Active Communities work to improve the health and quality of life for Washington’s citizens by improving and increasing opportunities to be physically active. This includes creating places where people of all ages and abilities can easily enjoy walking and bicycling. They also:

• Promote walking and bicycling opportunities
• Provide accessible recreation facilities
• Address street design and housing density
• Improve availability of public transit
• Foster trail connectivity
• Provide Safe Routes to School 
• Encourage mixed-use development and a connected grid of streets, allowing homes, businesses, schools, and stores to be close together and accessible to pedestrians and bicyclists

Active Communities in Washington State

WSDOT has partnered with the Washington State Department of Health (DOH) and the Department of Commerce to develop Active Communities. The agencies work with partners at the regional and local levels to integrate urban planning, transportation, and health objectives.

The partnership has been successful in implementing projects around the state that focus on building partnerships, developing Safe Routes to School programs, creating Complete Streets policies, and updating Comprehensive Plans to include walking, biking and physical activity. More detailed descriptions of the accomplishments can be found here .

Research and Resources for Active Communities

• Washington State Department of Health - Active Living  
• Feet First - Puget Sound Pedestrian Advocacy Organization
• Shape Up America
• Active Living by Design

Technical Assistance

• Active Community Environments Toolkit
• Walkability Checklist
• Bikeability Checklist (pdf 846 kb)