Bicycles and Pedestrians

The Mid-Region Metropolitan Planning Organization (MRMPO) serves as a forum for long range bike and pedestrian (or active transportation) planning activities throughout the Albuquerque Metropolitan Planning Area (AMPA). MRMPO collects bike and pedestrian counts, maintains a long-range bicycle system map that helps ensure bike facilities are built, produces GIS analyses to identify places where pedestrian facilities are most needed, and encourages safe street design through its Long Range Transportation Systems (LRTS) Guide and Regional Transportation Safety Action Plan (RTSAP). MRMPO’s Active Transportation Committee helps advise on these efforts.

Biking and walking are essential components of the overall transportation system. Providing people with options for getting around safely by all modes of transportation is essential for ensuring good access to education, jobs, medical care, recreation, and other daily needs. The benefits of walking and bicycling are many and include improved health, less traffic and pollution, and improved economies for active places. Networks should be suited for bicyclists and pedestrians of all ages and abilities.

Ensuring that bicycle and pedestrian travel are viable travel options for all people means providing safe facilities and connected networks. Developing walkable and bikeable activity centers with good access to transit helps develop more vibrant and healthy communities. A better mix of land uses can help make distances between destinations shorter and encourage more walking and biking.