I set out on a warm and sunny winter day after work, before the next cold front arrives, to meet the dual objectives of exercise and to enjoy social interaction at a local gathering spot in nearby Largo. It’s a 1.3 mile walk from my place in Belleair Bluffs along West Bay Drive to the Barley…
As I introduced the Pinellas Countywide Bike Share Feasibility item at the mid-point of Wednesday’s Pinellas County MPO meeting, I jokingly told the board we had allotted one-and-a-half hours for this agenda item. That was immediately followed by laughter. One-and-a-half hours later, we had clear and enthusiastic direction from the board to proceed with next…
Park Boulevard, from Seminole Boulevard to 113th Street, is gaining a lot of attention because a long-planned new city center, taking the place of the former Seminole Mall, is being developed off the northwest part of the roadway segment. The roadway has continued to see high volumes of crashes and traffic congestion, which has a…
Pinellas County is defined by its geography. Water on three sides, inland lakes and numerous bays, inlets, canals and wetlands make for a compact place to put people, commerce, industry and the transportation networks to serve them. One aspect of that geography, the Gulf of Mexico and its outstanding beaches, has remained a constant over…
The year 2015 was one of transition for the Pinellas Planning Council and Metropolitan Planning Organization, and for me personally. It began with the newly unified agency in the process of hiring an executive director, and ended with the 2nd of two strategic policy board workshops to set a direction for integrating land use and…
The Pinellas beaches, the Gateway/Mid-County area, and the US 19 corridor reflect different aspects of Pinellas County, but all have a few things in common. First, they share in driving the Pinellas County economy and serve essential regional economic functions. They are multi-jurisdictional areas with unique local challenges and preferences. Transportation is a critical aspect…
By Sue Miller, MPO Bicycle and Pedestrian Planner The Pinellas Trail welcomes bicyclists, walkers, skateboarders, dog-walkers, strollers, inline skaters, and strollers. It brings together residents, tourists, seasonal visitors, the young, old, bird-watchers, training athletes, elementary students, retired engineers, grandmothers, and nature-lovers. On Saturday, December 5, 2015, this very trail will celebrate its Silver 25th Anniversary…
The week of Thanksgiving is the busiest travel time of the year. The American Automobile Association (AAA) estimates that 46.9 million Americans will travel 50 or more miles from home this Thanksgiving weekend, driving to each other’s homes, or to the airport, to visit friends and family for the holiday. Living in St. Petersburg, I…
A recent Tampa Bay Times story described St. Petersburg’s pursuit of a bike share program intended to expand accessibility throughout the city’s commercial core. Could the rest of Pinellas County follow suit? Imagine if you didn’t have to drive to your next lunch meeting with clients, or drive downtown for coffee with your wife on…
If we’re going to adapt our land use and transportation planning to a new reality, we’re going to need to rethink access in Pinellas County and the Tampa Bay region. Our automobile-oriented culture is undergoing changes from demographics, market trends, technology and public preferences. Those changes favor seamless travel experiences that connect people to places where we…
Floridians love this time of year. Fall is in the air as the weather cools a bit, pumpkin spice lattes can be found in our coffee shops, outdoor dining is more popular, rain showers are less frequent, we take our kids trick-or-treating on Halloween, and we get an extra hour of sleep as daylight saving…
When I started out as a newbie to the Pinellas Planning Council (PPC) and Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO), I continually heard the term “Complete Streets.” After I began to research the term and inquire about it, I was intrigued with what I learned. Complete Streets is a transportation policy and design approach that requires streets to enable…