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Arlington County, VA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2021
Project Category: Roadway/sidewalks/crosswalk improvement
Description: The Arlington Commission on Aging set out to make local intersections safer for pedestrians. After consulting data on pedestrian-involved crashes, the Commission worked with local organizations -- including nonprofits, churches, civic associations and the local fire department -- to identify ten crossings with high vehicle speeds and insufficient pedestrian infrastructure. Then they provided hand-held orange flags at crosswalks, which pedestrians can wave as they cross the street to make themselves more visible to passing drivers. Organizers mounted bins at eye-level on each side of the street to store the flags. In addition to improving safety, the effort also helped educate the community about the importance of traffic calming interventions.
Milwaukee, WI
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2017
Project Category: Roadway/sidewalks/crosswalk improvement
Description: The Wisconsin Bike Federation wanted to challenge Milwaukee residents to think differently about their public spaces, especially their streets. To that end, the organization staged a workshop to demonstrate what a safe street looks like and talk with residents about possible improvements in their neighborhood. As part of the event, the Bike Federation conducted a pop-up demonstration showcasing temporary traffic calming interventions outside the United Community Senior Center. Using painted tires and lawn chairs, staff and volunteers created curb extensions, meant to shorten the crossing distance for pedestrians at intersections. They also used chalk paint to add bike sharrows to the street and add color to a crosswalk to make it more visible. Finally, they set up a mini roundabout designed to slow down traffic. The temporary improvements spurred city officials to apply for federal funding to make permanent changes to the street.
Cincinnati, OH
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2020
Project Category: Roadway/sidewalks/crosswalk improvement
Description: Hoping to reduce traffic accidents at a busy intersection, the City of Cincinnati created a crosswalk mural in the Clifton Heights neighborhood. Community groups helped choose the mural's design and volunteers worked to paint it on the pavement. The crossing -- which is located near shops, restaurants, a high school and the University of Cincinnati's campus -- attracts heavy pedestrian traffic. In addition to beatifying the streetscape, project organizers hope the mural will make pedestrians more visible. The colorful, abstract artwork is meant to catch drivers' attention, causing them to slow down as they approach. In the future, organizers plan to install crosswalk murals at other popular intersections nearby.
Nearby AARP Community Challenge Projects
Los Angeles, CA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2023
Project Category: Transportation Systems Change
Description: This project will increase public transportation use and mobility for older Asian American Pacific Islanders by reducing language, cultural and technological barriers to access.
Los Angeles, CA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2020
Project Category: Developing projects based on residents' priorities
Description: The Echo Park Film Center invited older community members to share their life stories via film. Twenty participants provided photos and memorabilia from their lives and recorded their voices, which EPFC staff and students used to create a short video for each person. The organization then held an outdoor screening to share the films with the community. One thing you realize when getting older is that your experiences are never lost, and you retrieve them at different parts of your life. And when you move on and most need it, it reappears and you are pleasantly amazed. And this is one of those experiences, participant Ida Talalla said in her video. The Echo Park Film Center gave me a chance to be creative with my reflections.
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