On Tuesday, March 6th at 1:00pm, the Raleigh City Council will vote on whether or not Walk Raleigh will be restored as a pedestrian wayfinding system in downtown Raleigh.
The project has received local, national and international attention, promoting innovation, walking and healthy lifestyles.
We need YOUR HELP to show City Council how supportive the community is for the signs to be re-installed.
– – Click here to add your name to the petition – –
Read the press:
City Puts an End to Guerrilla “Walk Raleigh” Campaign
Official [Planning Director, Mitch Silver] wants city to reserrect “Walk Raleigh”
Learn more about the project at Walk-Raleigh.com
Encouraging folks to walk more is important; however, just adding more sign clutter is a problem. There must be a more creative solution. What about "Walk Raleigh" pole banners, kiosks with "walking" distances to important downtown destinations, some type of a GPS marker system on sidewalks, a smartphone app, some type of walking symbol on existing pathfinding signs, etc. Boston's Freedom Trail, which includes special markings in sidewalks, is a good example of a creative solution.
I think that the Walk Raleigh sign concept is a good one but I think it needs some refinement. My hope is that any signs would help create a perspective that places downtown can be connected to one another by foot in a reasonable amount of time. There is clearly a misunderstanding among many that DT neighborhoods and destinations are further away from one another than they really are. So, to that end, I'd support strategically located signs that help residents and visitors understand the relationships among a variety of places.
On a side note, I think new signs should include a range of walk times based on both faster and slower walkers. I found that the previous signs and maps downtown grossly overestimate the reality of my walk times. (I'm a pretty fast walker)
The City Council voted unanimously today to authorize a pilot program regarding the signs as part of a formal public education campaign. The signs will be posted for 90 days, after which time the City Council will evaluate the pilot program.
Over 1,200 signatures in support of the signs were received. Congratulations to Matt!