Bi-State staff provide assistance to member governments in the area of trails and pedestrian planning. Previous work done by Bi-State includes trail master plans, staff assistance to various bicycle and pedestrian initiatives, greenway planning, and grant application preparation. Bi-State staffs the Bi-State Regional Trail Committee, which meets every other month to act as a forum for coordination and communication for local governments and trails stakeholders. Periodically, special meetings and webinars are hosted on topics involving bicycles and pedestrians, such as active transportation and Complete Streets.
Bi-State also administers a trail counting program to collect user estimates of area trails. Since 2013, data has been collected around the region and shared with municipalities for their transportation planning and recreation activities and for grant preparation. Data is also used to inform long- range transportation and recreation planning in the region.
Bi-State has also partnered with the Quad City Health Initiative to create a “one-stop shop” for non-motorized trails. The interactive website, QCTrails.org, contains information on trails, bikeways, walking paths, and water trails in the Quad Cities metro area, but staff is aiming to expand coverage to the Bi-State Region. The website was made possible with funding provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Partnerships to Improve Community Health (PICH) Grant, in support of the Be Healthy QC project administered by the Quad City Health Initiative. QCTrails.org encourages users to explore area trails and to track trail usage through the ability to earn badges as trail segments are completed.
For more information on Bi-State's multi-purpose trail planning initiatives, please contact Bryan Schmid.