Nantucket County staff presented an overview of a federally funded safety action plan that draws on five years of crash data and sets targets to reduce fatal and serious-injury crashes by 50% by 2030 and 75% by 2040, with a long-term aim of eliminating such crashes.

Mike, a Nantucket County staff member, told the commission the draft plan uses a “safe system” approach and that the project team will present a fuller consultant briefing next month. He said the county gets “about 4 of these serious and fatal crashes a year” and summarized a proposed timeline that would open a public review period starting July 29 and run through the commission’s August meeting, subject to the commission authorizing that review at the next meeting.

The plan is based on an analysis of five years of crash statistics and includes monitoring to track progress and any changes in crash types, locations or severity. “The idea is by 2040 that that’s less than 1 per year ... with an ultimate goal of being 0. You’ve heard this term vision 0,” Mike said.

Staff identified several corridor and intersection locations for recommended countermeasures. Project areas noted in the presentation included Bartlett Road (intersection and bus-stop accommodations), Surfside Road (intersection improvements, pavement markings and bike-path delineation), Old South Road (incorporating prior corridor study recommendations), and a section of Sparks Avenue between the Stop and Shop and the Sparks roundabout, which staff highlighted as having the island’s most frequent and severe crashes. Pleasant Street was described as the site of a pilot bike accommodation; staff said the preferred treatment along that corridor is a sidewalk rather than converting it to one-way traffic.

The presentation flagged a tension in the Mid-Island area plan between preserving angled parking to increase spaces and concerns the consultant raised about angled parking near the Stop and Shop. Mike said angled parking was part of a “main street” vision intended to slow traffic, while the consultant raised safety concerns about that parking configuration.

Commission members questioned whether the plan’s five-year target is realistic given the long timelines for certain capital projects. One member said, “How do we boil all of these fantastic ideas that are databased down to really what are the couple things that are affordable or achievable that we can do in 5 years that will keep more people alive.” Another member urged focused messaging and asked whether the county should prioritize a smaller set of measures the public can understand.

Mike and other staff emphasized that crash reduction would rely on a combination of capital improvements and cultural measures: speed feedback signs, targeted intersection fixes, better markings, development review that reduces driveway conflicts, and public education to reduce distracted driving and DUIs. Mike noted that about 20% of crashes involve cell phones and cited deer collisions as a recurring island-specific issue; he said some items, such as deer collisions, have limited direct countermeasures beyond driver caution.

No formal action was taken at the meeting. Staff said they will return next month with the consultant for a full presentation and will ask the commission to authorize the July 29–August public-review period; the public presentation will be recorded and posted on the project website for comment.

The commission did not vote on projects or authorize funding during the session; the next meeting is expected to include the consultant briefing and a request to open the public-comment period.