Community Vision and Interagency Alignment: A Community Planning Process to Promote Active Transportation

Abstract

In 2010, the Brooklyn Active Transportation Community Planning Initiative launched in 2 New York City neighborhoods. Over a 2-year planning period, residents participated in surveys, school and community forums, neighborhood street assessments, and activation events—activities that highlighted the need for safer streets locally. Consensus among residents and key multisectoral stakeholders, including city agencies and community-based organizations, was garnered in support of a planned expansion of bicycling infrastructure. The process of building on community assets and applying a collective impact approach yielded changes in the built environment, attracted new partners and resources, and helped to restore a sense of power among residents.

“Cities have the capability of providing something for everybody, only because, and only when, they are created by everybody.”

—Jane Jacobs¹

The Brooklyn Active Transportation Community Planning Initiative was sparked by 3 separate events in New York City: (1) parents concerned about traffic crashes advocated for changes in East New York, (2) a community board member active in a bicycle club requested the installation of bicycle lanes in Brownsville, and (3) the Brownsville Partnership and the New York City Department of Health’s (NYCDOH’s) Brooklyn District Public Health Office were each awarded a grant from the New York State Department of Health to work on active transportation policy and systems change. This project aimed to engage residents around increasing active transportation (walking and biking) and improving the health of the community.

The Brooklyn neighborhoods of Brownsville (86 468) and East New York (182 296) are home to more than 250 000 residents. Three quarters (76%) of the residents of Brownsville are Black and 20% are Hispanic, and in East New York, 52% are Black and 37% are Hispanic. In these communities, more than half of the residents receive some form of public assistance.² Approximately three quarters of the residents are high school graduates, and only 1 in 10 has at least a bachelor’s degree.³ Rates of obesity (31%) and physical inactivity (25%) are high in this area of Brooklyn.⁴

APPROACHES TO ENGAGEMENT

The initiative is an ongoing collaboration among city agencies, community-based organizations, and residents. We used a community assets–based^5,6 and collective impact approach⁷ to create alignment across groups.

Numerous community assets contributed to this initiative. Individual-level resources included a group of concerned parents, a community board member requesting bicycle lanes, and a neighborhood bicycle shop owner with long-standing ties to the community. Organizational-level assets included dedicated groups working toward safer streets, such as community boards, a business improvement district, a food justice organization, and a local development corporation. Three organizations—NYCDOH, Brownsville Partnership, and the New York City Department of Transportation’s (NYCDOT’s) Bicycle Program—acted as conveners (see the box on the next page).

Brooklyn Active Transportation Community Planning Initiative Convener Organizations

Brownsville Partnership

The Brownsville Partnership, established in 2008, is a network of organizations and residents working together to build on existing assets to create solutions to Brownsville’s most pressing challenges. Community Solutions coordinates the Brownsville Partnership, which draws on the participation of more than 25 different local groups, as well as government agencies and community residents. Through data analysis, community mobilization, regular convening of partners, and aligning of common goals, Brownsville Partnership strengthens the local infrastructure to support collective problem solving around eviction prevention, jobs creation, youth engagement, and health and public safety concerns. For this initiative, Brownsville Partnership contributed on-the-ground community knowledge and conducted targeted neighborhood outreach.

New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene–Brooklyn District Public Health Office

The Brooklyn District Public Health Office is a community-based office of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene positioned to target resources and programs to high-need neighborhoods of North and Central Brooklyn, including Bedford Stuyvesant, Brownsville, Bushwick, and East New York. The office works with residents, community groups, and local leaders to better understand neighborhood concerns and needs and engage communities in effecting change, especially around active living^8,9 and healthy eating,^10–12 to combat the high rates of chronic disease that burden residents.¹³ Initiatives focus on implementing school wellness policies, improving infant and maternal health outcomes, and creating and supporting healthier communities through policy, environment, and systems change.

New York City Department of Transportation–Bicycle Program

The New York City Department of Transportation (NYCDOT) Bicycle Program is responsible for creating the network of bicycle facilities in New York City. Beginning in 2007 and in coordination with PlaNYC 2030 (an interagency plan to address climate change, local economies, and aging infrastructure citywide),¹⁴ NYCDOT installed 200 miles of bicycle facilities over a 2-year period and continues to install 50 miles annually. The bicycle network encompasses all 5 boroughs and is composed of protected bicycle lanes, bicycle lanes, off-street bicycle paths, other bicycle-friendly roadway designs, and bicycle parking. For this initiative, NYCDOT directed funding to the target neighborhoods and provided technical expertise and a vision for increasing street safety through infrastructure improvement. Commissioner and mayoral leadership was an essential factor in the expansion of the bicycle network both in Central Brooklyn and citywide.

Grant funding enabled staff at the NYCDOH and Brownsville Partnership to engage with community partners to work on making changes to the built environment, and the NYCDOT leveraged existing city funds and focused efforts in these neighborhoods. Each convening organization had a unique contribution: the NYCDOH used its standing as a city agency to engage carefully selected organizations and motivated staff, the Brownsville Partnership contributed on-the-ground knowledge with targeted neighborhood outreach, and the NYCDOT provided technical expertise and a vision for increasing street safety through infrastructure improvements.

The initiative first sought to better understand local issues and traffic safety concerns. In 2010, NYCDOH staff conducted school forums and neighborhood street assessments with parents and teachers. Meanwhile, the Brownsville Partnership convened community boards, NYCDOT, and NYCDOH to collectively assess neighborhood barriers to active transportation. Capturing community voice and winning local buy-in were essential for an informed proposal; therefore, workshops were held in both neighborhoods biannually, starting in summer 2011. These were cohosted by convener organizations and community boards to elicit diverse perspectives. Locations and times of workshops were selected to accommodate working families and included language translation, meals, and door prizes. Convener organizations provided information on neighborhood health status and descriptions of built environment and infrastructure improvements that support active transportation and street safety. Through mapping activities, participants identified issues and recommended solutions for improving the built environment. Concurrent to workshops, residents and businesses were surveyed, and activation events were held across both neighborhoods.

OUTCOMES

Over the course of a 2-year planning period, a shared vision of a neighborhood bicycle infrastructure was developed among residents and other stakeholders. More than 330 local residents and businesses were surveyed, and more than 230 stakeholders participated in community meetings and neighborhood street assessments, identifying specific streets where changes could improve active transportation. Residents proposed 21 miles of bicycle lanes to be installed throughout the 2 neighborhoods, and NYCDOT added an additional 7 miles of bicycle lanes to this proposal after their own analysis of traffic patterns and transportation practices. In 2013 to 2014, 10 proposed miles of the full 28-mile bicycle network were installed (Figure 1).

FIGURE 1—

Brooklyn Active Transportation Community Planning Initiative Area in 2014 With Installed and Proposed Bicycle Lanes: Brooklyn, NY, Neighborhoods of Brownsville and East New York

Note. Black dashed lines indicate initiative area. Purple dashed lines indicate community proposed bicycle route. Blue dashed lines indicate New York City Department of Transportation’s proposed bicycle route. Red or orange lines indicate bicycle lane or shared lane; those outlined in black represent bicycle routes installed in 2013–2014. Green lines indicate off-street or protected bicycle path.

Bicycle lanes were not the only result of this planning process. NYCDOT responded to concerns raised by community members and made immediate infrastructure improvements, such as filling potholes and repairing broken crosswalk signage, which may have bolstered trust in this budding partnership. NYCDOT also installed an estimated 600 bicycle racks as a result of community input. Furthermore, residents expressed the need for bicycle safety education and training, and youth bicycle education and bicycle advocacy organizations in New York City dedicated resources to advance work and boost momentum in these neighborhoods. For example, in 2011, afterschool bicycle education programs and dedicated bicycle fleets were provided at neighborhood schools and made available to residents at no cost. In 2013, a bicycle advocacy organization awarded fellowships to community residents to continue organizing efforts for safer streets. Activation events resulted in more than 860 free bicycle helmets distributed to children and adults, and group bicycle rides were held along proposed bicycle routes in 2011 and 2012.

MOVING FORWARD

Sparked by traffic safety concerns voiced by community members and facilitated by a grant award, this initiative brought together multisectoral stakeholders and equipped residents with tools to promote active transportation and street safety.

Support for the bicycle lanes was not universal. For example, the local industrial park voiced opposition because of safety concerns on roads, and others spoke about loss of parking spaces and an apprehension about an influx of new cyclists. However, the initiative fostered an open discussion about concerns and possible solutions.

The next steps for the initiative include prioritizing the next portion of the bicycle lane to be installed, expanding the focus to include pedestrian infrastructure, encouraging the launch of a youth ride club that developed from a partnership between a youth bicycle education organization and a local hospital, and piloting a mobile bicycle repair station at 2 neighborhood farmers’ markets.

Building healthier communities starts by valuing community expertise and using assets—from planning to implementation. Collectively, we achieved change in the built environment and, for residents burdened by health inequities, restored a sense of agency.