Session of 2000
SENATE BILL No. 522
By Committee on Transportation and Tourism
1-31
10 AN ACT enacting
the pedestrian safety act.
11
12 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the
State of Kansas:
13 Section
1. As used in this act:
14 (a) "Commission"
means the pedestrian safety commission estab-
15 lished in section 2, and amendments
thereto;
16 (b) "accessible"
means the ability to have access to and the use of
17 intersections, sidewalks, signaling devices
and other constructions and
18 designs encountered in the exercise of
being a pedestrian with or without
19 a disability;
20 (c) "accessible
signaling" means the placement of pedestrian walk
21 signaling devices next to the crosswalks at
all corners of an intersection
22 operable from a wheelchair in accordance
with the Americans with dis-
23 abilities act accessibility guidelines and
which such devices:
24 (1) Have a low
volume locating tone which can be heard at a distance
25 of between six and 12 feet on approaching
the device;
26 (2) have tactile
and large print color contrasted information as to the
27 direction the signaling will ultimately
authorize the pedestrian to walk;
28 (3) allow the
user to depress the walk button for longer than three
29 seconds which shall in turn raise the
volume of the eventual audible walk
30 signal;
31 (4) provide a
different vibration to those relying upon tactile com-
32 munication to know when it is safe to walk;
and
33 (5) in
association with the corresponding device across the street,
34 alternate the sounds made for the
pedestrian crossing to allow the pe-
35 destrian to know where the crossing
leads.
36 (d) "Pedestrian"
means any person of any age who is traveling in the
37 built environment on foot or with the
assistance of prosthetic equipment
38 used for the purpose of replacing or
augmenting the function of ambu-
39 lating on foot.
40 Sec. 2. (a)
There is hereby established the pedestrian safety com-
41 mission. The commission shall be within the
department of
42 transportation.
43 (b) The
commission shall be composed of nine members appointed
2
1 as follows:
2 (1) One
member shall be a traffic engineer employed for that purpose
3 by the state or a county or city
within the state appointed by the governor;
4 (2) one
member shall be a representative of an organization or agency
5 which provides community based
services to persons who are elderly ap-
6 pointed by the governor;
7 (3) one
member shall be a representative of the elderly community
8 having expertise in the pedestrian
needs of the elderly population ap-
9 pointed by the governor;
10 (4) one member
shall be a person who is blind or who meets the
11 definition of blindness used by the United
States social security admin-
12 istration, and who has expertise in the
mobility techniques used by blind
13 and severely visually impaired Kansans as
well as in accessible intersection
14 design and signage appointed by the
governor;
15 (5) one member
shall be a representative of pedestrians who use
16 wheelchairs and who has knowledge of
accessible design, the Americans
17 with disabilities act accessibility
guidelines and other applicable codes and
18 guidance publications concerning accessible
design appointed by the
19 governor;
20 (6) one member
shall be a public safety or law enforcement officer
21 having expertise in the investigation of
pedestrian-vehicle accidents ap-
22 pointed by the governor;
23 (7) one member
shall be a representative of parents with school age
24 children having expertise in the pedestrian
needs of children appointed
25 by the governor;
26 (8) one member
shall be an orientation and mobility specialist who
27 has completed at least a masters degree in
orientation and mobility or
28 travel skills of the blind from a
university having an accredited program
29 in this field appointed by the governor;
and
30 (9) one member
shall be a representative of the department of trans-
31 portation appointed by the secretary of
transportation.
32 (c) Of the
members first appointed by the commission, three shall
33 be appointed for terms of three years,
three shall be appointed for terms
34 of two years and three shall be appointed
for terms of one year. There-
35 after, members shall be appointed for terms
of three years and until their
36 successors are appointed and qualified. In
the case of a vacancy in the
37 membership of the commission, the vacancy
shall be filled for the unex-
38 pired term. All members appointed to fill
vacancies in the membership
39 of the commission and all members appointed
to succeed members ap-
40 pointed to the commission shall be
appointed in like manner as that pro-
41 vided for the original appointment of the
member succeeded.
42 (d) The
commission shall meet at least four times annually and at the
43 call of the chairperson or at the request
of any five members of the com-
3
1 mission. At the first meeting of the
commission after January 1 each year,
2 the members shall elect a chairperson
and a vice-chairperson who shall
3 serve a term of one year. The
vice-chairperson shall exercise all of the
4 powers of the chairperson in the
absence of the chairperson.
5 (e) The
first person appointed by the governor to the commission
6 shall call the first meeting of the
commission and shall serve as temporary
7 chairperson of the commission until a
chairperson and vice-chairperson
8 are elected by the commission at such
meeting.
9 (f) Members
of the commission attending meetings of the commis-
10 sion or attending a subcommittee of the
commission or other authorized
11 meeting of the commission shall not be paid
compensation but shall be
12 paid amounts provided in subsection (e) of
K.S.A. 75-3223, and amend-
13 ments thereto.
14 Sec. 3. The
commission shall:
15 (a) Oversee the
proper planning and construction and maintenance
16 of existing and new pedestrian walks and
traffic intersections within all
17 the political subdivisions of the state,
ensuring compliance with all pe-
18 destrian provisions of the transportation
equity act for the 21st century
19 and applicable provisions of the Americans
with disabilities act of 1990,
20 42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.
21 (b) Receive and
approve whether in whole or in part or as modified;
22 comprehensive pedestrian safety plans from
cities or counties of the state,
23 which plans shall be due within one year of
a request from the commission
24 and shall contain at a minimum:
25 (1) A full
analysis of the street and road grid of the covered area;
26 (2) a comparative
analysis of traffic volume at intersections located
27 near commercial, public transport terminal,
school, church and other
28 community areas where pedestrians would
likely be crossing if sidewalk
29 and signaling infrastructures were to be
improved;
30 (3) an analysis
of those intersections where traffic volume or inter-
31 section configuration rises to the point
where pedestrians cannot cross
32 without walk signaling and other
improvements;
33 (4) a mobility
analysis of how persons living within the area could
34 reasonably walk or use public
transportation to safely and efficiently reach
35 all other parts of the area street and road
grid; and
36 (5) a cost
analysis of what improvements would be needed to equip
37 existing intersections in descending order
of priority with accessible sig-
38 naling, and the installation of sidewalks,
including curb cuts, spreading
39 back from prioritized intersections and the
cost of overall maintenance
40 of the infrastructure once completed.
41 (c) Order the
reconfiguration or redesign of intersections where the
42 pedestrian safety is deemed to both be at
too high a risk, and there are
43 no safe and efficient alternative routes
within a short distance of the
4
1 unsafe intersection.
2 (d) The
secretary of transportation, with approval by the commission,
3 shall appoint a director of
pedestrian safety, who shall be in the unclas-
4 sified service under the Kansas civil
service act.
5 Sec. 4. This act
shall take effect and be in force from and after its
6 publication in the statute book.