Climate change adaptation for active transportation: What are American cities doing?

Climate change poses bigger threats to the health and well-being of people walking, biking, and rolling than people in a climate-controlled vehicle. Cities are increasingly asking their residents to avoid driving to mitigate climate change. But what are cities doing to adapt to climate change and create better conditions for active transportation? Research in this area is limited. This project asks research questions about municipal climate adaptation for active transportation. (1) What types of climate adaptation strategies for active transportation are included in plans created by large U.S. cities? (2) How do these strategies consider environmental injustices related to active transportation and heat and seek to address them, if at all? (3) What barriers and opportunities do U.S. cities face when planning for climate adaptation for active transportation? (4) What strategies are used to implement climate adaptation provisions for active transportation? The research team will review active transportation and climate action plans of the largest 100 cities in the U.S. (research questions 1 and 2), and interview at least 30 planners working on climate adaptation for pedestrians and cyclists (research questions 3 and 4). The findings of this study provide evidence of how planners, elected officials, and advocates can center climate change adaptation in decisions about active transportation. The proposal fits with the Center for Climate-Smart Transportation (CCST) Focus Area 1 “Promoting Climate Culture in All Levels of Transportation Decisions” by identifying novel climate adaptation strategies for active transportation and providing evidence of how cities mitigate vulnerability in their active transportation infrastructure.

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Active
• Funding: $103078
• Contract Numbers:

  DOT 69A3552348325

• Sponsor Organizations:

  Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology

  University Transportation Centers Program
  Department of Transportation
  Washington, DC  United States  20590

  Center for Climate-Smart Transportation

  615 N Wolfe St
  Baltimore, Maryland  United States  21205
• Managing Organizations:

  Center for Climate-Smart Transportation

  615 N Wolfe St
  Baltimore, Maryland  United States  21205
• Performing Organizations:

  Center for Climate-Smart Transportation

  615 N Wolfe St
  Baltimore, Maryland  United States  21205

  University of Utah, Salt Lake City

  City & Metropolitan Planning
  201 South Presidents Circle
  Salt Lake City, UT  United States  84112
• Principal Investigators:

  Rigolon, Alessandro

  Ewing, Reid

• Start Date: 20231001
• Expected Completion Date: 20240930
• Actual Completion Date: 0
• USDOT Program: University Transportation Centers Program

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: City planning; Climate change adaptation; Environmental justice; Nonmotorized transportation
• Geographic Terms: United States
• Subject Areas: Environment; Pedestrians and Bicyclists; Planning and Forecasting;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01911596
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Center for Climate-Smart Transportation
• Contract Numbers: DOT 69A3552348325
• Files: UTC, RIP
• Created Date: Mar 11 2024 9:29PM