The NJ SRTS Resource Center will host a track of sessions at the 2019 NJ Bike & Walk Summit that feature the Safe Routes Academy! These sessions will include informative presentations and hands-on activities to help your community become more bikeable and walkable. Topics in the Safe Routes Academy session track will include:

Academy Walk AuditRevving up NJ’s Complete and Green Streets Movement with a New Model Policy and Guide

Interest in Complete Streets (CS) has been growing steadily for years and many New Jersey municipalities and counties have adopted CS policies. This session introduces a new Model Complete and Green Streets Policy and Guide for New Jersey municipalities and counties that highlights an even broader range of benefits, incorporates Green Streets principles and strategies, encourages equity, recognizes positive economic, environmental and public health outcomes. The Policy lays out a path from policy to implementation with on-going citizen involvement as a cornerstone. The session will review the Policy and Guide’s innovations and highlight real-world best practices through New Jersey Complete and Green Street success stories. The latest Complete and Green Street resources, including Sustainable Jersey’s updated actions, will also be discussed.

Proposed session panelists participated in the development of the Model New Jersey Complete and Green Streets Policy and Guide as part of a CS Working Group convened by Tri-State Transportation Campaign, with representation from a wide range of government and nonprofit partners that included NJDOT, Sustainable Jersey, New Jersey Future, Rutgers University, Tri-State Transportation Campaign, and many others.

Planning for a more bicycle and pedestrian friendly community
After a brief discussion about how to effectively conduct walkability audits in your community, participants will explore best practice resources to help them find infrastructure solutions that can help generate ideas and actions to make walking and bicycling safer and more desirable modes of transportation throughout their community. The session will include an interactive discussion about improving some real-life challenging locations for walking and bicycling from throughout New Jersey.
IMG_1278Tips and Strategies for Funding Walkable and Bikable Communities

There are a variety of funding opportunities for communities to implement improvements and programs to make walking and bicycling a safer, easier and more accessible mode of travel for all.  Attendees will learn about the different funding opportunities available as well as strategies for not only identifying the optimal grant that aligns with their walking and bicycling goals but also tips about how to make their applications stronger.  Participants will walk away with ideas on how to leverage community resources, tips and strategies for applications, and how to find the grants that align with walking and bicycling goals.

About the Summit
The 2019 NJ Bike & Walk Summit attracts a variety of stakeholders to convene around making biking and walking in NJ safe, accessible, and fun. The event is organized by the NJ Bike & Walk Coalition (NJBWC), the statewide advocacy organization for bicyclists and pedestrians in NJ.
NJ Bike & Walk Summit
Saturday, February 23, 2019
8:00 AM to 4:00 PM
The Conference Center of Mercer County Community College
West Windsor, NJ

Summit attendees can choose from over 20 sessions on topics such as transportation equity, the intersection of Green Streets and Complete Streets, Vision Zero, and legislation that affects bicyclists and pedestrians. You can find more information about the summit here, and register to attend here.  Hope to see you there!