Quantifying the active transportation by biking and walking through counts is an important part of developing policy and intervention to mitigate risk and encourage active lifestyles. Numerous studies have evaluated the different methods of counting bicycles and pedestrians, but very little work has evaluated actual cases of how they fit into active transportation programs and health impact assessments (HIAs). The purpose of this study was to study validates the results of those studies looking at the reliability of results gathered as a part of two California projects and how they fit into existing planning and health assessment programs. Automated counters were installed at 10 locations throughout 2 cities. Manual counts were taken at these locations evaluating the accuracy based on platooning and ancillary factors such as weather and site conditions. Additional policy and case assessment was done to evaluate how the counts can and are being pulled in to existing programs and the opportunities and barriers to doing so. Automated counters can be reliable sources of information to gauge performance of HIAs but are rarely being used outside of the preliminary data gather phase. Data confirms over counting by approximately 30%, especially when groups are involved and sensitivity to environment conditions. Automated counters can be important part of a community planning process and should be considered as a part of the HIA process, but consideration should be given to details regarding siting and user dynamics.