The Ames Area Metropolitan Planning Organization policy committee on July 29 voted to release a draft Comprehensive Safety Action Plan (CSAP) and scheduled a Sept. 23, 2025 public hearing for the plan.

John (HDR consultant and the CSAP point of contact) told the committee the plan adopts the Safe System approach and analyzes fatal and serious injury crashes using complete crash data from 2017 through 2023. The analysis produced a High Priority Network that aligns with where fatal and serious injuries are most concentrated while covering a limited amount of roadway mileage under local jurisdiction.

The CSAP pairs that mapped high-priority network with a suite of recommended countermeasures: major projects (corridor or intersection reconfigurations that align with MTP alternatives), systemic low-cost safety treatments applied during maintenance, and policy/process changes (for example, context-sensitive speeds, intersection control evaluation, access management and better alignment between land use and transportation planning).

John said the plan is structured to support competitive grant applications for discretionary federal safety funding; presenters noted that projects aimed at reducing fatalities and serious injuries typically need measurable historic outcomes or demonstrated risk (e.g., speeding, crash frequency) to score well for federal discretionary programs.

Committee members asked specific questions about localized safety concerns. Members raised South Duff Avenue, where the plan identifies access management and potential raised median treatments; presenters and city staff said those access-management measures would be considered carefully in public processes and typically would be implemented at reconstruction rather than as an immediate retrofit. East Riverside Road was identified as both an operational and cyclist safety concern, with R7 noted as a candidate corridor for turn lanes or center-turn lane improvements. Cameron and Carver and related roundabout options were discussed as targeted geometric changes in areas with rising traffic and safety risk.

John emphasized that the CSAP recommends ongoing monitoring and a safety management process, with metrics focused on fatalities, serious injuries and vulnerable road-user outcomes. The committee approved release of the draft plan for public comment and set Sept. 23, 2025 as the hearing date; the motion carried.

The MPO will post summary materials, maps and an online comment portal and then incorporate public feedback before final adoption later in 2025.