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MPO tells citizens to take a hike – or a bike
By LESTER R. DAILEY
Article published on Wednesday, March 29, 2006 |
PINELLAS COUNTY – It may seem strange for the Metropolitan Planning Organization, the county’s transportation planning board, to embark on a campaign to promote a healthier lifestyle, but the two aren’t mutually exclusive.
“The goal of the whole effort is to make Pinellas County a safer place to bicycle and walk,” Al Bartolotta, a planning manager with the county, explained, and better health is an added benefit. “Obesity is a big problem, and getting people out walking and bicycling is a great way to get them healthy.”
Several organizations set up tables at an MPO-sponsored event at the Old Feed Store in Largo Central Park on March 14 to familiarize citizens with the county’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan.
The Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office was there to promote pedestrian and bicycle safety, and the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority promoted its Bikes on Buses program.
“That has been an enormously popular program,” Bartolotta said.
It’s so popular, in fact, that the buses are being retrofitted to carry three bicycles each, instead of the current two.
According to a 1995 National Personal Transportation survey, 40 percent of all trips taken by Americans are less than 2 miles. That’s a 30-minute walk or a 10-minute bike ride, and a 1995 Rodale Press survey found that 40 percent of U.S. adults would leave their cars at home and use bikes for short trips if safe facilities were available.
“Shorter (automobile) trips put more pollutants in the air than longer trips because of the energy required for the startup,” Bartolotta explained. That’s one reason the MPO is trying to entice people to use bikes or their feet instead of cars for shorter trips. Reducing traffic congestion is another reason.
“The development of our trail network is a big part of our program,” Bartolotta said. “Right now, land in Pinellas County is pretty much developed for the automobile. It’s real easy for somebody in a car to get around, but not so easy for somebody walking or bicycling … We’re getting more and more (motor) vehicles on the road and there are consequences to that, so we’re trying to get people to walk or bike on shorter trips.”
Working with schools to educate students about bicycle laws and safety is part of the program. Bartolotta said that most people don’t know, for example, that bicyclists are allowed to ride on sidewalks, as long as they yield to pedestrians, but they must obey the same laws as cars if they ride in the road.
Lois Milne, project coordinator for the Pinellas County Health Department’s Project Strong Heart, was at the event to explain the health and fitness benefits of walking and bicycling. “The whole idea is that if we move more, we’ll be healthier,” she said.
The average person gains three pounds a year, and more than 57 percent of Pinellas residents are overweight or obese, she said. Proper exercise can prevent weight gain or actually cause weight loss, depending on how much is done.
One program she touted was Florida on the Move in Pinellas County, a free Web-based program where participants receive a unique registration code from www.floridaonthemove.org that allows them to anonymously record their progress and receive daily motivational e-mails from the Web site.
Another was the 100 Mile Club, a joint effort of the health department and the county’s Parks and Recreation Department, whereby walkers get a free log from any county park and record the number of miles they walk. When they reach 100 miles, they can send the log to Milne and receive a free T-shirt in exchange.
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Article published on Wednesday, March 29, 2006
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