The City of Hilliard Sustainability Plan

Hilliard Sustainability PlanLand Use and Urban EcologyLUUE VisionAs a city committed to sustainability, Hilliard’s approach to developmentwill both respect the natural environment and improveconnectivity. By improving connectivity between its residents andplaces, Hilliard will reduce its reliance on automobiles, improvewalkability, and increase access to common amenities such as retailcenters, parks, schools, and work.Hilliard will realize this vision by accomplishing the following goals:» Improve bike and pedestrian connectivity to provide safe and directtravel routes and encourage people to bike or walk as a modechoice.» Provide convenient access to parks to distribute open spaces andparks evenly throughout the City and provide healthy recreationalopportunities to every resident.» Provide convenient access to retail centers to reduce the reliance onautomobiles.» Encourage mixed-use, neighborhood-centered developments tocreate vibrant, walkable neighborhoods.LUUE IndicatorsBike Path ConnectivityBackgroundLAND USE& URBANECOLOGYDespite the recognition that bicycle travel is beneficial to the environmentand health, the majority of bicycle travel in the United States is forrecreational purposes. 1 The 2010 American Community Survey one-yearestimates show that only 0.3% of the population in Ohio travel to workby bicycle. 2 Commuting data for Hilliard was not available from the 20103-year estimates; however, nationally, that number is only slightly higherthan the Ohio population with 0.5% of the total population commutingto work by bicycle. 3 Individuals who ride their bike to work can meet theirrecommended levels of physical activity and can reduce environmental impactsof automobile travel. However, to increase ridership, bicycle infrastructuremust be available. A study in Portland, Oregon that tracked bicycle tripsusing GPS devices showed that riders commuting to work preferred to rideon streets with bicycle infrastructure, such as bike lanes, marked bike paths,multi-use paths, or low-traffic streets. 4 Riders also linked trips together andmade numerous stops going to and from work. Finally, the median bike triplength for utilitarian riders was three miles. 5 This suggests that three milesis a rule-of-thumb distance for what the average person is willing to ride forutilitarian purposes.These findings indicate that a well-connected network of bicycling routes(paths and lanes) will encourage individuals to ride their bikes more forutilitarian purposes, such as traveling to work or going shopping. If people49