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Centennial unveils Safety Action Plan; adoption would unlock federal safety grant eligibility
Summary
City staff presented the Centennial Safety Action Plan, a Safe Systems‑based strategy prepared with FHWA funding, and said formal adoption would be required before the city pursues several federal safety grants.
City staff presented the Centennial Safety Action Plan, a federally framed Safe Systems plan prepared with Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) guidance and a $220,000 FHWA planning grant, and told the City Council that formal adoption is a prerequisite for pursuing several federal safety grants, including the next round of the Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) program.
“...this is straight from FHWA Federal Highway Administration's website,” presenter Anna Bunce said while explaining the plan’s Safe Systems approach. Staff stressed the plan is a framework — collecting crash data, public outreach results and a countermeasures toolbox — intended to prioritize projects and to support competitive grant applications.
The plan summarizes a multi‑year crash analysis and public outreach that included district summer socials, mailed surveys and an interactive dashboard. Staff said Centennial’s serious‑injury and fatality rates are relatively low compared with some peer jurisdictions in the region, but that the plan identifies concentrated high‑injury segments on arterials (for example Arapahoe Road and I‑25 segments) and a broader higher‑risk network that extends into neighborhood corridors. Bunce described school walk‑sheds as a planning‑level overlay that will require more targeted work if the city pursues a school‑focused safety study.
Bunce told council the plan contains required elements for FHWA grant eligibility, and that Planning & Zoning Commission would hold a public hearing on the plan before council would be asked to ratify adoption. “If everything is adopted, then the plan, the appendices, and this dashboard would be hosted on the city website,” Bunce said; staff said the dashboard would be updated annually with crash data.
Staff emphasized the plan’s stated safety goals: to eliminate traffic‑related deaths by 2040 and serious injuries by 2045 on streets and sidewalks under Centennial’s jurisdiction — goals that staff said align with the Denver Regional Council of Governments. The plan lists near‑term priorities and countermeasures (education, engineering and enforcement), and notes already advancing projects that fit the plan’s priorities, including HSIP‑eligible intersections and signal upgrades. Bunce described current HSIP work for Dry Creek/Holly and Himalayan/Chenango, and said the city has scoping and consultant selection in motion for some HSIP projects.
Council members asked about how the plan supports grant pursuit and project prioritization. Staff said the plan is a minimum eligibility document for SS4A and will strengthen applications for HSIP and other competitive grants; staff enumerated planning and implementation grants the city intends to consider and said the city will sequence grant pursuits according to staff capacity and capital readiness. Council members suggested using the annual dashboard and district newsletters to inform residents about local safety issues.
Ending — Next steps: staff will present the Safety Action Plan to the Planning & Zoning Commission for public hearing and a vote; council ratification is expected after P&Z action. Staff will publish the plan and interactive dashboard and pursue SS4A/HSIP grant opportunities made available to jurisdictions with an adopted plan.
