FAYETTEVILLE — New crosswalks have been designed in downtown Springdale thanks to a partnership between the city, UAMS Community Health & Research and NWA Trailblazers.
The crosswalks, which were installed in early August, cross Main and Meadow streets in Springdale. Team members from UAMS Community Health & Research and NWA Trailblazers spent two mornings painting the crosswalks and designing the areas around them to improve walkability for pedestrians.
Arkansas ranks 45th in physical activity in the United States. Low physical activity is linked to increase rates of chronic disease, low energy, and other health conditions.
“The goal of the Tactical Urbanism Pilot Project in Downtown Springdale is to improve the safety, health, and happiness of our neighborhoods,” said UAMS Community Health & Research Senior Project Manager Katie McCraney. “We put our focus on Meadow and South Main St. due to the high traffic and connection to the Razorback Greenway Trail.
“This project included crosswalks, curb extensions and colorful art to add visibility. The goal is to encourage people to be more physically active and for people to use their body as transportation, to improve walkability and bike ability, create safer streets and bring awareness to pedestrians who are walking and biking.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, adults should aim for 150 minutes (or, 30 minutes per day, 5 days a week) of moderate physical activity per week.
The UAMS Northwest Regional Campus includes 307 medical, pharmacy, nursing and health professions students, 66 medical and pharmacy residents, two sports medicine fellows, and 1,000 community-based faculty. The campus has nine clinics including a student-led clinic, orthopaedics and sports medicine, and physical, occupational and speech therapy. Faculty conduct research to reduce health disparities.
UAMS is the state’s only health sciences university, with colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Professions and Public Health; a graduate school; a hospital; a main campus in Little Rock; a Northwest Arkansas regional campus in Fayetteville; a statewide network of regional campuses; and seven institutes: the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, Harvey & Bernice Jones Eye Institute, Psychiatric Research Institute, Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging, Translational Research Institute and Institute for Digital Health & Innovation. UAMS includes UAMS Health, a statewide health system that encompasses all of UAMS’ clinical enterprise. UAMS is the only adult Level 1 trauma center in the state. UAMS has 3,240 students, 913 medical residents and fellows, and five dental residents. It is the state’s largest public employer with more than 11,000 employees, including 1,200 physicians who provide care to patients at UAMS, its regional campuses, Arkansas Children’s, the VA Medical Center and Baptist Health. Visit www.uams.edu or www.uamshealth.com. Find us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or Instagram.