AMARILLO, Texas (KAMR/KCIT) – As part of an effort to develop a Statewide Active Transportation Plan to advance walking, biking, and rolling as safe options in cities around the state, the Texas Department of Transportation will hold a public meeting for education and input on Oct. 17 at the Amarillo Civic Center Complex.

According to TxDOT, the meeting will take place from 4:30-6:30 p.m. on Oct. 17, with community members able to attend in person or online at TxDOT.gov. The meeting will include a pre-recorded video presentation, said TxDOT, and include audio and visual components, and offer the same information and comment opportunities in both the in-person and virtual formats.

Similar meetings, said TxDOT, will be held in metropolitan areas around Texas throughout October and November as the department works with the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee, metropolitan planning organizations, stakeholders, and community members to develop the SATP. When the plan is completed, the first of its kind in the state, TxDOT said it will “establish a unified vision for identifying and implementing strategic active transportation priorities across Texas through 2050.”

“Central to this planning is taking an inventory of existing transportation networks and assessing key trends, safety measures and impacts on active transportation in Texas,” said TxDOT, “The Texas Active Transportation Plan is a collaborative effort to advance walking, biking, and rolling as viable options towards a safe, accessible, connected, and fully integrated multimodal transportation system for all Texans.”

This meeting comes as TxDOT also works to recognize National Pedestrian Safety Month in October. As previously reported on MyHighPlains.com, the month of October had the highest number of pedestrian crashes in 2022, and pedestrian crashes also make up 19% of the traffic deaths in Texas despite only being 1% of the crashes that occur.

Over the last five years, TxDOT said that Texas has reflected nationwide trends and seen a 29.6% increase in pedestrian traffic deaths. Just in 2022, Texas saw 5,764 crashes involving pedestrians, which resulted in the deaths of 829 people and 1,526 serious injuries.