All-User Street Design is Official at FDOT

You hear of resolutions being passed and policies being adopted, but it’s way more exciting when those resolutions and policies lead to action. Case in point: The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT)’s Complete Streets Policy, which the department took up with the goal of designing roads that accommodate people who walk, bike and take public transit, as well as drivers. Earlier this month, FDOT reached a major milestone in that goal with a draft FDOT Design Manual: this is the how-to guide on designing our streets, breaking down ways planners should consider the anticipated users of a roadway (people on foot and bikes, for instance) before ever setting pencil to draft paper. That’s what we call progress.

How big is this? So big that DeWayne Carver, State Complete Streets Program Manager for FDOT, received a national award for his vision and leadership on the Complete Streets Implementation Plan.

Even better, the direction in both the Design Manual and the Complete Streets Handbook will be reflected in a 2018 update of the Florida Greenbook, which applies to local governments. Meaning that all-user street design is on the road to becoming the norm at both the state and local level.

Want more details? Check out the post at BikeWalkLee Blog or keep up with FDOT’s Complete Streets project at FLCompleteStreets.com.