How was personal anecdotal data fathered for Phase 1 of the Newport Transportation Master Plan? As the report states, it had the objectives of engaging the public to confirm multimodal goals of the plan and identify transportation needs and additional insights on existing conditions.
The objectives were accomplished by gathering feedback through online activities and the following series of public workshops and pop-ups from July to October 2021:
– July 24 – Pop-up at the Newport Folk Festival at Fort Adams
– Aug. 5 – Pop-up at Innovate Newport
– Aug. 18 – Pop-up at Aquidneck Growers Market on Memorial Boulevard
– Aug. 26 – Public workshop at City Hall
– Aug. 28 – Pop-up at Aquidneck Growers Market, on Dexter Street
– Sept. 11 – Public workshop at Rogers High School
– Oct. 1 – Pop-ups at Tijuana Burrito Grille and Leo’s Market & Restaurant
– Oct. 2 – Pop-up at Audrain Concours and at Festa Italiana.
The activities included:
– A five-minute survey on Newport’s transportation goals and people’s transportation priorities, as well as collected demographic data
– A mapping activity where people were asked to identify locations for transportation ideas and barriers by walking, biking, transit and driving
– People being asked to share a story about their walking, biking, transit, boating or driving experience. (Both the paper and online version contained a set of prompts, but people were encouraged to share whatever story they wanted.)
Additionally, people sent feedback by email to the project address, the director of Planning and Economic Development, and the City Council, and submitted letters to the city manager and Transportation Committee.
Finally, on Oct. 18, the Bike Newport Board Infrastructure Committee submitted a spreadsheet of priority locations with comments and suggestions.
— James Merolla
Leave a Reply