Crafting an Effective Complete and Green Streets Policy

Leigh Ann Von Hagen, AICP, PP is a Managing Director and Adjunct Professor with the Alan M. Voorhees Transportation Center and a founder of the Planning Healthy Communities Initiative at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. She has worked in the transportation-planning field for over twenty years with a focus on developing sustainable and equitable transportation and land use solutions for communities. Leigh Ann is a licensed professional planner, both nationally and in New Jersey. She is a leader in creating multi-disciplined approaches to environmental and policy change through community-based initiatives and partnership building.

Leigh Ann manages the NJ Department of Transportation’s Safe Routes to School Resource Center and the Bicycle and Pedestrian Resource Center, and helps oversee the statewide School Crossing Guard Training program. She specializes in initiatives that address pedestrian and bicycle safety, health, equity, and access through research, training, education, community engagement, and best practice in policy and design. In addition, she promotes the integration of public health impacts into planning and decision-making through leading training on Health in All Polices and Health Impact Assessment. She was instrumental in launching several statewide health, safety and environmental initiatives including Planning Healthy Communities Initiative, Safe Routes to School, Sustainable Jersey, Mayors Wellness Campaign, and Shaping NJ. Through these and similar initiatives, Ms. Von Hagen has worked to make the healthy choice the easy choice through changes to the built environment and by supporting a culture of healthy, active living.

As a veteran bicycle and pedestrian planner, Leigh Ann also worked for several private engineering firms on a variety of comprehensive planning projects and as a risk communication researcher for the Center for Environmental Communication and the NJ Department of Environmental Protection.