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ATD completes data inventory and improved maintenance plans for City crosswalks
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Spatial databases are key to tracking and maintaining our infrastructure. Thanks to ATD’s geographic information system (GIS) technicians and analysts on the Data and Technology Management Services (DATMS) team, we now have a dataset of over 5,300 City crosswalks, with details on installation dates, conditions, location areas and more. To stay relevant, the crosswalk dataset is updated biweekly.
Such data are especially useful for estimating costs and predicting maintenance. Looking at daily traffic volume, our analysts established crosswalk maintenance timelines for certain areas. By these standards, crosswalks at traffic signals are maintained every two years, in the Central Business District every two years, by schools every four years, and elsewhere every six years. With this project’s success, infrastructure maintenance is becoming a proactive, rather than reactive, process.
“Our work may sometimes go unnoticed, but it is important to supporting ATD’s City services and enhancing public safety, which is rewarding when you’re part of a great team,” said IT Geospatial Analyst Diana Martin.
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Austin's bike share system grows by three stations, kicking off larger expansion
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The new B-cycle station at Cesar Chavez Street and Congress Avenue was installed on Friday, July 7.
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Austin B-cycle, the City’s nationally recognized bike sharing program, added three more stations last week. The new stations are part of a larger 18-station, 125-bike expansion that will increase bike share offerings by 35 percent over the next 18 months. The three new stations are located at Cesar Chavez Street and Congress Avenue, Sterzing Street and Barton Springs Road, and Henderson Street between 6th and 9th streets.
The current system has 51 stations and 380 bikes. So far in 2017, 23,016 riders have logged 104,000 trips and 366,000 miles. Locations for the other 15 new stations are still to be determined. The expansion is funded in part by the Federal Highway Administration's Transportation Alternatives Program, matched with private funds from the Austin community.
Austin B-cycle is a public-private partnership between the City of Austin, the system owner, and Bike Share of Austin, the local 501(c)(3) non-profit operator. Launched in December 2013, the system has recorded 629,982 trips covering over 1.8 million miles and helping riders burn over 72 million calories.
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Crowdsourced safety messages adorn Austin roadways after contest
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Thanks to Matt Connolly for this message, one of several winning submissions.
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Following ATD's successful #OnTheRoadATX contest, Austin road users are getting glimpses of clever, Austin-centric reminders to follow the rules of the road, avoid distractions, be cautious around vulnerable road users - and simply be kind on the road.
What makes these messages really unique is that the wordsmiths are fellow commuters communicating their safety concerns to others in a creative way. ATD opened up the contest in January and the response was overwhelming: We received over 300 entries and took on the daunting task of selecting 15 winners. Now, we're keeping our word and displaying those on major roadways using dynamic message signs like the one above.
So far, three winning safety phrases have lit up these dynamic message signs, including the one pictured above, and the rest are to come. Thanks for participating!
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Cycling through sustainable ideas at Velo-city 2017 conference
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ATD Active Transportation and Street Design Division Multimodal Street Designer Alison Mills tours a bicycle parking facility, which will have capacity for thousands of bicycles, currently under construction in Utrecht, Netherlands.
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ATD is proud to have participated in this year’s Velo-city conference, which was held in the Arnhem-Nijmegen region of the Netherlands in June. Founded by the European Cyclists’ Federation, this annual conference showcases best practices on design and planning for bicycles.
Representing ATD, Active Transportation and Street Design Division Multimodal Street Designer Alison Mills spoke on a panel of representatives from the United Kingdom and Australia on implementing Dutch-inspired cycling infrastructure. Mills and 1,500 other conference participants all received bicycles upon arrival and embarked on bicycle tours in cities throughout the Netherlands including Utrecht, the Hague, Amsterdam, Arnhem and Nijmegen. These experiences included riding on a Dutch bicycle highway between Arnhem and Nijmegen.
“I really enjoyed getting to meet and hear from people around the world involved in bicycle planning and design,” said Mills. “What really struck me was that all cities, whether they have two percent bicycle mode share or 20 percent bicycle mode share, experience similar challenges in continuing to improve the state of bicycling. There is so much to learn from one another."
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Vision Zero Report Card among topics to be presented at Urban Transportation Commission
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The City of Austin's Urban Transportation Commission will meet tomorrow at 6 p.m. in the City Hall Board and Commission Room, located at 301 W. Second Street. Topics to be discussed include the Vision Zero Report Card and the Downtown Austin Alliance Downtown Austin Parking Strategy. More information about Tuesday’s meeting can be found here.
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Check it out: "Walking the talk on Chesterfield Avenue"
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About 20 neighbors, City staff and representatives from other interest groups joined Mayor Steve Adler, Mayor Pro Tem Kathie Tovo and Council Member Greg Casar on the 1,800-foot trek along the new sidewalk.
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On June 29, the City of Austin celebrated the completion of the first 2016 Mobility Bond project: an 1,800 foot sidewalk in the North Loop Neighborhood. If you couldn't make it, you can check out a City of Austin blog post that goes into detail about the project and includes photos and videos of the event!
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