MethuenRailTrail

I stumbled on this super resource for adapting for Bike-Ped transportation.
I was most interested in – Lesson 20: Restriping Existing Roads With Bike Lanes,
which gives us many options on how to work with what we have.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Lesson 1: The Need for Bicycle and Pedestrian Mobility (PDF, 269 Kb)
Lesson 2: Bicycling and Walking in the United States Today (PDF, 179 Kb)
Lesson 3: Bicycle and Pedestrian Planning Overview (PDF, 387 Kb)
Lesson 4: Pedestrian and Bicycle Crash Types (PDF, 1.65 Mb)
Lesson 5: Adapting Suburban Communities for Bicycle and Pedestrian Travel (PDF, 181 Kb)
Lesson 6: Neo-Traditional Neighborhood Design (PDF, 678 Kb)
Lesson 7: Using Land-Use Regulations to Encourage Non-Motorized Travel (PDF, 3.5 Mb)
Lesson 8: Tort Liability and Risk Management (PDF, 149 Kb)
Lesson 9: Bicycle and Pedestrian Connections to Transit (PDF, 250 Kb)
Lesson 10: Off-Road Trails (PDF, 105 Kb)
Lesson 11: Traffic Calming (PDF, 1.13 Mb)
Lesson 12: Pedestrian and Bicycle Facilities in Work Zones (PDF, 108 Kb)
Lesson 13: Walkways,Sidewalks and Public Spaces (PDF, 273 Kb)
Lesson 14: Pedestrian Signing and Pavement Markings (PDF, 195 Kb)
Lesson 15: Pedestrian Accommodations at Intersections (PDF, 327 Kb)
Lesson 16: Mid-Block Crossings (PDF, 453 Kb)
Lesson 17: Pedestrians With Disabilities (PDF, 72 Kb)
Lesson 18: Shared Roadways (PDF, 1.2 Mb)
Lesson 19: Bike Lanes (PDF, 460 Kb)
Lesson 20: Restriping Existing Roads With Bike Lanes (PDF, 341 Kb)
Lesson 21: Bicycle Facility Maintenance (PDF, 69 Kb)
Lesson 22: Bicycle Parking and Storage (PDF, 178 Kb)
Lesson 23: European Approaches to Bicycle and Pedestrian Facility Design (PDF, 212 Kb)
Lesson 24: Education,Encouragement, and Enforcement (PDF, 153 Kb)

PDF of the entire 282pages (12.4mb)

Tags: Cycling, health, walking

American Heart Association Announces Start! Fit-Friendly Companies

Survey of Employees Proves Worksite Wellness Programs Work

More than 900 businesses across the nation have been recognized by the American Heart Association’s Start! Fit-Friendly Companies Program for promoting physical activity and health in the work place — a 20 percent increase over last year. Start! is the American Heart Association’s national initiative to get Americans walking. Most adult Americans spend a majority of their waking hours at work — many in sedentary careers — increasing their risk for medical problems such as obesity, high blood pressure and diabetes.
.
.
.
Wellness programs have increased in popularity in recent years because they are economical and efficient ways to help offset increasing employee healthcare costs, according to an American Heart Association survey.

(continue)

Tags: health

KU research adds to evidence that exercise can help damaged brains.

The researchers at the University of Kansas School of Medicine found that Exercising and staying physically fit may slow the relentless, mind-robbing progress of Alzheimer’s disease. About 5.2 million Americans now live with Alzheimer’s. By 2050, that number could swell to 11 million to 16 million. If ways can be found to postpone Alzheimer’s by as little as two years, nearly 2 million cases of the disease could be avoided. (read Kansas City Star article)

Tags: health

Modest brain test benefit seen with brisk walking

CHICAGO (AP) — Brisk walking led to slight improvements on mental tests for older people with memory problems in what is billed as the first rigorous test of exercise on the aging brain. The results from the small Australian study were only modest. But they back up observational studies showing potential mental benefits from physical activity. (continue reading)

Tags: health, walking