Previously, Bicycle & Pedestrian Infrastructure Improvements Realized in Communities of Less Than 10,000 People proved that exemplary infrastructure can exist in some of the smallest communities in the United States.  This prior study identified characteristics (adherence to speed limits, numerous champions, bicycle & pedestrian programs and groups, and community approval process) found to define the difference between these small communities that have been successful as compared with those that have had less success.

This current research study was identified as future research in the prior study.  Through Western Transportation Institute at Montana State University’s experience with technology transfer, experience has shown that putting knowledge into case studies, which small, rural communities can point to, significantly influences adoption.  This is particularly important because of the 19,495 cities and town in the United States, 84.2% of them fall below the 10,000 people threshold in the United States.

The research will focus on small communities (those less than 10,000 people) in three communities within a state within each of the five regions: North-East, South-Atlantic, North-Central, South-Gulf, and West, for a total of 15 case studies developed.  The results can be used by peer small communities as examples of what can be implemented.

This research is jointly funded by the Small Urban, Rural, and Tribal Center on Mobility (SURTCOM), and three state departments of transportation. This project is the portion funded by SURTCOM.

This project was presented at the Vermont Agency fo Transportation 2021 virtual Research Poster Symposium

View the poster, video presentation and Fact Sheet

The Case Studies of Walking and Biking in Communities of Fewer Than 10,000 People are available below: