One suggestion for improving walkability in Lower Saucon Township is to extend the sidewalk that ends at the Hellertown borough line to the Creekside Marketplace shopping center on Rt. 412.
Lower Saucon officials are requesting resident input regarding issues related to walking and biking access, as they seek to develop plans and policies to increase opportunities for physical activity in the township.
The township this week announced that as the recipient of a $20,000 WalkWorks Program Community Grant, it has developed an interactive map to help evaluate current conditions, with an eye toward expanding local pedestrian and bicycle connections.
Residents can use the map to identify potential locations for sidewalks, trails, crosswalks and other improvements they think would make it safer, more comfortable and more convenient for people to walk or bike in Lower Saucon Township.
Suggestions so far have included:
- Connecting the sidewalk that currently ends at the township-Hellertown borough line in front of McDonald’s with the Creekside Marketplace (Giant) shopping center.
- Adding a shoulder, sidewalk or bike lane along Rt. 378 between Puggy Lane and Seidersville Road.
- Developing a walking path along Reservoir Road and around the Steel Club golf course.
- Adding a bike lane for cyclists taking the right of way from Hickory Hill Road to Friedensville Road.
Click here to view all of the suggestions that have been made so far.
The map feedback will be shared with township consultant McMahon Associates Inc., which began work on a township-wide Active Transportation Plan (ATP) in February.
The ATP “will identify key connections, potential capital improvements and policies to support walking and biking in the township,” an announcement by the township about the WalkWorks grant program indicated.
The WalkWorks grant was made possible with assistance from the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health and the Wolf administration, it stated.
“Activity-friendly routes connected to everyday destinations can make it safe and convenient for people of all abilities to walk, bike or wheel,” said Carol Reichbaum, MSL, MSPA, who serves as the director of WalkWorks at the University of Pittsburgh’s Center for Public Health Practices. “Planning healthy, complete communities is needed to support active transportation.”
The WalkWorks program is committed to increasing walking, establishing activity-friendly routes and expanding walkable communities across Pennsylvania. Funding for WalkWorks is provided by the Department of Health through the Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grant and State Physical Activity and Nutrition Grant, which are both grants funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
