The Walkable Communities Committee held its first meeting on May 22 at the Brockport village offices. This committee, composed of citizens from Brockport, Sweden and Clarkson, has been formed as a result of the "Walking/Biking Workshop" recently led by Mark Fenton and sponsored by the National Center for Bicycling and Walking and the Genesee Transportation Council. Fenton, Brockport native and host of the PBS series "America's Walking," spoke about the health benefits to a community that makes its setting more walkable and bikeable.

The goal of the committee is to work toward improvement of the walkability/bikeability of the greater Brockport area - tying in Brockport, Clarkson and Sweden in as seamless, safe and aesthetically pleasing manner as possible. The idea is to create a physical setting and environment that promotes more active lives at all ages. The ultimate goal is to advance public health and enhance quality of life.

The committee will pursue these goals by identifying structural ways to do so, as well as focusing on activities to promote walking and biking in the three communities. In this effort it will reach out to, and seek suggestions from, citizens, community organizations, SUNY Brockport, local officials, and departments of public work and public safety, according to members.

The committee has divided itself into several sub-committees, each focused on specific projects. The newly painted crosswalks on Brockport's Main Street you see are a first step toward safer walking and slower traffic. Pedestrian right-of-way signs soon will be in place at Main Street intersections. They will remind drivers that New York state law requires that automobiles must stop for pedestrians who are in the crosswalks.

The committee will next meet at 7 p.m. on June 12 at the Brockport village offices. Anyone interested in joining one of the sub-committees to take part in this endeavor, or who wishes to attend to make suggestions, are invited, according to co-chairs Raymond and Ute Duncan. Contact the Village Office on State Street at 637-5300 for more information or to leave suggestions for the committee.