Bicycle & Pedestrian Documentation Project
Volunteers Needed!
Arlington County will conduct summer bicycle and pedestrian counts on Thursday, September 16th, from 7-9 AM and 4-6 PM, and on Saturday, September 18th, from 12-2 PM. This will be an organized seasonal count aligned with the National Bicycle and Pedestrian Documentation Project (NBPD).
We would really be grateful for your help, so please check your availability. Training is available. Let us know (at bikepedcounts@arlingtonva.us) if you would like to volunteer, and indicate your preferred time(s) and location(s). Times and locations are listed on the sign-up form (PDF, Adobe Reader required).
About Arlington's Bicycle and Pedestrian Counts
Arlington County volunteers collect bicycle and pedestrian count information several times a year. This regular data collection is part of a national project to document walking and cycling as modes of transportation. Collecting better data on usage and demand is essential to building long-term support for walking and cycling. More information about the project can be found at the National Bicycle and Pedestrian Documentation Project page.
Count locations include shared use paths, urban sidewalks and intersections, and on-road bike lanes, many of which are easily accessible by Metro. Arlington County staff will provide training and materials. In addition to tracking the number of people traveling past a location, some volunteers may collect directional information, helmet usage, and other demographic data.
The fall bike/ped counts in September will again be the main event of the counting calendar, again aligning with the NBPD effort. After families are back from vacation, and school has started, the weather is still generally fair. We will aim to provide complete coverage of all our count locations. For those who like to plan well in advance, save these dates: Thursday, September 16, and Saturday September 18.
Bikepedcounts has been in the spotlight recently: the data we are collecting is paying off. The County Board recently provided the bicycle and pedestrian program a guaranteed source of funding, in part because we can demonstrate how popular bicycle and pedestrian transportation is. Your help is essential to making that case. We now have the beginnings of a system of automated counting equipment in place, which can tell how many people use bike/ped facilities. But volunteers are essential for understanding how and why people choose non-motorized transportation.
Be sure to read the June 16 blog post “Counting Arlington’s Biking Boom” and watch the short TV clip from ABC 7 News
If you have question or are interested in helping with this effort please email Arlington County's Bicycle and Pedestrian Planner, David Patton.
