Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government, KY

10/15/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 10/15/2024 14:53

Lexington’s Urban County Council to host Transportation Expo

The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council invites you to attend the Transportation Expo, a casual drop-in event that will cover a range of transportation-related topics. A first in Council's ongoing effort to engage the public outside of regular meetings, this event will bring together residents, Councilmembers, and community partners to discuss important topics that inform policy and impact the city.

The Transportation Expo will take place Saturday, Oct. 19, 9 - 11:30 a.m. It is being held at the Marksbury family Branch of the Lexington Public Library at 2197 Versailles Road Lexington, KY.

The idea for the Expo originated from Council's Public Input Subcommittee, chaired by Third District Councilmember Hannah LeGris, and whose members include Vice Mayor Dan Wu, Councilmember At-Large Chuck Ellinger, Second District Councilmember Shayla Lynch, and Fifth District Councilmember Liz Sheehan

Since February 2023, the subcommittee has worked to improve public engagement by modernizing Council's public input guidelines and launching Engage Lexington, an online platform where the community can give input outside of the traditional meeting format. "Public comment, while an excellent opportunity for residents to share with Council, is not a dialogue and we've heard from our community that they want to engage with us in different ways and in different places," Vice Mayor Wu said.

Councilmembers are excited about this opportunity to meet residents out in the community, "We chose transportation as the topic for this event because it impacts every district, every resident, every visitor, and every member of our community," Councilmember Chuck Ellinger noted. "Each individual has their own unique experience with how they travel around our city, and we want to hear about those experiences."

At the event, Councilmembers will be joined by many government and community partners, including the Lexington Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO). "This Expo is an excellent opportunity for folks to find out more about what our transportation planning process is and how they can be more involved in that process" Chris Evilia, Manager of Transportation Planning at the MPO, stated.

Frontrunners, an LGBTQ non-profit run/walk club based in Lexington, is also looking forward to connecting with Council and community members around transportation issues. "For our organization, running, walking, and biking are core to what we do, but we understand it's not just a form of exercise. Oftentimes, being a pedestrian can be someone's primary mode of transportation," mentioned Jason Schubert, Board Member of Frontrunners. "Frontrunners is committed to making our city a safer place for all pedestrians and we are excited to partner with the city to make this a reality".

For more information, and to register for the Transportation Expo, visit Engage.LexingtonKY.gov.

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About the Lexington Area Metropolitan Planning Organization

The Lexington Area Metropolitan Planning Organization coordinates the allocation of federal transportation funds for our area, including investments in roads, public transit, bikeways and walkways.

About Frontrunners

Frontrunners is an LGBTQ+ walk/run non-profit organization based in Lexington. Their mission is to encourage and support LGBTQIA+, gender non-conforming individuals, and allied persons of all fitness levels in the Lexington, Kentucky area who are interested in running and walking.