911 Trail Signage Project

I'm surprised by the number of our residents who use the trails system in the winter. People repeatedly comment on the fact that the trails near their home are often plowed as quickly as their street! I'm glad they are used year-round; I know we have a lot of active residents! Recently, we have worked with surrounding cities to instate a plan that makes the trails even safer. This terrific multi-jurisdictional effort, called the 911 Trail Sign project, is starting to come to fruition in our City.

The 911 Trail Sign project is the product of a regional workgroup which planned to create a consistent trail sign system for 911 callers to reference when identifying their location on a trail. The workgroup consists of representatives from West Des Moines, Des Moines, Clive, Urbandale, Johnston, Polk and Warren Counties. West Des Moines was extremely active in this project with members from Parks and Recreation, Public Safety, Public Works, GIS and Westcom collaborating to increase public safety.

To be consistent among jurisdictions, the group chose to use a grid system that covers all involved areas and will help reduce confusion and response time in emergency situations. The grid also offers flexibility, giving the participating entities discretion regarding the location of signs for their part of the trail system. Signs can be placed closer together in short visibility areas and further apart where there is greater visibility without causing problems with the numbering system.

Jordan Creek Trail between Valley West Drive and 60th Street is the first segment of trail to be signed in West Des Moines. Parks and Recreation chose locations along the trail to place the signs and Public Works collected the GPS points so signs are accurately located and positioned. Each sign has an orange sticker indicating to dial 911 in the event of an emergency along the trail. The rest of the sign has a 6 digit number used to reference that specific location and give dispatchers information about where the call is located along the trail and how to access that specific location in an emergency.

Des Moines has also started signing their trails with this system. The other cities and counties involved in this project will be signing their trails as they have resources available for the project. This is a terrific example of cities collaborating to make emergency services more accessible from these harder-to-reach parts of our City.