On January 23, 2025, Bike/Walk Central Florida’s Best Foot Forward (BFF) program was honored to participate in the North Florida Safe Streets Summit, an annual event hosted by the North Florida Transportation Planning Organization (TPO). The summit gathered elected officials, planners, engineers, and transportation safety advocates to share insights, challenges, and successes in making Florida’s streets safer for all road users.
Sharing Best Practices for Safer Streets
Bike/Walk Central Florida (BWCF) Executive Director, Emily Bush, joined a panel of transportation safety leaders to present on the successes of the Best Foot Forward program in Central Florida. As part of the “Best Practices” panel, Bush highlighted the program’s measurable impact in increasing driver compliance at crosswalks through education, engineering, and enforcement. Fellow panelists included:
- Lara Bouck, MetroPlan Orlando, who showcased efforts to develop 22 safety action plans across the region.
- Jesus Fuentes, Senior Project Manager at EXP, who shared innovative community engagement strategies like walking and biking tours to inspire active transportation planning.
The event’s keynote speaker, John Simmerman, founder of Active Towns, spoke about the transformative power of active transportation in building healthier and safer communities. Bush previously joined Simmerman on his Active Towns YouTube series to discuss how Bike/Walk Central Florida is working to improve pedestrian and cyclist safety in one of the most historically dangerous areas in North America for walking and biking. Watch the episode here.
Building a Safer Future Together
The Safe Streets Summit reinforced the importance of collaboration, data-driven solutions, and community engagement in achieving meaningful safety improvements. We extend our gratitude to the North Florida TPO and Executive Director Jeff Sheffield for the opportunity to share our work and be part of this vital conversation.
➡️ Learn more about the North Florida Safe Streets Summit: North Florida TPO Safe Streets Summit
As we continue expanding the reach of Best Foot Forward, we look forward to more opportunities to partner with communities across Florida to make our streets safer—because every life matters.
