The City of Fergus Falls is working to develop a Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan to:

• Support ongoing efforts to grow its orientation to walking and biking
• Guide its planning and implementation for addressing the needs of people who walk and bike
• Improve safety and comfort for all users
• Identify opportunities to maximize opportunities for improving walk/bike infrastructure and programs
• Increase the number of people walking and biking in the City as part of their daily lives
• Improve community health, quality of life and enjoyment for all its residents, employees and visitors

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Assets in Place
The Fergus Falls community has been working for several years to address the need to provide a safe, equitable, and cohesive network of walking and biking facilities for residents and visitors.

Pedal Fergus Falls and the City’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) have led several successful efforts toward improving conditions for walking and biking in the city, including:

• Implementing educational campaigns and events
• Fundraising for the implementation of bicycle infrastructure
• Successfully applying for Silver-level Bicycle-Friendly Community status - while also being recognized as a Bronze-level Walk Friendly Community (making Fergus Falls one of only three cities in MN to be recognized as both bike- and walk-friendly!).
• Successfully engaging the Fergus Falls community to collaboratively develop a network of bicycle routes
• Working with City staff to include bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure in City roadway projects 
• Identifying facility maintenance and repair needs

Taking the Next Steps
The community support, success and promise of these initiatives toward fostering a more walk- and bike-friendly community have highlighted the usefulness and potential of a formal plan for coordinating bicycle and pedestrian improvements.

The City of Fergus Falls, the BPAC, and Pedal Fergus Falls have thus begun work to fund, contract and manage the development of a Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan for the city.

Activities and timeline
The project began in late May 2020. A completed plan is expected on or before November 2020.

Fergus Falls’ relatively compact size makes it ideally suited for growing trips by foot or bike. Shown here: portions of the city within a 10 minute walk or bike ride from City Hall. The network of routes shown was developed through a community process led by Pedal Fergus Falls. These routes will serve as a starting point for the network to be developed through this plan.