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Seven-community safety plan advances; Ferndale to lead multi-jurisdiction grant application
Summary
Consultants from Tool Design presented a draft Southeast Oakland County Safety Action Plan that prioritizes systemic safety corridors, substantial reconstruction and corridor studies; Ferndale will be the lead applicant on an implementation grant with an estimated $11.9 million implementation cost and an 80/20 federal/local match.
Tool Design consultant Kristin (Kristen) Saunders told the Ferndale City Council on June 10 that the firm has spent about 18 months developing a Southeast Oakland County Safety Action Plan with seven neighboring communities and regional partners.
"We've been working on the safety action plan for Southeast Oakland County for about the last, 18 months," Saunders said. She described a planning process that included crash analysis, public outreach, a policy inventory and project prioritization.
Saunders said the analysis found that most fatal and serious crashes in the study area occur on higher-speed, wider streets: roughly 70 percent of fatal and serious crashes occur on streets designed over 35 miles per hour, even though those streets represent a smaller portion of the network. The plan targets three implementation project types — systemic safety corridors (quick-build, paint-and-bollard solutions), substantial reconstruction (curb and concrete work) and corridor studies for multi-jurisdictional corridors where quick fixes are unlikely to achieve the desired safety outcomes.
Ferndale has agreed to be the lead applicant for a Safe Streets and Roads for All-style implementation grant that the consultant said would fund roughly $11.9 million in implementation projects, with an approximately 80 percent federal and 20 percent local cost share. Saunders said the proposal also includes planning funds and evaluation work for three previously built projects to learn from prior street work.
The presentation included an overview of the study area, a high-injury network map, crash contributing factors (alcohol, drug use and speeding) and a policy inventory that recommends communities maintain up-to-date complete-streets or project-prioritization policies. Saunders said proposed projects were prioritized by roadway characteristics, land use, equity indicators and crash severity.
Council members asked procedural questions about prior local policies and funding. A city official confirmed Ferndale adopted a Complete Streets policy in 2010 and that the local match could be funded through Act 51 transportation dollars in some cases. Saunders noted that some corridors — including 8 Mile Road — are multi-jurisdictional and will need longer-term corridor studies.
No formal action was required at the June 10 meeting; staff said the final plan will be shared with council and that Ferndale is preparing the collaborative grant application.
