2005 New Orleans Metropolitan Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan Regional Planning Commission Jefferson, Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard and St. Tammany Parishes September, 2006 2005 New Orleans Metropolitan Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan Prepared by Regional Planning Commission 1340 Poydras Street, Suite 2100 New Orleans, Louisiana 70112 email: [email protected] web site: www.norpc.org FHWA Contrect No. PL-0011 (025) State Project No. 736-36-0025 The preparation of this document was fi nanced in part through grants from the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration in accordance with the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century New OrleansMetropolitanBicycleandPedestrianPlan2005 Work on the 2005 New Orleans Metropolitan Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan was wrapped up in the months pre- ceding the devastating events of August 29, 2005. This document does not att empt to incorporate post-Katrina changes to the environment for bicycle and pedestrians. However, the volume of research reported here still stands. Overall, policy recommendations and route identifi cation continue to be valid and applicable. We should build upon the fi ndings in this document to direct specifi c att ention where it is needed today. The Regional Planning Commission wishes to acknowledge the importance of bicycle and pedestrian concerns in the aft ermath of Hurricane Katrina. Now, perhaps more than ever in the history of New Orleans, we have an opportunity to institutionalize the framework for accommodating cyclists and pedestrians at the state and local levels and to implement real projects and programs within every jurisdiction in the metropolitan New Orleans area. The Regional Planning Commission is committ ed to this eff ort. Karen Parsons, AICP Bicycle and Pedestrian Coordinator Regional Planning Commission Table of Contents Page Page Chapter 1 5 Chapter 10 109 Preface and Acknowledgements Bicycle Networks Chapter 2 13 Chapter 11 161 New OrleansMetropolitanBicycleandPedestrianPlan2005 Introduction State Laws Chapter 3 19 Chapter 12 179 Existing Studies Law Enforcement Practices Chapter 4 29 Chapter 13 189 Best Practices in Bicycle and Pedestrian Education and Training Planning Chapter 14 201 Chapter 5 47 Safe Routes to School Rider Classifi cation Chapter 15 209 Chapter 6 53 Sett ing Priorities Overview of Existing Conditions Chapter 16 229 Chapter 7 71 Benchmarking Identifying Statistical Hot Spots Chapter 17 237 Chapter 8 93 Public and Private Sector Roles Transit Stop Pedestrian Survey Chapter 9 99 Bicycle Parking and Bike on Bus List of Figures Page Page Figure 1 14 Figure 12 60 Gulf South Comparison: Percentage of Percentage of Bicycle Crashes Per Day of MSA Households without Vehicles (2000) the Week Figure 2 26 Figure 13 60 New OrleansMetropolitanBicycleandPedestrianPlan2005 Alignment for the Bikeways in St. Bernard Number of Bicycle Crashes by Hour Parish Figure 14 60 Figure 3 31 Age of Cyclists by Crash Frequency TRB’s Guide for Reducing Pedestrian Collisions Figure 15 61 Cyclists Crashes: Juvenile vs Adult Figure 4 54 Percentage of Pedestrian Crashes by Figure 16 61 Parish Percentage of Bicycle Crashes by Life- Stage Figure 5 54 Percentage of Bicycle Crashes by Parish Figure 17 61 Percentage of Bicycle Crashes by Lighting Figure 6 56 Condition Jeff erson Parish High Poverty Block Groups Figure 18 62 Number of Pedestrian Crashes Per Year Figure 7 56 Orleans Parish High Poverty Block Figure 19 62 Groups Percentage of Pedestrian Crashes by Severity Figure 8 58 Bicycle Crashes per Year Figure 20 62 Percent of Severity of Pedestrian Crashes Figure 9 59 Percentage of Bicycle Crashes by Severity Figure 21 63 Percentage of Pedestrian Crashes by Figure 10 59 Month Percent of Severity of Bicycle Crashes by Year Figure 22 63 Figure 11 59 Pedestrian Crashes by Day of the Week Percentage of Bicycle Crashes by Month List of Figures Page Page Figure 23 63 Figure 34 79 Number of Pedestrian Crashes by Hour Kmeans Pedestrian Cluster 5 Separation 3 Figure 24 64 Figure 35 80 Age of Pedestrian by Crash Frequency STAC Quarter Mile Cluster 5 Triangular Figure 25 64 Figure 36 82 Percentage of Pedestrian Crashes by Age Multiple Pedestrian Crash Locations 1999-2000 (East Bank Core) Figure 26 64 Percentage of Pedestrian Crashes by Life Figure 37 84 Stage Spatial and Temporal Analysis of Crime Figure 27 65 Figure 38 85 Gender and Pedestrian Crashes Statistically Signifi cant Pedestrian Clusters, Orleans Parish Figure 28 65 Percentage of Pedestrian Crashes by Lighting Figure 39 86 Conditions Statistically Signifi cant Bicycle Crash Clusters, Orleans and Jeff erson Parishes Figure 29 66 French Quarter Street Patt ern Figure 40 87 Spatial and Temporal Analysis of Crime Figure 30 67 Wagon-Wheel Street Profi le Figure 41 89 Multiple Bicycle Crash Locations 1999-2002 Figure 31 67 (East Bank Core) Eastbank Jeff erson Major Connectivity Barriers Figure 42 93 Metro Area Bus Routes New Orleans Metropolitan Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan 2005 Figure 32 76 Pedestrian Crashes 1999-2002 East Bank Figure 43 94 Core Transit Operator Identifi ed Problem Stops: Orleans Parish Figure 33 79 Pedestrian Fuzzy Mode Tolerance Quarter Figure 44 94 Mile Transit Operator Identifi ed Problem Stops: Jeff erson Parish List of Figures Page Page Figure 45 103 Figure 58 131 Downtown Bike Rack Plan, Phase 1 Wisner Corridor South (Nashville Area) Figure 46 104 Figure 59 133 New OrleansMetropolitanBicycleandPedestrianPlan2005 Downtown Bike Rack Plan, Phase 2 Esplanade Corridor Figure 47 105 Figure 60 135 Jeff erson Transit Bike-on-Bus Users 2000- St. Bernard Corridor North 2004 Figure 61 137 Figure 48 110 St. Bernard Corridor South Central New Orleans Routes Figure 62 138 Figure 49 111 Lakefront Corridor West Jeff erson/St. Charles Corridor North Figure 63 139 Figure 50 112 Lakefront Corridor East Jeff erson/St. Charles Corridor Airport Area Figure 64 203 Figure 51 113 Statistically Signifi cant Children 6 and Jeff erson/St. Charles Corridor South Under Figure 52 115 Figure 65 204 Central Avenue Corridor North High Poverty Block Groups and Statistically Signifi cant Child Pedestrian Crash Clusters Figure 53 117 Central Avenue Corridor South Figure 66 205 Statistically Signifi cant Youth Pedestrian Figure 54 125 Clusters, Orleans and Jeff erson Parishes Jeff erson/Orleans Corridor North Figure 67 205 Figure 55 125 Statistically Signifi cant Pedestrian Crash Jeff erson/Orleans Corridor South Clusters and Crashes within 1 Mile of Program Schools Figure 56 126 Wisner Corridor North Figure 57 129 Wisner Corridor Mid-City List of Tables Page Page Table 1 53 Table 12 85 Louisiana Pedestrian Fatalities Statistically Signifi cant Pedestrian Crash Clusters, Orleans Parish Table 2 53 New OrleansMetropolitanBicycleandPedestrianPlan2005 Louisiana Bicycle Fatalities Table 13 86 Statistically Signifi cant Bicycle Crash Table 3 57 Clusters, Orleans and Jeff erson Parishes Orleans Parish Pedestrian Crashes and Poverty Table 14 88 Top 15 Bicycle Crash Locations Table 4 57 Jeff erson Parish Pedestrian Crashes and Table 15 95 Poverty Orleans Parish Transit Survey Responses Table 5 57 Table 16 95 Orleans Parish Bicycle Crashes and Poverty Jeff erson Parish Transit Survey Responses Table 6 58 Table 17 155 Jeff erson Parish Bicycle Crashes and Poverty Minimum Street Width Needed for Retrofi tt ing with Bicycle Lane Table 7 72 Pedestrian Crashes Involving Youth under Table 18 155 18, Orleans Parish Speed Limits Table 8 73 Table 19 157 Proximity of Transit Routes to Pedestrian New Orleans Street Classifi cations Crashes, Orleans Parish Table 20 167 Table 9 74 Multi-Jurisdictional Comparison of Bicycle Proximity of Pedestrian Crashes to Housing and Pedestrian Laws Developments, Orleans Parish Table 21 167 Table 10 74 Required Bicycle Equipment Percentage of Pedestrian Crashes in the CBD and French Quarter Table 22 180 2001 Bike Injuries by Race, Age and Gender Table 11 81 Top 15 Pedestrian Crash Locations List of Tables Page Page Table 23 184 Table 35 234 Information Requests on Bicycle Enforcement Organizational Adopted Bike/Pedestrian to Local Police, Spring 2002 Plan Table 24 214 Programmed Transportation Improvement Projects (1994-2004) Table 25 225 Bike / Pedestrian Policies Table 26 231 Safety, 2002 Table 27 231 Safe Routes to School Programs, 2005 Table 28 232 Modal Share, 2000 Table 29 232 Miles of Existing On-Street Bicycle Lanes, 2005 Table 30 232 Miles of Existing Off -Street Shared-Use Paths, 2005 Table 31 233 Facilities, 2003 New Orleans Metropolitan Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan 2005 Table 32 233 Facilities, 2005 Table 33 233 Funding, 1994-2003 Table 34 233 Funding thru 2004 Preface and Acknowledgements Preface and Acknowledgements Chapter 1 Preface Century or TEA-21, mandated that states and regions 5 consider the needs of bicycles and pedestrians in all This document represents a journey. The terrain grew new construction and reconstruction projects. Further, diffi cult when multiple paths had to be explored and law established a new federal funding source, transpor- charted. We met many interesting people, asked scores tation enhancements, that made bicycle and pedestrian of questions, discovered new tools, retraced our steps facilities eligible items. Even so, adoption of comprehen- several times and learned a great deal along the way. sive national standards to cover bicycling and walking New OrleansMetropolitanBicycleandPedestrianPlan2005 The journey took fi ve years. design were slow. It was not until 1999 that the Ameri- can Association of State Highway and Transportation In 2000, the Regional Planning Commission (RPC) recog- Offi cials (AASHTO) published the fi rst Guide for the De- nized the general inadequacy of walking and bicycling velopment of Bicycle Facilities manual. conditions in the region. While the region had complet- ed two previous master bicycle plan documents (1977 Further, federal law does not mandate the construction and 1993), on-street routes designated in those plans of facilities or control the adequacy of local routes. Nor remained largely ignored and local cyclists in particu- can it infl uence routes that do not use federal dollars, lar were frustrated by lack of att ention to their transpor- i.e., local streets.