parks, a new study reveals. ‘The study demonstrates the potential of local infrastructure to support health-enhancing behaviours. Given that being physically active reduces the risk of heart disease and diabetes, which are both huge costs to the health system, these results could have huge implications for government policy.’” [link]

By Rail or by Trail

This scene is from Chanute, Kansas. The trail is part of the downtown multi-use pathway near Chanute’s restored railroad depot. The city hopes to connect this path to the popular Katy Hike/Bike Trail in the northeast part of town.