Takeaways from Annual Luncheon 2020: Part 5

Leading Change in…Safe Pedestrian Infrastructure for All

5 min read  The following is a summary of key takeaways from this Breakout Session during the 2020 Annual Luncheon. This session was led by zahra alabanza, Ingrid McIntyre, and Angie Schmidt, and moderated by Nora Kern. 

Traffic Deaths are 100% Preventable

In 2019, 6,590 pedestrians were killed by motor vehicles. The most pedestrian deaths across the nation occur in places like Nashville: fast growing Southern cities. Transportation systems have not kept up with the rates of growth which have produced very dangerous environments for everyone, although there are some people who are disproportionately affected by this violence. In addition to intervening on current transportation systems, we also have to reimagine possibilities rooted in equity and justice for walking, biking, and transit for people with physical limitations.

Action #1: Reframe pedestrian deaths as preventable rather than "accidents."

Stories in the media have framed pedestrian deaths as tragedies and unforeseen accidents. While they are undoubtably both of these things, this framing can distract away from the cause of these accidents which is in large part due to the lack of safe public infrastructure. Recently, more attention has been brought to this conversation regarding deaths across the Sunbelt. 

The Mayor’s office recently released Transportation Plan has dedicated $75 million toward traffic safety and reapplied commitment to Vision Zero, a campaign to eliminate traffic fatalities in Nashville. Investing funds to end these preventable deaths is a huge step in altering the conversation from tragic accidents to preventable killings. As this framing slowly shifts at the city level, it will require all of us to continue to shift our mindsets towards interrogating root causes of this problem to find transformative solutions. 

Logo of Families for Safe Streets Nashville chapter. [from Walk Bike Nashville]

Walk Bike Nashville, founded in 1998, has been a local leader in reframing these deaths and what can be done about it. In addition to their advocacy work, Walk Bike Nashville hosts Families for Safe Streets Nashville. This program is a monthly peer support group for people who have lost loved ones while walking or biking in Nashville and for those that have been injured in a crash as a pedestrian or bicycle rider.

“We had 34 people killed walking in Nashville [in 2020], which is actually the worst we’ve ever had. Last year was the all-time high and we had 32 people killed. I would like everyone to keep those people in mind as we have this conversation, because very often the people who have to face our most dangerous streets in Nashville, and who end up losing their lives as a result, come from populations who often aren’t in the center of everyone’s attention.”

— Nora Kern

Action #2: Center communities affected by unsafe pedestrian infrastructure in conversations. 

Flower memorial on bench dedicated towards homeless lives lost in traffic [photo from Open Table Nashville]

Elderly folks, people with disabilities, and unhoused people are disproportionately at risk for experiencing traffic violence. Over one fourth of those who were killed in Nashville in 2020 were between 60 and 69 years of age. Additionally, safe pedestrian infrastructure is a racial equity issue. Black, Indigenous, and people of color are killed at higher rates than white people. Folks who are part of these communities or hold these identities should be centered in conversations for safe pedestrian infrastructure. 

One way to effectively engage these populations is by speaking directly with them or collaborating with organizations that directly serve them. For example, other groups doing prevention work to raise awareness of homelessness in Nashville consider the realities of traffic fatalities of unhoused people regularly. The Homeless Mortality Project, led by Dr. Beth Shinn and graduate students India Pungarcher and Gracie Rule at Vanderbilt University, is a joint project with Open Table Nashville. It works to honor the lives and draw attention to the preventable deaths of unhoused people which have ranged from traffic violence to exposure.

Action #3: Understand safe pedestrian infrastructure includes walking and biking, as well as reliable public transit for people with physical limitations.

Conversations around pedestrian mobility must move towards both walking and biking as pedestrian infrastructure as well as mobility for people who have limited mobility. Engaging with these stakeholder groups is the only way to create safe infrastructure for all lifestyles, communities, and abilities. 

This also includes changing the narrative around who bikes and the benefits that biking can bring. For example, panelist Zahra Alabanza co-founded the Red, Bike, & Green Atlanta chapter in 2012. Red, Bike, & Green is a national Black biking organization dedicated to using biking as a tool for change. The organization’s 3-Point Plan drives its deep social purpose to include health, economics, and environment. Organizations like these can provide critical perspective to how to best improve infrastructure for everyone.  

Bike collective on a street [photo from Red, Bike and Green Atlanta]

“I think the question of who it’s for is kind of at the core of all this. In Nashville, all of our suburbs were built for people with cars. They were built during white flight when it was the well-off people moving out of the city. They designed the street that way, and didn’t assume anyone would want to ever be out in a suburb without a car. Now, we’re seeing suburbanization of poverty.”

— Angie Schmitt

Do you know of any examples of Leading Change Safe Pedestrian Infrastructure for All? Comment below!

Speaker Bios

zahra alabanza is an adventurer, organizer, and creative. She is the co-founder of Red, Bike and Green-Atlanta, a Black Cycling Collective that uses biking as an organizing tool. She uses outdoor adventure, biking, growing food, and yoga to enhance self-determination, joy, physical and mental wellness, economic vitality, and environmental stewardship among Black folks. She currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia. 

Ingrid McIntyre is the Executive Director and Founder of the Village at Glencliff and Former Executive Director and Co-Founder of Open Table of Nashville. She holds a Master's of Theological Studies and is inspired by heroes like Desmond Tutu, Eleanor Roosevelt and Dorothy Day.

Angie Schmidt is a speaker, author, and planner. Her new book, Right of Way: Race, Class and the Silent Epidemic of Pedestrian Deaths in America, was published in August 2020 by Island Press. She is the founder of 3MPH Planning and Consulting, a small planning firm that is focused on pedestrian safety.

Nora Kern is the Executive Director of Walk Bike Nashville. She has launched Walk Bike University, spearheaded advocacy efforts, and helped guide the strategic direction of the organization.  A native Nashvillian, Nora holds a Bachelors degree from Williams College and has previously worked in non-profits, Tennessee politics, oral history, business development, and commercial salmon fishing.

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Takeaways summarized by Gretchen Trast, Civic Design Center Research Fellow

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Jump to other Annual Luncheon Takeaways

• Part 1: Leading Change in Economic + Community Development Within Neighborhoods

• Part 2: Leading Change through Diversity in Design Education and Practice

• Part 3: Leading Change by Celebrating Neighborhood Identity in the Face of Gentrification

• Part 4: Leading Change in Affordability though Transportation and Housing Advocacy

• Part 5: Leading Change in Safe Pedestrian Infrastructure for All