With each application considered by the Planning Board, developers must submit counts of vehicles, bicylists and pedestrians at each intersection in the affected area.\u00a0The counts and the identification of deficiencies in the area may trigger a requirement that developers pay for substantial transportation improvements, such as sidewalks, bikeways and trails.<\/p>\n
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<\/a>The developer of the Fenwick Station project also set aside land for Montgomery County\u2019s first bike-sharing station, similar to the Capital Bikeshare stations in DC.<\/p><\/div>\n
Other policies approved in the last decade also set the stage for enhanced pedestrian and cyclist use:<\/p>\n
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- In 2002, Montgomery County\u2019s Blue Ribbon Panel on Pedestrian and Traffic Safety included a recommendation for a Pedestrian Impact Statement in its final report. Two years later, \u00a0the County began requiring that Pedestrian Impact Statements be submitted as part of the traffic studies for development applications requiring Planning Board approval. The pedestrian impact reports were \u00a0codified in the \u00a0Local Area Transportation Review and Policy Area Mobility Review Guidelines that accompany each development application, as well as bicyclist accommodations.<\/li>\n
- In 2007, the County required that the statement be submitted for all County-funded projects.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Montgomery County\u2019s creation of the Pedestrian Impact Statement is cited by several organizations and publications as a contributor to improving public health:<\/p>\n
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- By the Active Living Network as a model practice on their website.<\/li>\n
- In a technical report on public health by the Centers for Disease Control<\/li>\n
- In a technical paper entitled \u201cTrimming Maryland\u2019s Waistline\u201d that recommended that all Maryland counties follow Montgomery County\u2019s lead and require developers to submit impact statements<\/li>\n
- In the 2005 book Building Healthy Cities – Legal Frameworks and Considerations by Wendy C. Perdue<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
We\u2019ve seen the payoff here in Montgomery County. Recent examples include the Montgomery General Hospital expansion project in Olney, Fenwick Station residential development in Silver Spring, Falkland North mixed-use development in Silver Spring, and Woodmont 7200 development in Bethesda. The developer of the Fenwick Station project set aside land for Montgomery County\u2019s first bike-sharing station, similar to the Capital Bikeshare stations in DC. In addition, another developer will be contributing almost $200,000 toward the design and construction of the County\u2019s first stand-alone bike station in Gene Lynch Urban Park, where bike owners will be able to leave their bikes in a secure facility adjacent to the Silver Spring Transit Center. The bike station may include additional amenities such as repair facilities.<\/p>\n
Chapter 49 of the Montgomery County Code (the Road Code), which governs the classification, design, and construction of roads in the county, as well as use of the public right-of-way, was revised in 2007 to promote pedestrian and bicycle safety and accommodation and to make our roads more environmentally friendly. Executive Regulations were developed the following year to translate the law\u2019s requirements into standards that would be used to design and construct these roads. This Complete Streets effort is continuing via a collaborative process between the Planning Department and County Executive agencies.<\/p>\n
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