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Staff previews Safe Streets for All action plan; no commission action requested
Summary
City staff described Safe Streets for All funding and the required safety action plan, saying adoption of a leadership-resolution will allow Portsmouth to compete for implementation grants; commissioners were briefed but not asked to act.
City planning staff briefed the Portsmouth Planning Commission on the Safe Streets for All federal grant and the required safety action plan during the Jan. 7 work session; commissioners were not asked to vote.
Director Rhonda Russell said the Federal Highway Administration-funded program requires Portsmouth to produce a safety action plan that identifies high-incident corridors and recommends strategies to reduce crashes and fatalities. “Part of the deliverables for this grant opportunity is item number 1, which is the development of a resolution that conveys the leadership of our community’s commitment to support the vision outlined in the action plan,” Russell said.
Russell said the action plan will be data-driven and is scheduled for completion around October 2025; adoption of a leadership resolution is an early deliverable intended to show the city’s commitment and make Portsmouth eligible to apply for later implementation funding. She said staff anticipates community engagement in February to present corridor data and proposed strategies and to confirm whether residents’ lived experience matches the consultant’s findings.
Commissioners asked whether the action plan would be integrated with the city’s comprehensive plan and who is managing the grant. Russell said the action plan’s data and recommendations can inform transportation elements of the comprehensive plan and that planning staff currently manage the consultant contract and grant implementation tasks. She said about half the grant funds have already been expended during plan development and the consultant evaluation.
Staff said the action plan prioritizes arterial corridors where most incidents occur and that the plan will be used to pursue competitive implementation grants, which typically fund construction projects requiring larger sums than local budgets alone.
No formal action was taken; staff will present the resolution and plan to City Council later in the process and will host public engagement sessions in early February.
