In Virginia, as in the United States, a high proportion of roads were built without sidewalks. With steadily increasing efforts to develop a more balanced, multimodal transportation system, the absence of sidewalks posesa unique connectivity issue. In this paper, sidewalk retrofit practices are examined using the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) as a case study; the practices of other state departments of transportation (DOTs) and localities are also examined. The practices examined included identifying missing (non-existent) sidewalks, prioritizing and funding retrofit sidewalk projects, and dealing with constraints for retrofit sidewalk design. Although state DOTs rarely inventory their sidewalks, many localities inventory their sidewalks within a small targeted area. In the absence ofdedicated funds by state DOTS to build missing sidewalks, retrofit sidewalk projects compete for a variety of funds with limited success. Formal methods have not been developed by state DOTs to prioritize retrofit sidewalk projects. Improving understanding about the absence of sidewalks and related practices at state DOTs requires policy changes by these agencies. Further progress on addressing the topic of non-existent sidewalks along existing roads would require relevant facts and quantification to explore related issues, such as the following: quantifying the benefits of constructing missing sidewalks performing cost/benefit analyses of constructing missing sidewalks versus performing other mobility improvements developing methods to determine mileage and location of needed sidewalks calculating the amount of money spent on constructing missing sidewalks versus the amount that would be needed.
Abstract