MAKING THE ATLANTA REGION MORE WALK- AND BICYCLEFRIENDLY BYRON RUSHING AND BRAD DAVIS INTRODUCTION t is becoming clear across the country that walking and bicycling are increasing in popularity and are key to a community's quality of life. This is true in metro Atlanta, and the Atlanta Regional Commission is working to make our region more walk- and bike-friendly. Our bicycle & pedestrian plan - titled "Walk. Bike. Thrive!: A regional vision for a more walkable, bikeable, and livable metropolitan Atlanta" - provides a comprehensive blueprint for walking and bicycling by incorporating the League's Bicycle-Friendly Community approach. COLLIN CHESSTON, ALTA PLANNING + DESIGN I Beltline FALL 2017 BACKGROUND The Atlanta region is big even for a modern metropolitan area. A few statistics may help put it in scale. The region is geographically larger than several states, including Rhode Island and Delaware. In population, the region is larger than Minnesota and Colorado. Our area encompasses twenty counties and nearly eighty cities. People tend to live far from where they work, meaning the region has some of the longest commutes in the country, averaging over 12 miles. This is a lot of ground to cover and that scale has a direct impact on how the region approaches walking and bicycling transportation. BICYCLE FRIENDLY AMERICA 13http://www.atlantaregional.org/bicycle-pedestrian/ http://www.atlantaregional.org/bicycle-pedestrian/ http://www.atlantaregional.org/bicycle-pedestrian/ https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2015/03/25/atlantans-have-the-longest-commute-in-entire-u-s.html https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2015/03/25/atlantans-have-the-longest-commute-in-entire-u-s.html https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2015/03/25/atlantans-have-the-longest-commute-in-entire-u-s.html