Alternative Transportation Goals for Richmond Indiana

As a part of my work on the committees that are implementing the Comprehensive Plan that Richmond recently developed, I created a list (with some help from Mark) of some transportation goals that have a focus on alternative transportation (read: goals that don't celebrate car culture). Here's what I came up with, in no particular order:

1.Improve funding and infrastructure for public transportation, pursue newer public transportation services like the Smart Jitney (door-to-door route-deviation microbus service)

2.Educate the public about laws and etiquette related to sharing the road with pedestrians and cyclists

3.Educate cyclists about following the rules of the road, enforce violations by cyclists/scooterists who are setting a bad example (no helmets, no signaling, riding on sidewalks, etc.)

4.Evaluate when separate bike paths are actually helping and when they're hurting (relegating cyclists to second-class status). Bike paths are expensive and planning for them is difficult; promoting road sharing is easier short-term goal.

5.Mapping pedestrian/bike-friendly routes around town with tourist destinations, highlights (through collaboration with the Tourism Bureau and others)

6.Install bike racks in destination areas like City/County government buildings, Main Street, Depot District, campuses, etc.

7.Adopting the Oil Depletion Protocol or the Mayor's Climate Protection Agreement

8.Formalize and promote financial incentives for businesses/organizations that promote energy efficient transportation (might be County/State)

9.Better signage for bike lanes or even just indicating bike-friendly roads

10.Hold public education seminars about energy concerns, issues and how they can reduce their transportation-related energy usage while still getting around town (perhaps through Cope Center)

11.Make sidewalks more accessible/friendly to citizens using wheelchairs.

12.Give support / funding to the Community Bike Cooperative project started by Earlham

13.Start a Car Sharing project in Richmond

14.During snowstorms, give priority to clearing sidewalks in the same way we give priority to clearing streets

15.Finish the Cardinal Greenway (County)

16.Highlight our success stories and current assets:
-The RAIN ride ends here
-Give more publicity for Ride Across America (nationally televised, not at all locally promoted)
-Ohio's official bike maps have routes that end in Richmond
-Indiana has official bike routes of the state that go through Richmond

These goals were submitted to the Transportation committee of the Comprehensive Plan implementation process, and they are discussing them as a part of their work. As of this writing, some of the goals have even been achieved!