Little Rock Trail Network Expansions

I've written previously here and in my books about the need for Little Rock to work on trail connectivity and the potential of trails along Coleman Creek, Rose Creek, Rock Creek, and Fourche Creek. Tonight they are voting to add many of these ideas to the master plan! Please contact your director or attend the meeting to show your support for these projects.

These trails would greatly expand the walkability and bikeability of Little Rock. The Rose Creek Trail (it may have another name now) would connect the River Trail to Fourche Bottoms and would also make it easier for a lot more people to bike to work downtown by connecting major residential areas to the River Trail.

Bike to Work Week Live-Blog

In honor of Bike to Work Week, I pledge to at least try to bike to work this week and report the results, experiences, and my thoughts here.

Day 1: 
Perfect weather, a little crisp in the morning. This is going to be awesome. I got to hear the rushing of water in our local creeks and saw a groundhog and a killdeer. Biking lets you take in sights, sounds, and smells that driving muffles or eliminates. The trail was wet in many places, but not muddy. Along with the water on my pants, my fears of showing up at the lab with bikers butt evaporate quickly.

Big Opportunity to Promote Active Transportation in Central Arkansas

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.  When AHTD gives you traffic nightmares, promote active/alternative transportation!  Already jokingly dubbed #LRpocalypse by @ArkansasBlog, it is looking like traffic in Central Arkansas could get really nasty for much of 2015-2019.  Here is why:

1.  Broadway Bridge replacement - Scheduled to start in 2015 and take two years to complete.
2.  I-30 Downtown Bridge Replacement - AHTD says they will try to wait until the Broadway Bridge is done to begin this $300-400 million project, but they may not have a choice due to funding-related requirements.  I've heard reports that preliminary work on the I-30 bridge will start while Broadway Bridge is still out of service.
3.  I-630 widening/"improvements" - I've written extensively on my opposition to widening I-630 and this is just one more reason for people to hate the project.  Though plans are still being finalized (and will hopefully be canceled) construction work is scheduled to begin in 2017 and run into 2019.

So to recap, starting sometime in 2015, maybe the spring, the Broadway Bridge will close, making traffic in downtown Little Rock worse.  Before the bridge is finished (don't these things always take longer and cost more than predicted?) it is likely that work on I-30 in the downtown area will begin.  Around the same time, AHTD will probably be closing lanes of I-630 in order to add lanes that won't offer any long-term congestion benefits.  In short we are looking at 4 years of at least one major highway project (Broadway is Hwy-67/70b) impacting traffic in Little Rock/North Little Rock and probably 2-3 years of overlapping projects.

So, what's the upside?  Well, if you look at a map of downtown Little Rock, you'll notice that there are two pedestrian bridges near the Broadway and I-30 bridges, and these won't be closed! Nor will the pedestrian lane on the Main St. bridge.  People tired of sitting in traffic forever will be looking for better ways to get downtown.  Those that live within 2-10 miles might be looking at biking.  People who live closer could walk or take the trolley.  This 4-5 year traffic nightmare presents a great opportunity to increase the number of people who commute by bike, foot, or bus in Central Arkansas, but there are some things Little Rock and North Little Rock should do in order to make this time easier on residents and to make it simple for people interested in exploring new modes of transportation to do so:

1.  Improve the Trail System - Little Rock needs to "Close the Loop" on the River Trail and build more spur trails to link more neighborhoods to the trail system.

2.  Expand education and outreach efforts - People need to know that trails exist and can get them where they want to go.

3.  Encourage employers to provide shower facilities.  The city could even build a public facility downtown, maybe at the Bus Terminal, the River Market, or on the River Trail.

4.  Create a Bike Share program.  People are more likely to use bikes if they don't have to worry about storage, parking, maintenance, theft, or large upfront costs.  Lots of cities have these, but the City of Little Rock claims they are too difficult to implement. With more cities adding Bike Share programs all the time, this argument doesn't seem to hold any water.

If you care about active transportation, help get the word out.  Little Rock is looking at years of horrible traffic congestion and residents do have other choices for getting to work.

Here is a piece I did on when bike commuting beats driving in Little Rock (and elsewhere):
http://trailsofarkansas.blogspot.com/2011/09/when-bikes-beat-cars.html

Nice background on benefits of Bike Share programs:
http://theairspace.net/insight/bikesharing-is-caring-how-personal-transportation-is-changing/

Levy Trail - North Little Rock

While at the 2014 Bike/Walk Summit, I learned about the Levy Trail in North Little Rock.  While it is currently only partly paved, the trail stretches over 4 miles from I-40 to Camp Robinson roughly paralleling Camp Robinson Rd. on an old rail bed.

I was told the southern part is paved from under I-40 to about 52nd St.  The rest is being worked on and is walkable, but not good for road bikes.  When finished, this trail will improve active transportation options in North Little Rock greatly, especially if connected to the River Trail or Argenta.

I haven't been on the trail, so no pictures yet.  If you have some good photos and wouldn't mind me using them, let me know!

View Levy Trail in a larger map

Walkability Ranking of Arkansas Cities and Neighborhoods

This blog focuses on getting people outside and active.  My books and blog articles have an emphasis on trails located in and near heavily populated areas of the state.  I also frequently write about the future of trails as part of an alternative/active transportation system that allows people to break their dependence on cars to accomplish everyday tasks like getting to work or buying groceries.  "Walkability" is a popular newish term that attempts to quantify how easy it is to do things without using a car.  If your neighborhood has lots of mixed-use developments with housing, shopping, restaurants, and office buildings nearby then it will have a high walkability score.  If you live in stereotypical suburbia with just homes and subdivisions as far as the eye can see (or the feet can walk) then your area will have a low walkability score since you need a car to get anywhere.

Here is a list of cities and neighborhoods ranked by walkability score.  Scores and maps are from http://www.walkscore.com/    The site also has similar scoring systems for transit and biking which I will cover in the future.  Let me know in the comments any cities you want me to add!

Little Rock Walkability Map - From Walkscore.com

Examples: 
New York City - 88
Berkeley, CA - 79
Houston - 44
Memphis - 33
Tulsa - 36
Austin - 35

Arkansas Cities:

Fayetteville Walkability Map - From Walkscore.com

Eureka Springs - 70's (I could only get scores for specific addresses in town, so this may be skewed high, still no wonder why everyone loves visiting!)

Conway Walkability Map - From Walkscore.com

Fort Smith - 33
North Little Rock - 32
Little Rock - 31
Hot Springs - 29
Fayetteville - 27
Texarkana - 27
Conway - 25
Bentonville - 24
Pine Bluff - 23
Springdale - 23
Jonesboro - 21
Rogers - 18
Maumelle - 16
Bryant - 15

Note: While cities like Fort Smith and Little Rock have scores twice as high as places like Maumelle and Bryant, scores in the 30's are still considered very low and earn cities the label of "Car-Dependent".  This label shouldn't surprise anyone living in any of these cities.

Best Arkansas Neighborhoods:

Little Rock:
Downtown ranks the highest reaching the 90's (but I think it could stand more housing options)

Fort Smith Walkability Map - From Walkscore.com

Honorable Mentions: Argenta, Heights, Hillcrest, and some surprising (to me) spots in WLR around W. Markham/Bowman/Chenal and Rodney Parham/Treasure Hills

Fayetteville: 
Downtown/Dickson St./MLK  Area scores in the 80's
One I didn't think of: the area along Township between College and Gregg ranked highly as well.

Eureka Springs:
Main St. scores in the high 70's

Springdale:
Highest around Emma/Holcomb/Thompson/Maple area (Low 60's)

The Southwest Trail

Plans are being developed for a trail between Little Rock and Hot Springs.  This 50-mile trail would follow the old Rock Island Railroad track and would be one of the longest Rails-to-Trails projects in the country.  One of the great things about using old railroad beds is that much of the earth-moving and grading work is already done and you are guaranteed a trail with no steep slopes (which is no easy task when passing through the Ouachitas).
Many local officials from counties and cities along the path have expressed interest, so now the big question is where the ~$20 million will come from.  Funds for these types of projects often come from a variety of sources including federal transportation dollars, as well as state, county, and city funds.  Arkansas gets roughly $10 million a year in federal Transportation Alternatives funds, but these don't go just to trails.  It should be noted that funds for trails via this program and from more local sources are under constant threat these days by political parties and groups that think all transportation dollars should go towards expanding highways and repaving roads as part of an unbalanced "cars only" approach to transportation policy.  If we want more funding for trails, we need to encourage our lawmakers to protect existing funding sources and pass local initiatives similar to the statewide 1/8th cent conservation sales tax and the sales tax increase that Little Rock recently passed in part to fund parks and trails.
This trail would help complete the second side of the "city-in-a-park" trail triangle that is part of the Little Rock Parks Master Plan.

The Prezi below, by Mason Ellis, has more details on the project.

Drive or Bike to Work? - Guide to Making an Informed Decision

Here is a list of questions to consider when deciding between commuting by bike, car, or bus.  Obviously this blog and its author have a strong bias towards trails and biking, but I tried to make these as objective and fair as possible.  Let me know if I missed anything!

1.  How far do you live from work? Is the distance by bike different than by car?

Most beginner bike commuters probably aren't interested in biking more than 5-10 miles each way.  Distances of less than 5 miles are often faster door-to-door by bike, especially in urban or high traffic areas.
If you live farther than that from the office, you might want to conduct a personal cost-benefit analysis looking at how much money (and time) you pour into transportation vs. how much you benefit in terms of housing cost, quality of life, etc.  Thanks to the RiverTrail in Little Rock and the expanding Razorback Greenway in NW Arkansas, there are many examples of bike commutes being shorter in terms of distance and/or time.

2.  Do you go jogging or hit the treadmill at the gym after work?

Converting your 20 minute drive to a 20-40 minute bike ride can actually increase your free time if you count it as your cardio for the day and get to skip a trip the gym.  My bike commutes have averaged about 10 miles round-trip, which at my pace means I get 40-45 minutes of exercise a day just getting to and from work/school.

3.  How much do you spend on gas or  bus fare? 

Even with short commutes, for many people this is $80-$200 a month.  Depending on your situation that may mean nothing or it might be a big deal.  If (big if) money was your main reason for living out in the country 30 miles from the office, then this additional cost should be factored in to your rent/mortgage comparisons.

4.  How much do you enjoy driving in rush hour traffic?  How much do you enjoy biking?

This is a little fuzzier than the dollars and hours discussed above, but for many it is of equal importance.  If driving in traffic drives you crazy (like it does me) then you may get quite a benefit from leaving your car behind.  However, if you happen to hate biking and love listening to the radio while sipping a coffee in a climate conditioned environment then the opposite is probably true.

5.  Do you have access to a shower or other ways to freshen up at the office?  

If your office doesn't have a shower and you are expected to be clean and dressed in a wrinkle-free suit then biking to work might not be a great idea.  I have worked at some places that have showers and I've also just tried to take it easy on the bike and let my co-workers deal with any odor-related consequences, but I've never had a shirt-and-tie job.  I sometimes drive to work one day a week and drop off clothes.  Bike bags are getting pretty snazzy these days and many people either bike in nice clothes or pack them.  You can go a long ways towards neutralizing any bike-related odors by reapplying deodorant and wiping down with a moist towel.

6.  How safe is the route you'd take by bike?

If most of your route is a bike/pedestrian trail physically separated from roads carrying car traffic then it is pretty safe.  Biking on roads with low speed limits is also fairly safe, but you don't want to spend much if any time on busy roads with cars zooming by at 45 mph.

UA Farm Link To Scull Creek Trail

The UA Farm Link, as it is called on the Fayetteville Master Trails Plan, is nearing completion. It connects the Frisco trail to more apartment complexes, the UA Farm, the AMP, and the county fairgrounds. This roughly two-mile section of trail has some nice open views as it travels through different parts of the UA Agricultural Research Farm. Hopefully the route navigating the interstate will be completed soon and this trail will connect to the Hamestring Creek Trail, which will in turn, one day connect to Bryce Davis Park and the dog park there. A valuable aspect of these trails is that they will connect the large residential areas west of I-540 to the main trail network, providing more residents with the option of commuting to work (or shopping or Dickson St.) by foot or bike.

When deciding what types of trails to include in my books and on this blog, I made a decision not to include wide sidewalks or trails that just parallel roads; partly because I prefer trails that take you places a car can't and partly to focus my work. Much of this trail does follow existing roads, but it also goes places cars can't. Importantly, the section along Knapp Dr. is a dedicated bike lane with a physical curb separating bikes from cars. As I've written elsewhere (here, here, and here), this is a much better idea than simply marking bike symbols on roads and hoping for the best.

There are not a lot of great places to park to access this trail. If you want to check it out but don't live nearby, the Agricultural Park at Knapp and Garland has some roadside parking.

Hamestring Creek Trail

After being trapped inside for much of the past three days (nice Spring Break!) Buddy and I decided to shake the cabin fever by hitting some trails, rain or shine (it turned out to be rain).

After exploring Finger Park and only getting a little wet, we drove north to the Hamestring Creek Trail, located on Marigold Dr. in a small neighborhood off of Shiloh Dr. near Mt. Comfort Rd.

This wide paved trail runs along Hamestring Creek through a forested area and at times behind some homes.  The stream corridor is home to some sycamore, oaks, cedar and a good mix of other tree species, but the understory in entirely dominated by bush honeysuckle

In its current state, this trail only serves a small population, but I believe the plan is for it to eventually connect to the Clabber Creek Trail to the west and to the Scull Creek Trail to the east, which would give people living in western Fayetteville a safe, scenic way to bike into the more happening parts of town.

Biking on Campus

UA is working to improve biking in and around campus, but with the topography, numerous construction sites, and more students every semester biking on campus can be quite intimidating.  The map below shows some routes that make biking around campus a more pleasant experience by avoiding steep hills and high pedestrian traffic areas.  For more details, click items on the map or click the link at the base of the map.

To make it easier for more students to bike (and not drive) the campus should:
1.  Build more bike racks at dorms and other locations where overflow has been witnessed.
2.  Mark designated bike lanes on some paths through campus and on major roads around campus like Maple St., Arkansas Ave., and Garland Ave.
3.  Close more roads through campus to non-essential vehicular traffic, at least during class hours.  Campuses feel more like campuses when there aren't lots of cars driving through them anyways.  If you've ever been on Ozark Ave. near the end of Dickson between classes, you know that cars shouldn't be trying to drive through there.  I think the rest of Garland and Ozark Ave. would be good places to start closing more roads.

For useful sites and more information on biking on campus read this.

Bikes on Campus at UA Fayetteville

If you bike or would like to bike on campus at the University of Arkansas, make sure you read this carefully.  UA, according to its master plan, wants to be a bike-friendly campus where students have the option to bike, walk, and/or take the bus everywhere they need to go.  If you have been on campus recently, you know they aren't quite there yet and thanks to all the new students and construction, biking on campus might not improve drastically for a few years to come.
There are, however, some things you can do to help improve biking on campus.
1.  Register your bike with the university.  If you don't have a bike, get one and then register it.  If you don't want to buy one, borrow one from the school's Razorbikes program.  Registering your bike or taking advantage of the Razorbikes program will let the university know students are using bikes on campus and that they need places to both park, and ride, those bikes.
2. Let people know what the problems are with biking on campus.  If you are on Facebook, check-out the UARK Bicycle Infrastructure Group.  Leave a message/comment on where more bike racks are needed or where it would be nice to have a bike lane or path.
3.  Volunteer.  In order to make efficient use of limited funds, the university needs good data on bike usage on campus.  If you want to help collect this data, leave a comment on here or any of the other pages linked to in this blog and someone will get in touch with you.

An Unsolicited Plan for a Mullins Creek Greenway

I wrote an earlier piece on how UA needed to take a page out of UALR's book and create a Mullins Creek Greenway, similar to UALR's Coleman Creek Greenway, but I didn't include many specifics.  So here is my plan for Mullins Creek in greater detail:

Overall Objectives:
1.  Provide the campus community a scenic and safe trail that connects housing areas, athletic facilities, classrooms, and shopping areas.
2.  Improve the habitat and water quality of Mullins Creek.
3.  Provide a viable alternative to driving around campus that is healthier, more scenic, and just as fast.

Stage 1: The Cheap Stuff
1.  Establish a "no-mow" zone around the creek.  This would actually be more of a mow twice a year zone that would immediately help decrease erosion along the creek, improve water quality and provide habitat for wildlife.

2.  To avoid looking like an overgrown drainage ditch, attractive native grasses, shrubs and trees could be planted along the banks for little extra cost.  Inland sea oats, soft rush, blackgum, red bud, sycamore, and dogwoods are just a few examples of attractive plants that would improve aesthetics, water quality, and habitat.  Streambank and wetland plants can typically be purchases for ~$1 a plug.  Tree prices vary depending on size, but can be as cheap as $30 for a 6' tall tree.  Smaller sapplings go for 10 cents when bought in bulk.  If done as part of an official mitigation plan, this project might even pay for itself.

Stage 2:  The Not Cheap, but Not Really That Expensive Stuff
1.  Increase the width of existing trails/sidewalks to at least 12 feet.
2.  Move existing sidewalks that are within 10 feet of the creek (red on the map) farther away.  Placing a path too close to the creek can, and has, led to bank erosion, flooded trails, and expensive repairs.
3.  Pave new sections of trail to connect existing sections each other and dorms, apartments, athletic facilities, classrooms, and shopping areas.

Stage 3:  The Expensive Stuff.
1.  Remove the parking lot at MLK and Razorback Rd.  Replace it with a 3-4 story parking deck located away from the creek that has 1/3 the footprint (shown in red and green below).
2.  Convert the old parking area nearest the creek to a Trail of Tears Park with educational signage.
3.  Build  a pedestrian bridge over MLK.  This street is really busy and waiting to cross it can be a pain.
4.  Perform a coordinated, natural channel design, stream restoration of the creek where it is above ground on campus.  This will save money on maintenance in the long-run and improve water quality and habitat on campus and downstream.

Here is a map of the proposed trail. The majority of this is already in place. Existing sections would just need to be improved and short connections would need to be made.

Why Separate Trails are Better Than Bike Lanes

Updated 6/9/14: Here is an article about a study showing ridership increases when cities build protected bike lanes and click here to learn about Protected Intersections.

American cities, in an attempt to find quick and cheap solutions to the increased demand for safe ways to travel by bike, have largely resorted to segregating bikes from traffic using a thin white strip of paint.  This lets them say they are creating miles and miles of bike lanes and doing the right thing, while not really having to spend much time or money addressing the problem.
The sad reality that is becoming painfully clear is that white lines of paint don't protect bikes from cars.  A recent article in The Economist points out that Americans are 3-5 times more likely to die while biking than their counterparts in much more bike-friendly Western Europe.  The article points out that the main reasons for this are:
1.  White lines of paint tend to be ignored by automobile drivers and unenforced by police.  These same millimeter-thick lines of pigment, apparently fail to keep cars travelling 30-40 mph from slamming into bikes travelling much slower.
2.  Collisions between cars travelling 40 mph and bikes travelling at typical bike speeds typically result in a fatality.
3.  In Europe, cars that mix openly with bikes are limited to speeds under 20 mph.
4.  Most bike routes in Europe are completely separate from roads.  Bikes often have their own network of paved trails and when they overlap roads, large concrete barriers separate bicycle traffic from potentially lethal automobiles.

American cities, like Portland, that have followed the European example have managed to drastically reduce bike fatalities.  Sadly, cities in Arkansas are lagging far behind (as usual) and a tragic price is being paid.  There have been multiple bicyclist deaths in Arkansas that could have been prevented if suitable bike infrastructure had been in place.

It is for these reasons that I advocate for bike/pedestrian networks of trails that are completely separate from roads.  Painted bike lanes on busy roads are a misguided and horrible mistake.  Let's build safe alternative transportation routes that protect all our citizens.

Useful Links:
http://www.bicycling.com/news/advocacy/safer-streets-yes-please?cid=socNews_20140807_29328676
http://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/research/dangerous-by-design/dbd2014/fatalities-map/
http://www.economist.com/node/21528302

When Bikes Beat Cars

When I lived in Berkeley, it was faster to bike almost anywhere within a 4 mile radius than it was to drive and find parking.  This was due to very progressive transportation policies and road designs that put bikes first and cars second.  But what about in Arkansas, a non-progressive place where cars and trucks rule?

I used to live in the Riverdale area and worked in North Little Rock off Northshore Dr.  I commuted by bike sometimes when the weather was nice and was pleasantly surprised to find that it took me roughly the same amount of time to bike as it did to drive.  How is that possible you might ask?  Well, thanks to the Big Dam Bridge, my bike commute was 5-6 miles, while my driving commute was 9, on a road with lots of traffic lights or 14 miles taking the interstate.  Now, obviously I can't bike 60 or 45 mph or even half of that, but think about what your average speed really is during rush hour.  If I averaged 12 mph by bike, I'd get there in the same amount of time as if I averaged 20 mph on Cantrell which has lots of traffic, numerous lights, and often a 5 minute wait to get on the highway.

This got me wondering if there were other commutes in Arkansas where bikes beat cars as opposed to being 20 minutes slower, but healthier and lots more fun.

If you have a bike commute that is faster than your car commute let me know and I'll put it up here!

Here is the most drastic example I've found:

Crunch Time for Razorback Trail

Bill Bowden, of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, had an interesting article (pay wall) in the paper last week on the future of the Razorback Trail.  Apparently, $10 million of a federal grant goes up in smoke unless plans for the trail are finalized by Dec. 31.
Current plans for the Razorback Trail include connecting existing trails with new sections of trail to form a continuous 36 mile trail from south Fayetteville all the way to north Bentonville.  Completed sections of the trail in Fayetteville and Bentonville already connect to multiple spur or feeder trails.
Given the rush hour traffic in NW Arkansas, I imagine there may be thousands of people who could bike to work using this trail in roughly the same amount of time it takes to drive.  Factor in the benefits of no road rage and not having to spend time at the gym on days you bike to work and this trail starts looking really good for commuters.

Maps of the proposed trail can be viewed at:
http://nwarpc.org/pdf/Transportation/NWA_RR_Greenway.pdf
http://www.bconwa.com/attachments/156_Regional%20Map.pdf

First Impression: Fayetteville is Hilly, but has Nice Trails.

Today I went on my first long bike ride in Fayetteville since moving here for school.  From my daily commute, I already knew that Fayetteville was a pretty hilly place, but today I finally got to explore the main trail in town that all the other little trails want to be like or at least connect to.  The split personality Frisco/Scull Creek/Mud Creek Trail(s) run from southern Fayetteville up to southern Springdale.  My route is shown on the map.  While the ride took me through some scenic and not-so-scenic areas, the coolest part may have been biking through a long, dark, tunnel under the interstate.

Trails in Little Rock - Going Beyond Recreation

Little Rock has spent a lot of money on trails and will hopefully and likely continue to do so for years to come. So far, most of these trails are short and disconnected, making the suitable only for recreation and not for commuting. One major exception to this is the River Trail. Lots of people use it for recreation, but a sizable number of people also use it to get to work without hopping in a car. Given the health benefits of walking and biking, and the negative impacts of driving (traffic, air pollution, road rage, greenhouse gas emissions...) wouldn't it be great if our community expanded other trails and connected them to the River Trail in order to make it easier for more people from more locations in the city to get places safely by bike or foot?

Some neighborhoods are already working to make this happen. The Stift Station/Capitol View neighborhood has plans for a paved trail along Rose Creek that would connect the neighborhood to the River Trail, giving residents a scenic and safe way to get downtown while avoiding automobiles.

UALR and Little Rock Parks are working on a trail along Coleman Creek that would connect residential, commercial, and park areas to the University in Midtown.

Rock Creek, which flows from Chenal Valley essentially to UALR, already has multiple sections of paved trail along its banks. If these sections were connected, people in West Little Rock would be able to bike between their homes and nearby shopping areas or even all the way to Midtown without having to share busy streets with speeding cars.

The map below shows what these connections might look like. If you like any of these ideas be sure to share them with your friends and elected officials.