Perils For Pedestrians 242: Japan and Korea

• Street addresses in Seoul, Korea.
• Peds and bikes in Japan.
• Peds and bikes in Korea. 

Perils For Pedestrians 241: Cheonggyecheon

A look at a river restoration project in Seoul, South Korea. An elevated highway was removed, and an urban park created.

Perils For Pedestrians 240: 20th Anniversary

For our 20th Anniversary, Dan Burden and Peter Lagerwey discuss their involvement in the pedestrian movement.

Perils For Pedestrians 239: Placemaking

• We visit Vancouver, British Columbia, for Placemaking Week.
• We learn about the transportation initiative of the Project for Public Spaces.
• The Vancouver Public Space Network champions public spaces in their city.
• We drop in on a Canadian placemaking workshop. 

Perils For Pedestrians 238

• We visit Lanier Middle School in Fairfax City, Virginia, where students are investigating the walking routes to school.
• We visit Silver Spring, Maryland, where residents of senior housing are trying to get a sidewalk and crosswalk on Norbeck Road.
• We look at traffic safety in Seoul, South Korea.

Perils For Pedestrians 237

• We visit Columbus, Ohio, for the Safe Routes To School National Conference.
• We learn about the Columbus Area Pedestrian Safety Committee.
• We talk with a city council member in Morgantown, West Virginia, about walkability.
• We visit the Northern West Virginia Center for Independent Living.

Perils For Pedestrians 236: Morgantown

We visit Morgantown, West Virginia.

• Students learn about governance at West Virginia University.
• We learn about the Pedestrian Safety Committee.
• We meet the director of the Mon River Trails Conservancy.

Perils For Pedestrians 235: Maryland

• We talk with the police chief about Vision Zero in Montgomery County, Maryland.
• We attend the Maryland Bike Symposium.
• We look at an idea for Speed Camera Lotto.
• We drop in on the Vision Zero announcement.
• The Maryland Secretary of Transportation addresses the Bike Symposium.

Perils For Pedestrians 234: Snow

We look at the impact of a major snow storm on pedestrians:

• We talk with a resident of Bethesda about snow blocking the sidewalk.
• A wheelchair user discusses the snow.
• Snow plows use sidewalks for snow storage.
• An elderly pedestrian gives her experience with the snow.

Perils For Pedestrians 233

• We look at autonomous vehicles and pedestrians.
• We visit Smart Growth America to learn about their new report, "Rebuilding Downtown".

Perils For Pedestrians 232

• We attend an obesity summit in Montgomery County, Maryland.
• We learn about the Eat Well, Be Active partnership.
• We drop in on the White House Conference on Aging.

Perils For Pedestrians 231

• We learn about All Walks DC, a local pedestrian advocacy organization.
• We meet a pedestrian who had a close call with a distracted driver.
• We attend a Day of Action for Safety demonstration.
• We look at a poorly placed pedestrian button on the route to a military hospital.
• We learn about Wheel Map, a crowdsourced app for wheelchair accessibility.
• Is it safer to walk with traffic or against traffic?

2017 Conference List

2017 Conference List v. 1.0

An eclectic list of meetings that have come to my attention. Please let me know of any additions or corrections.

Thank you.

John Z Wetmore
john@pedestrians.org
www.pedestrians.org
www.gofundme.com/pedestrians
www.youtube.com/pedadvocate
--------------------------

2017 Conference List v. 1.0

January

8-12 Transportation Research Board (TRB); Washington, DC
12-13 Transforming Transportation (WRI, EMBARQ); Washington, DC
16-20 World of Concrete; Las Vegas, NV
17-19 Conference of Mayors; Washington, DC
20 Presidential Inauguration
25-27 Creative Cities; Porto, Portugal
29 - 2/1 National Asphalt Pavement Association; Orlando, FL
31 ASTM F13 Pedestrian/Walkway Safety and Footwear; West Conshohocken, PA


February

2-4 New Partners for Smart Growth; St. Louis, MO
4-7 National Sheriffs Association Winter Conference; Washington, DC
8-10 Winter Cycling Congress; Montreal, Canada
8-10 Energy, Utility, and Environment Conference; San Diego, CA
10-14 ATSSA - American Traffic Safety Services Assn. Convention and Traffic Expo; Phoenix, AZ
12-15 National Conference of Regions; Washington, DC
12-15 National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners, Winter Committee Meetings; Washington, DC
12-16 Public Lands Alliance; Arlington, VA
25 Alumni Day; Princeton, NJ
25 - 3/1 National Association of Counties Legislative Conference (NACO); Washington, DC
26 - 3/1 Active Living Research; Clearwater Beach, FL
27 - 3/1 Public Private Partnership Conference (P3C); Dallas, TX
28 - 3/2 AASHTO Legislative Meeting; Washington, DC


March

6-9 National Bike Summit; Washington, DC
7-9 Res/Con (International Disaster Conference and Expo); New Orleans, LA
8-10 National Environmental Justice Conference; Washington, DC
10-12 North American Handmade Bicycle Show; Salt Lake City, UT
11-16 Congressional City Conference; Washington, DC
12-14 American Public Transportation Assn. Legislative Conference (APTA); Washington, DC
14-18 Society of Health And Physical Educators (SHAPE); Boston, MA
20-22 Driver Distraction and Inattention; Paris, France
20-24 Aging In America; Chicago, IL
26-28 Lifesavers National Conference on Highway Safety Priorities; Charlotte, NC
29-31 IPENZ Transportation Group; Hamilton, New Zealand
30 - 4/1 Society for Public Health Education; Denver, CO


April

2-5 The Play Conference; Clemson, SC
4-6 SAE World Congress; Detroit, MI
4-7 International Association for Impact Assessment; Montreal, Canada
5-9 American Association of Geographers (AAG); Boston, MA
9-13 National Association of County Engineers; Cincinnati, OH
19-22 Urban Affairs Association; Minneapolis, MN
19-23 World Bicycle Forum; Mexico City
22-23 Global Health and Innovation Conference; New Haven, CT
23-25 American Public Works Assn. (APWA) North American Snow Conference; Des Moines, IA
27-29 American Institute of Architects (AIA); Orlando, FL


May

1-3 Main Street Now Conference; Pittsburgh, PA
1-4 National Outdoor Recreation Conference; Scottsdale, AZ
2-4 Vision Zero For Cities; New York, NY
2-4 Urban Land Institute Spring Meeting; Seattle, WA
3-6 Congress For The New Urbanism (CNU); Seattle, WA
6-9 American Planning Association (APA); New York, NY
7-10 International Trails Symposium; Dayton, Ohio
8-10 International Conference on Roundabouts; Green Bay, WI
10 National Bike To School Day
13-17 Canadian Urban Transit Association; Montreal, Canada
14-17 National ADA Symposium; Chicago, IL
14-18 ICOET International Conference on Ecology and Transportation; Salt Lake City, UT
15-17 Global Public Transport Forum; Montreal, Canada
16-18 ARTBA Federal Issues Program; Washington, DC
19 Midwest Active Transportation Conference; La Crosse, WI
21-24 Urban Street Symposium; Raleigh, NC
22-25 AASHTO Spring Meeting; Portland, ME
29 - 6/1 International Cycling History Conference; Mannheim, Germany
31 - 6/2 People and Places; Arlington, VA
31 - 6/2 International Transport Forum (ITF); Leipzig, Germany
31 - 6/2 European Conference on Mobility Management; Maastricht, The Netherlands


June

1-4 Reunions; Princeton, NJ
3 National Trails Day
4-7 National Association of Regional Councils; Monterey, CA
4-8 International Bridge Conference; National Harbor, MD
7-9 American Volkssport Association; Billings, MT
11-16 Community Transportation Association; Detroit, MI
12 Scientists for Cycling Colloquium; Nijmegen, The Netherlands
12-15 International Roadside Safety Conference; San Francisco, CA
13-16 Velo-City; Arnhem-Nijmegen, The Netherlands
14-18 American Society of Highway Engineers; New York, NY
15-16 Slips, Trips, and Falls International Conference; Toronto, Canada
17-20 Canadian Institute of Planners (CIP); Calgary, Canada
18-21 Canadian Association of Road Safety Professionals; Toronto, Canada
20-23 Snow and Ice Management Association; Montreal, Canada
23-26 Conference of Mayors; Miami Beach, FL
23-28 National Sheriffs Association; Reno, NV
26-29 APBP Professional Development Seminar; Memphis, TN
26-30 International Mobility Conference; Dublin, Ireland
27-29 International Conference on Transport and Health; Barcelona, Spain
28-29 Praxis Conference Pedestrian Protection; Bergisch Gladbach, Germany


July

3-6 World Symposium on Transport and Land Use Research (WSTLUR); Brisbane, Australia
5-11 International Municipal Signal Association (IMSA); Scottsdale, AZ
10-13 Automated Vehicles Symposium; San Francisco, California
11-13 NACCHO - Nat'l Ass'n of County and City Health Officials; Pittsburgh, PA
11-14 Alliance For Community Media; Minneapolis, MN
21-24 National Association of Counties (NACO); Columbus, OH
23-27 IAGG, International Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics; San Francisco, CA
30 - 8/2 Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE); Toronto, Canada


August

6-9 Nat'l Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) - Legislative Summit; Boston, MA
6-9 Pipelines Conference; Phoenix, AZ
21 Total Solar Eclipse
27-30 American Public Works Association (APWA); Orlando, FL
27-30 Pavements; Philadelphia, PA


September

4 Mackinac Bridge Walk; Mackinaw City, MI
5-7 Urban Transport and the Environment; Rome, Italy
6-8 International Footbridge Conference; Berlin, Germany
10-13 International Bridge Tunnel and Turnpike Association (IBTTA); Atlanta, GA
11-13 Transportation Needs of National Parks and Public Lands; Washington, DC
13-15 National Walking Summit; St. Paul, MN
13-15 International Downtown Association; Winnipeg, Canada
16-20 Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA); Louisville, KY
17-20 Rail~Volution; Denver, CO
17-20 ARTBA - American Road and Transportation Builders Association; Fernandina Beach, FL
19-21 International Cycling Conference; Mannheim, Germany
20-22 Walk21; Calgary, Canada
21-22 International Cycling Safety Conference; Davis, CA
24-28 Highway Engineering Exchange Program; Covington, KY
25-28 AASHTO; Phoenix, AZ
26-28 NRPA - National Recreation and Park Association; New Orleans, LA


October

4 International Walk To School Day
8-11 American Public Transportation Association (APTA); Atlanta, GA
8-11 Annual Civil Engineering Conference (ASCE); New Orleans, LA
16-25 World Design Summit; Montreal, Canada
17-20 Association of Metropolitan Planning Organizations (AMPO); Savannah, GA
20-23 American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA); Los Angeles, CA
22-25 International City/County Management Association (ICMA); San Antonio, TX
23-26 Urban Land Institute (ULI); Los Angeles, CA
26-28 National Land Conservation Conference; Denver, CO
26-28 International Conference on Sustainable Infrastructure (ICSI); Brooklyn, NY
29 - 11/2 Intelligent Transportation Systems World Congress (ITS); Montreal, Canada


November

4-8 American Public Health Association (APHA); Atlanta, GA
12-15 National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC); Baltimore, MD
15-18 National League of Cities - City Summit; Charlotte, NC
27-28 Australian Small Bridges Conference; Surfers Paradise, Australia


December

???

Perils For Pedestrians 230

• Bike to School Day in Takoma Park, Maryland.
• Bicycle education in the curriculum for all second grade students in Washington, DC.
• A pedestrian safety walkabout in Gaithersburg, MD.
• The Transportation Services Advisory Committee in Frederick, Maryland.

Perils For Pedestrians 229: Vision Zero

• The role of the Washington Area Bicyclist Association in Vision Zero.
• The announcement of the Vision Zero plan in Washington, DC.

Perils For Pedestrians 228: Frederick, MD

• The Frederick Pedestrian - Bicycle Advisory Committee.
• The East Frederick Rising project. 
• Blind pedestrian issues in Frederick, Maryland.

Perils For Pedestrians 227

• The National Walking Summit in Washington, DC.
• The Everybody Walk Collaborative.
• We talk with the Surgeon General about his Call to Action on Walking and Walkable Communities.
• We attend the release of the Call To Action.

Perils For Pedestrians 226: Vienna, Austria, Part 2

We visit Vienna, Austria.

• A major shopping street has just been pedestrianized.
• Austria has a new National Strategy to Promote Walking.
• We meet the founder of the Austrian pedestrian organization.
• We learn about the European Institute for Sustainable Transport.

Perils For Pedestrians 225: Vienna, Austria, Part 1

We visit Vienna, Austria.

• We meet Jim Walker, Strategic Director of Walk21.
• We talk with the program director for the Walk21 conference.
• We learn about the Vienna Mobility Agency, and their Pedestrian Strategy.
• We drop in on the opening press conference for Walk21.

Perils For Pedestrians 224: Bratislava

We visit Bratislava in Slovakia.

• We look at planning and designing public spaces.
• We learn about pedestrian and bicycle advocacy in Slovakia.
• Advocates take advantage of the public input process for new developments.

Perils For Pedestrians 223

• The New Jersey Bike-Walk Coalition.  
• Bike and Walk Morristown.  
• The Fourteenth New Partners for Smart Growth Conference in Baltimore, Maryland.  

Sidewalks Still Blocked After A Month

The Blizzard of 2016 struck Montgomery County, Maryland, on January 23.  On February 26, the snow had long since melted almost everywhere.  Except for where snowplows clearing roads had piled it high on the sidewalks and corner curb ramps.  After more than a month, there are still places where pedestrians find sidewalks blocked.




On Old Georgetown Road, snow piled on the sidewalk after the January 23 storm still forms a barrier on February 26.





On Montgomery Avenue, snow piled at the corner after the January 23 storm still blocks a curb ramp on February 26.

*************

For those who missed it, here is my report on snow blocking sidewalks on February 7, two weeks after the blizzard:

When the sidewalks and curb ramps are the official snow storage areas for snowplows, you have a system designed to fail.

Another ped button beyond reach from the sidewalk

This pedestrian button is by the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.

Perils For Pedestrians 222

• We talk with a consultant in Santa Monica about walkable Main Streets.
• We talk with the Chief of Engineering for the County of Kauai about Complete Streets.
• We attend the opening of the Wiehle-Reston East Metrorail Station, where we meet the Virginia Governor and the United States Secretary of Transportation.
• We check out conditions at the five new Silver Line Metrorail Stations.

Perils For Pedestrians 221: Hawaii 3

• We talk with the executive director of the Hawaii Bicycling League.
• We talk with an experienced cyclist about cyclists and traffic.

Perils For Pedestrians 220: Hawaii 2

• We talk with the Department of Transportation Services about Complete Streets.
• We learn why the Department of Health wants to make Hawaii more walkable.
• AARP wants to make Hawaii friendlier and less dangerous for elderly pedestrians.
• We climb the trail to the World War 2 observation posts on Diamond Head.

Perils For Pedestrians 219: Hawaii 1

• We learn about Kauai Path, a trails organization on the Island of Kauai.
• Kauai Path does education and outreach in addition to building trails.
• We meet one of the founder of the Red Hot Ladies bicycling group in Honolulu.

Perils For Pedestrians 218: New Zealand 3

• We look at pedestrian advocacy in New Zealand.
• A pedestrian and bicycle path is going to be added to the Auckland Harbour Bridge.
• We learn about a new tool to select the best type of pedestrian crossing.
• We drop in on the Auckland Marathon.
• We hike along the Coast to Coast Walkway in Auckland.

Perils For Pedestrians 217: New Zealand 2

• We look at how engineering education addresses pedestrian issues.
• We talk with the Mayor of Wellington about pedestrians.
• We learn about challenges for people with disabilities in New Zealand.
• We hike to the traditional "Centre of New Zealand" in Nelson.

Sidewalk Snow Fail

A full two weeks after the blizzard ended here in Maryland, the snow is almost all gone.  EXCEPT for where the snowplows piled it up onto sidewalks.  It's a system designed for failure.