EASTERN SHORE OF VIRGINIA WALKABLE COMMUNITIES INITIATIVE

PRESENTED BY RICH MORRISON ACCOMACK COUNTY PLANNING DIRECTOR

TWO FEET AND TWO WHEELS CAN TRAVEL: CREATING WALK AND BIKE FRIENDLY COMMUNITIES

EASTERN SHORE OF VIRGINIA WALKABLE COMMUNITIES INITIATIVE

The Eastern Shore of Virginia Walkable Communities Initiative is being led by:

Mission Statement: “Creating a better Eastern Shore” Vision: “We imagine a healthier Eastern Shore merging from

livable communities where children and adults have healthy eating choices at home, school, and work…”

THE EASTERN SHORE OF VIRGINIA

Two counties Accomack County Northampton County

Incorporated towns Accomack County: 14 Northampton County: 6

Unincorporated towns Accomack County: 32 +/- Northampton County: 2 +/-

INITIAL EFFORTS FOCUSED ON FOUR INCORPORATED TOWNS

Cape Charles Exmore Onancock-Onley Chincoteague

EASTERN SHORE OF VIRGINIA WALKABLE COMMUNITIES FUNDING

The Eastern Shore Healthy Communities Coalition obtained a grant from the Virginia Department of Health to promote active living on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. The Walkable Institute (WALC) was hired to help with this effort.

The four towns shown in the previous slide were selected as initial focus areas. The town names are as follows: Cape Charles, Exmore, Onancock-Onley, and Chincoteague.

Between July 28 and August 1, 2012, each of these towns were visited by the WALC team. Stakeholders, the public, and anyone with an interest were invited to participate.

CAPE CHARLES – FIELD WORK

ADA Compliance Striping Accessory Dwelling Units Signage and Way Finding Mini Circles Sidewalk Width

EXMORE – FIELD WORK

Street Trees Turning Radii Building Setbacks Crossings Pocket Park Surface Lot

ONANCOCK/ONLEY – FIELD WORK

Intersection Treatment Creating an Edge Road Diet Terminating Vista Connectivity Through a Paseo Liner Buildings

CHINCOTEAGUE – FIELD WORK

Right Sized Travel Lanes Turning Radii Intersection Treatment Bike Lanes Mini Circles Roundabouts

CAPE CHARLES WALKING SUMMARY

CAPE CHARLES RECOMMENDATIONS

ADA COMPLIANCE STRIPING SIGNAGE/WAY FINDING ACCESSORY DWELLING

UNITS [right/below]

The alleys overlooking the park are an ideal location for accessory dwelling units

CAPE CHARLES RECOMMENDATIONS

MINI CIRCLES [right] SIDEWALK WIDTH

[pictures below]

PHOTOVISION FOR CAPE CHARLES

EXMORE WALKING SUMMARY

EXMORE RECOMMENDATIONS

STREET TREES: Exmore’s main commercial district needs greening be-cause people like shopping under the shade and shelter of a tree canopy.

TURNING RADII: [right]

EXMORE RECOMMENDATIONS

BUILDING SETBACKS: Buildings should watch over the street and make visitors feel comfortable. Exmore should not allow setback buildings in the heart of downtown. [right]

CROSSINGS: Different materials can be used to make crossings more visible day and night.

EXMORE RECOMMENDATIONS

POCKET PARK [left-top] Given Exmore’s growing reputation as a center for artisans, pocket parks are increasingly important.

SURFACE LOT [left-bottom]

PHOTOVISION FOR EXMORE

ONANCOCK/ONLEY WALKING SUMMARY

ONANCOCK/ONLEY RECOMMENDATIONS

INTERSECTION TREATMENT: A double lane roundabout at the U.S. Route 13 and 179 intersection would address many community concerns about encouraging active transportation between On-ley and Onancock.

CREATING AN EDGE [right]

LINER BUILDINGS

ONANCOCK/ONLEY RECOMMENDATIONS

ROAD DIET: Route 179 is overbuilt and a road diet could reallocate space for sidewalks and bike lanes.

TERMINATING VISTA

CONNECTIVITY THROUGH A PASEO [right]

PHOTOVISION FOR ONANCOCK/ONLEY

CHINCOTEAGUE WALKING SUMMARY

CHINCOTEAGUE RECOMMENDATIONS

RIGHT SIZED TRAVEL LANES: Encourage 20-30 mph speeds in by restriping its lanes because the current wide lanes encourage higher speed than what is posted.

TURNING RADII: Many intersections on Chincoteague encourage high speed turning movements because motorist can turn in and out without slowing down.

INTERSECTION TREAMENT: Given the diverse modes on Chincoteague, new intersection tools should be considered such as mini-roundabout.

CHINCOTEAGUE RECOMMENDATIONS

BIKE LANES: Bolder edge striping and markings for bike lanes are needed on Chincoteague to ensure that motorist recognize that they are to share the road and so bicyclists understand how to navigate as road sections change.

MINI CIRCLES

ROUNDABOUTS: A sense of arrival is needed on Chincoteague and a mini roundabout could accomplish this.

PHOTOVISION FOR CHINCOTEAGUE

OVERALL OBSTACLES TO ACTIVE LIVING

Streets have a high design speed which encourages speeding and discourages active transportation.

Intersections are designed for the through-movement of vehicles and do not provide support for pedestrians or bicyclists.

Streets are fat and because they are so over-built, they are riskier and less enjoyable for pedestrians and bicyclists.

Complete streets are almost wholly missing from the Eastern Shore.

U.S. Route 13 does not support livability. Destination branding is absent, making it challenging for

visitors to know the many amenities of the Eastern Shore.

NEXT STEPS

Implementation of recommendations Continued dialogue about benefits of walkable/bike-able

communities Expand initiatives beyond four initial focus areas -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Any questions?

Contact Information: Patti Kiger, Eastern Shore Healthy Communities P.O. Box 1980 Norfolk, VA 23501 kigerpg@evms.edu

FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE VISIT: http://www.eshealthycommunities.org/