“Complete Streets” help create livable communities for all users, and improve equity, safety, and public health, while reducing transportation costs and traffic woes.
Complete Streets, as defined by the US Department of Transportation, are “designed and operated to enable safe use and support mobility for all users. Those include people of all ages and abilities, regardless of whether they are travelling as drivers, pedestrians, bicyclists, or public transportation riders.”
As described by Smart Growth America, “The Complete Streets approach integrates people and place in the planning, design, construction, operation, and maintenance of our transportation networks. This helps to ensure streets are safe for everyone, and supports local economies and natural environments.”
Complete Streets policies are adopted at the federal, state, or municipal levels and formalize a community’s desire to plan and design streetscapes that work for everyone. There are 10 elements that make up Complete Streets policy; to learn about each element, click here.
The towns in Maine that have adopted Complete Streets policies include Auburn, Augusta, Brunswick, Bath, Camden, Cape Elizabeth, Fort Kent, Freeport, Gray, Lewiston, Ogunquit, Portland, Scarborough, South Portland, Windham, and Yarmouth.