17 May Safety of Biking
The City’s 2014 Neighbor Survey identified “safety of biking” as residents’ number one transportation concern.
On May 20, 2015 the City hosted the Fourth Annual City of Fort Lauderdale StreetSmarts Transportation Summit at the Broward Center for Performing Arts. StreetSmarts is a regional full-day event initiating discussions for creating streets that are safe, livable, connected, and sustainable places for people of all ages and abilities. This year’s event ignited a new conversation about how to shift our street behavior to foster improved safety for all street users. Changing our unsafe behaviors of speeding, red-light running, crossing outside a crosswalk, and riding the wrong way in the bike lane are issues that call for smarter design and better practices. StreetSmarts combined the elements of engineering design with education by discussing best practices for stakeholder outreach, opportunities with nonprofit partners, and innovative technology with sustainable street design.
The City’s 2014 Neighbor Survey identified “safety of biking” as residents’ number one transportation concern. Adopted in 2013, The Connecting the Blocks plan identifies more than 500 prioritized capital investment program projects to improve the safety and efficiency of biking, walking, and driving. The City is dedicated to delivering costeffective projects to improve safety for all transportation options. From high-capacity transit projects in downtown Fort Lauderdale to improved pedestrian crossings on Las Olas Boulevard, the City is working to turn goals of urban living into a reality. Continuing with the progress made during the 2014 transportation summit, this year’s event highlighted the many partners working to make our region more
livable, including the Florida Department of Transportation, Broward County Metropolitan Planning Organization, and Broward County Planning Organization. Session topics included improving pedestrian and bicycle safety through design and education, aligning policy to complement implementation goals, stimulating behavioral changes, and sharing tri-county successes. The City is hosting StreetSmarts in partnership with Florida Atlantic University MetroLab, Broward Metropolitan Planning Organization, and Women in Transportation (WTS) South Florida Chapter. Highlighted speakers include: Gabe Klein, COO of Bridj and former transportation commissioner for the City of Chicago; Victor Dover, author of Street Design: The Secret to Great American Cities & Towns; and Maria Nardi, director of Urban Planning for Miami-Dade County.
Through this annual event, a network of peers exchange best practices, share lessons learned, and achieve a common vision for safe streets and strong cities. The 2015 event included an afternoon networking session titled, “One on One with your Local Leaders” to allow attendees to engage with City and County commissioners, other forms of City leadership, MPO leadership, and state leadership. The StreetSmarts Transportation Summit is an unparalleled event for igniting conversations about our ambitious goals on creating a city you never want to leave.