Framing, Messaging, and

Communicating Issues Around

People Walking & Bicycling

Panelist Introductions

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Blake Trask, Washington Bikes

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About CascadeBY THE NUMBERS 2017

24,600STUDENTS TAUGHT

700VOLUNTEERS

15,615CASCADE MEMBERS

22,968 Free Group Ride

Participants

551 students in

Major Taylor Project

2,210 students participated

in the Bike to School

Challenge

2,676FREE GROUP RIDES

503,000+people visited

our website

11,988 participated

in the Bike

Everywhere

Challenge

4,260participated in the

Ride in the Rain

Challenge

65schools participated

in Bike to School Day

8,335 participants rode on Emerald City Ride and

Woodinville Wine Ride

76Advocacy Leadership Institute graduates

● Active on local, county, regional and

statewide level to advocate for investments

for active transportation (over $1 billion in

past three years)

● Post-funding work is to support

implementation and oversight to make hard

political decisions with the investments

committed

● Why? Better places to bike are healthier,

happier, safer, and are more economically

vibrant.

Ken Brubaker, Colorado DOT

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Barb Chamberlain, WSDOT &

Ken Rose Stunt Double

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Today’s Format

• Speakers asked to address three questions

• Discuss each of these with some Q&A

• Final questions for the whole group:

– What can do we going forward?

– What’s the role for AASHTO, the Council

on Active Transportation, individual DOTs,

other agency partners, advocates?

– What tools do people need?

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What I find the most difficult

is separating what I know

right away from what I may

not be seeing because I know

too much.

—Designer Paula Scher

People First:

We Are Not Modes

AVOID USE

Cyclists, Bikers People using bicycles

Pedestrians People walking

Drivers, motorists, cars People driving

Transit riders, buses,

trains

People using transit

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Identifying What Really

Happened

AVOID USE

Accident Crash, Collision

#CrashNotAccident

(now in the AP

Stylebook)

The car hit the ______ The person driving the

car hit the ______

#DriverNotCar

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Mode-Neutral or Mode-Specific,

Not Car-Centric

AVOID USE

We took the street from

5 lanes down to 3 and

added bike lanes

We have 5 lanes on this

street; 2 are dedicated

for people on bicycles

Alternative

transportation (anything

that isn’t driving)

Transportation choices,

transportation options

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Mode-Neutral or Mode-Specific,

Not Car-Centric

AVOID USE

Pedestrian amenities,

bicycle amenities

Infrastructure that

serves people walking or

bicycling

Traffic congestion Drive-alone motor

vehicle congestion

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Mode-Neutral or Mode-Specific,

Not Car-Centric

AVOID USE

We improved the street. Improved for whom?

“Changed the street” is

neutral. Identify actual

effects—a wider street is

not improved for

someone trying to cross

it on foot or in a

wheelchair.

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The Substitution Test

• If you replace “street” or “road” with “bike lane”

or “sidewalk” is it true? And vice versa?

– “We’re adding another motor vehicle general-

purpose lane as an amenity.”

– “We did value engineering and we have to cut

that added GP lane; it’s an amenity, not

infrastructure.”

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The Substitution Test

• If you replace “motorist” with “people

walking/bicycling” is it true? And vice versa?

– “This project will decrease wait time at this

intersection for people walking and bicycling.”

– “We designed this road specifically to reduce

the incidence and severity of injuries and

fatalities for people walking and bicycling.”

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Question 1

More people walking and bicycling provides

benefits to those individuals, to users of other

modes, and to society in general.

How have you told this story, what framing or

tools have you used, who do you partner with

beyond transportation circles or beyond staff

who work directly on walk/bike topics in your

agency?

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Highlighting Benefits for All

Users, All Modes

AVOID USE

We’re adding this

crosswalk for

pedestrians

We’re making this street

design work better for

everyone

We’re building bike

lanes for bicyclists

Having visible,

separated lanes for

people on bikes makes

the street work better for

everyone

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Ken Rose, CDC

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This initiative aims to help

27 million Americans become more physically active to improve

their overall health and quality of life and

reduce healthcare costs

ACTIVE PEOPLE, HEALTHY NATION

T

M

BE Active: Connecting Routes + Destinations

Implementing the Built Environment

Recommendation to Increase Physical Activity

Blake Trask, Washington Bikes

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Bicycle perception in #WAleg

• Low awareness/understanding; significant misunderstanding:

• Tied to being another environmental interest group, meaning bicycle interests typically not in the room

• Bottom line: For too long bicycles = city, progressive, Democrats and not much else

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New Frames – Less on guilt and more focus on

immediate benefits & personal interests –

economic development, safety, health

New Partnerships – Stronger ties to

chamber/tourism, public health community, and

outdoor recreation interests, while retaining

strong connections with transportation interests

Bipartisan – Actively prospect for electeds who

respond to new language & willingness to work

together

Statewide – Misperception of bicycle advocacy

being a “Seattle thing.”

New Approach to Communications

New Frames & Partnerships

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Thoughts & Discussion

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Question 2

One of the challenges in transportation work is

translating technical terms into everyday

language and illustrations that tell a story.

What have you done to address this and how

has it worked for you, or what do you want to

see agencies doing more of, to make active

transportation an everyday part of

transportation topics?

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Ken Brubaker, Colorado DOT

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Colorado Downtown Streets Guide

We are pleased to introduce this guide, which has been designed to help local governments, community members, planners, and engineers communicate. We have included information . . . that will support productive conversations and ultimately lead to more vibrant, accessible main streets and communities.

https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/dola/main-street-resources

WHAT IS A STREET?

https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/dola/main-street-resources

WHAT IS A STREET?

WHAT IS A STREET?

WHAT IS A STREET?

HOW TO CREATE GREAT STREETS

IMPLEMENTATION

Blake Trask, Washington Bikes

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For the first time ever, members from both parties in House made requests

for Safe Routes projects in the State Transportation Package

Safe Routes to Schools =

SRTS = that sidewalk your neighbor has been asking you for since you were elected

Ken Rose, CDC

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And now a word about how we’ve engineered

physical activity out of our daily lives

The National“No Bike” Campaign

Strategy #7:

Disguise parking spaces as bike lanes

Strategy #8:

Combine Multiple Strategies

Nothing for bikes, metal grates in path, hole in pavement

Strategy #9:

Just Say It

Why active communities are part of the magic sauce?

And what do people

report as one of the most

common barriers to

physical activity…..

“UNSAFE PLACES”

Thoughts & Discussion

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Question 3

Pragmatically, what messaging approaches

can work in places where you might encounter

less support or less interest for walking and

biking projects and programs?

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Ken Rose, CDC

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What if I told you we could…

Reduce healthcare

spendingReinvigorate

local economies

Improve military

preparedness

$117Billion

TM

Benefits for

Healthy Aging

Reduces risk of falling

Improves balance and joint

mobility

Extends years of active life

Helps prevent weak bones

and muscle loss

Delays onset of cognitive

decline

Benefits for

Adults

• Lowers risk of high blood

pressure and stroke

• Improves aerobic fitness,

mental health, and cognitive

function

• Reduces arthritis symptoms

• Prevents weight gain

• Reduces risk for a number of

cancers

• Improves sleep

Physical activity Is one of the best

things you can do to improve your health

Benefits for

Children

• Improves aerobic fitness,

muscular fitness, and bone

health

• Promotes favorable body

composition

• Improves attention and

some measures of

academic performance

(with school physical

activity programs)

Physical Activity Benefits Our Communities

Active and walkable communities can help

– Increase retail activity and employment

– Increase property values

– Support neighborhood revitalization

– Reduce health care costs

Walkable communities can improve safety for people who walk or roll in

wheelchairs, ride bicycles, and drive

Physical activity improves productivity because physically active people

tend to take fewer sick days

Both obesity and low levels of

physical fitness increase the risk

for injury among active military

personnel

Nearly 1 in 4 young adults are too

heavy to serve in our military

Obesity has risen 61% among

active duty service members

This crisis is particularly acute in

southern states

Inadequate Physical Activity

Impacts Our National Security

and Military Readiness

Inadequate Physical Activity

and Obesity

Costs Lives And Dollars

Many Americans Do Not Have

Safe or Convenient Places To

Be Active

Too few Americans get the

recommended amount of

physical activity

Blake Trask, Washington Bikes

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“Wallets on Wheels”

● $3.1 bn in annual spending in WA

● Third largest part of outdoor rec economy

● More affluent, higher disposable income

● What do they need? Safe places to bike = infrastructure

Question 4: Group Discussion

What can do we going forward? What’s the role

for AASHTO, the Council on Active

Transportation, individual DOTs, other agency

partners, advocates? What tools do people

need?

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Food for Thought

• Thrree steps to better cimate conversations

• When covering car crashes, be careful not to blame the victim

• How smart language helped end Seattle’s paralyzing bikelash

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