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Commissioners press for people-centered streets, more EV infrastructure and better transit connections
Summary
The commission debated prioritizing pedestrians and cyclists over car-centric parking expansion, and staff said the city has a federal grant to expand a car-share program but the NEVI/CFI funding is paused pending federal review; commissioners also pushed for traffic-calming measures and more accessible transit routes.
Grand Rapids commissioners used a workshop session to press for transportation decisions that prioritize people over cars, and to ask staff for clearer plans on electric-vehicle infrastructure and transit connections.
Mayor LeGrand flagged a perceived imbalance in the draft strategic priorities, noting the economic-prosperity section emphasized more parking and suggested reframing toward "people-centered" mobility that prioritizes pedestrians. "The most important unit of transportation is a person and the thing we ought to prioritize most highly is pedestrians," the mayor said.
Several commissioners raised pedestrian and cyclist safety as urgent priorities. One commissioner noted national trends showing increases in pedestrian and cyclist injuries and fatalities and urged that "safety of our community means safe from harm" encompass both crime prevention and traffic safety.
Staff discussed near-term transit and EV work. Transportation staff reported the city was competitively awarded roughly $1.5 million to expand a neighborhood car-share program and add charging locations, but said federal review of the funding program has paused next steps. "We were awarded $1,500,000 here in the city of Grand Rapids ... and that is to help expand the car share program ... to do 8 additional locations," a staff member said, while also noting a federal pause on issuing that round of grants.
Commissioners and staff debated charging infrastructure types and placement. Commissioners emphasized the difference between Level 2 chargers used for overnight or local charging and fast chargers used for long-distance rapid charging; staff said fast chargers are significantly more expensive and require different siting choices.
Other mobility recommendations included localized traffic-calming measures, spot pedestrian improvements such as flashing beacons, and reexamining timed intersections to increase pedestrian priority; staff said many of these considerations are part of the city’s Vital Streets planning and forthcoming project communications.
Transportation staff said they will return with data on the DASH route changes and a briefing on regional coordination with the Rapid and the metropolitan planning organization. No formal votes were taken at the workshop.
