MOUNT VERNON—Knox County residents are all too familiar with missing and broken sidewalks, uneven curbs, and dangerous crosswalks. Through Project Sidewalk, they can report problem areas as they encounter them.
Project Sidewalk is a free program launched in 2012 by the University of Washington in collaboration with the University of Illinois Chicago.
Residents can explore streets virtually using Google Street View and label intersections, sidewalks, crosswalks and curb ramps. They can also label whether cars are parked on the sidewalk.
Project Sidewalk launched in Knox County in November 2024. Residents sign up individually and go through a brief tutorial.
“What we’re trying to do is improve accessibility for seniors and disabled folks,” Knox County Mobility Manager Joe Porter explained.
Porter said the tool will allow local officials to collect data on a large scale.
“When you hit start, it takes you to an intersection or street in Mount Vernon. You can sit at your computer and evaluate Mount Vernon and Knox County,” Porter said.
“So if I am in a wheelchair or have a walker, I can find out whether I can cross without going into the street. Are there crosswalks? This will tell you, and you can evaluate them.”
In addition to providing initial information about sidewalk and crosswalk conditions, residents can validate the information others entered.
“Evaluating gives even more validity to the information,” Porter said. “All of the information is maintained in a heat map you can pull up and see where the problem areas are.”
Porter said the project puts “boots on the ground” and provides “eyes-on” evaluation and data collection for future planning.
“We can ferret out those areas that need work, then we can say as a group, ‘Let’s start planning,’” he said.
Sidewalks are a big deal
In 2022, the Knox County Active Transportation Plan identified 4.7 miles of sidewalk gaps in the Village of Centerburg.
The village council established a sidewalk committee to improve walkability and, in July 2023, created a cost-share program with homeowners to cover the cost of sidewalk repairs.
Village Administrator Teri Wise said village workers evaluated the sidewalks.
“I had the manpower, and I do have the manpower, to do that,” she said.
“Where I could see something like this sidewalk project helping is it’s an interactive feature with the residents and gives them a chance to express their opinions for us. It also gives the resident the ability to add comments.
“It is kind of a checks and balances for us.”
Wise said Project Sidewalk’s data is good for individuals with wheelchairs, walkers and canes.
“I think that is good because that information is not readily available,” she said. “People don’t realize that sidewalks are a big deal unless you have some sort of a disability to maneuver them.”
Wise cited a blind resident who walked with village staff members along the route from his home to the gas station.
“He pointed out some places where he’s more comfortable walking in the street,” she said. “So, we’re looking at that sidewalk inventory and saying what can we do to help.”
Limited availability of Google Street View
In Chicago, individuals have mapped 672 miles, 8.5% of the target area. In addition to 110,412 labels, residents added 105,735 validations.
An Indiana sixth-grade class collected data and presented their findings to the city council.
The East Knox School District is exploring how to integrate Project Sidewalk into class projects.
However, Porter acknowledged that Project Sidewalk has limitations. For example, its use is limited in Danville because there is not much Google Street View available.
Fredericktown, Centerburg, Martinsburg, and Bladensburg have some availability. Mount Vernon has the most.
“The server is set up for Mount Vernon; they are working on getting villages,” Porter said. “When we were setting this up, I wanted to use as much of the county as we can. The farther out from Mount Vernon you get, the less participation.”
Porter acknowledged Project Sidewalk is a long-term program and that it might be a total bust if people do not want to participate.
“But we won’t know until we try,” he said. “Wouldn’t it be cool if we sat down in November and looked at information showing where the problem areas are? Take that data and work with a transportation plan? Then we’re not sitting here 30 years from now saying we have nowhere to start.”
Porter noted poor lighting is another hurdle to pedestrian safety. For example, he cited Kenyon College students walking in the street while looking at their cell phones.
“There are a lot of crosswalks in Gambier, but you can’t see them because of poor lighting. So we asked if we can evaluate lighting, too. They are working on that piece right now,” he said.
Porter said the data can reap financial rewards, too.
“I have confirmation from the Ohio Department of Transportation and other sources that the information will be valid to use for grants and planning down the road,” he said. “It’s an excellent way to get information for programs.”
For more information or help navigating Project Sidewalk, contact Joe Porter at 740-485-5002 or jporter@knoxhealth.com.
