You may have seen these statistics before. Sixty-one percent of the adult population in the U.S. is overweight. Fifteen percent of the population is obese. It has been suggested that obesity has reached epidemic proportions in this country. We attended a Soles and Spokes Workshop hosted by the Chicago Area Transportation Study (CATS) entitled "Safe Routes to School." As you might guess the theme was finding ways to make walking and biking to school safe and fun for young children. The idea is that if children start walking or biking to school at an early age these behaviors will carry over into adulthood with a subsequent reduction in the use of the automobile. What’s more important, since statistics show that young children don’t get enough exercise, walking or biking represent ideal activities.
The first speaker was Richard Killingsworth, an associate research professor in the Department of Health Behavior and Health Education at the University of North Carolina’s School of Public Health. The statistics that he presented were frightening. According to these statistics, physical inactivity is the primary factor in deaths in the United States. Seventy percent of the population does not achieve the minimum amount of daily activity. One in seven children aged six to nineteen is overweight. Only 1 percent of students bicycle to school. The automobile is the primary reason for our overweight population. On average, an adult spends about seventy-three minutes in a car each day. People on average walk less that one-quarter of a mile each day. The problem is so severe that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta is developing new walk-to-school initiatives.
Check these statistics. Twenty five percent of all trips are less than one mile in length — yet 75 percent of these trips are made by car. Americans use their cars for 89 percent of all their trips. The number of trips the average American adult takes on foot each year dropped 42 percent between 1975 and 1995. Walking or biking dropped by 40 percent in the last twenty years. More than 20 percent of morning rush-hour trips involve driving children to school. Well, you get the point! Environmental Impact Statements are required before land can be developed for new uses, yet we have failed to require Lifestyle and Personal Heath Impact Statements. It is time for governmental agencies to consider the statistics.
Mr. Killingsworth’s presentation was followed by a panel discussion by a representative from the Chicagoland Bicycle Federation, a student cyclist from Saint Ignatius, a medical doctor from the Children’s Memorial Institute for Education and Research, and speakers from Hinsdale, Naperville, and Chicago’s Forty-Eighth Ward. The final presentation by Wendi Kallins, the program coordinator for the Safe Routes to School program in Marin County, California, detailed the activities in Marin County that have succeeded in providing safe routes to school that children can walk or bike.
There is an international Walk to School Day each year designed to encourage communities to establish safe routes and new habits to encourage walking and biking. This year Walk to School Day is Wednesday October 2, 2002. A revelant Web site — www.walktoschool.org — is maintained by the Pedestrian Bicycle Information Center for the Partnership for a Walkable America in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Transportation. The site has a message from United Kingdom Prime Minister Tony Blair: "The government is committed to making the journey to and from school safer and healthier for our children. I welcome initiatives such as the International Walk to School Day, which aim to promote sustainable travel to school and wish you every success on the 2nd of October."
Clearly we should all take an active interest in reversing the trend of driving by encouraging children to walk or cycle to school — and to do that, we must develop safe routes to get there.
This was another very well-organized meeting hosted by the Chicago Area Transportation Study. There were more than a hundred attendees from various area organizations and groups. You can obtain additional information by e-mailing: rich_killingsworth@unc.edu (for Richard Killingsworth); and wkallins@igc.org (for Wendi Kallins).
Here is some good news. The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) has extended its bikes-on-trains hours significantly! You can now bring bicycles aboard the trains from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm and from 6:00 pm to 7:00 am. You wouldn’t want to bring your bike on an elevated train between 7:00 and 9:00 am or between 4:00 and 6:00 pm. We were on with a bike a few weeks ago after 8:00 pm., and even then with a relatively empty train it was awkward. However, the only way to get passengers accustomed to riding with cyclists, is to get bicycles onto the trains. The CTA is increasing the number of bike racks on busses, too. Route numbers 65, 75, 63, and 72 will all have racks. All of the Pace suburban busses now have bike racks.
On July 28 we will continue our exploration of the Chicago River Riverwalk in Reaches 4, 5 and 6. Just a reminder that the Chicago River has been divided into nine reaches and the Friends of the Chicago River along with the Chicago Department of Planning and Development and other local agencies have developed a Chicago River Corridor Development Plan. The nine reaches extend along the river from the city limits on the north to the city limits on the south. Last month we reported on Reach 1. This month we will continue south into Reaches 4, 5, and 6. The goal of a continuous Riverwalk from the north to the south is far from complete and it is very unlikely that such a continuous corridor will ever be established. Our goal is to check progress in Reaches 4, 5, and 6. Reach 4 extends from Lawrence Avenue (4800 north) southward to about Fullerton Avenue (2400 north) and Damen Avenue (2000 west). Reach 5 runs south to Chicago Avenue (800 north), and Reach 6 continues south to Congress Parkway (500 south).
We invite you to join us in this exploration. The sections of off-road riding will be limited in these reaches so you must plan to get there via city streets. There is no charge for this ride. We plan to start in Ronan Park near Lawrence and Francisco Avenues. We will provide you with specific details when we hear from you. To join in this ride you must respond by July 25.
Whether you ride on the Chicago River Corridor, or somewhere else the important thing is to get out your bike, ride safely, and stay healthy.