DDOT officials on the South Dakota Avenue project presented targeted, lower‑cost safety treatments and a truncated scope after budget shortfalls left the agency with about $600,000 remaining for the corridor.

Christine Mayer, associate director for the multimodal safety engineering division, said the team collected more than 2,000 public comments and recent crash data and then prioritized five high‑injury locations where spot treatments can reduce conflict points. "We only have $600,000 left in our budget," Mayer said; construction and design estimates for the top five locations total $1.15 million to $1.6 million, leaving a shortfall of at least $550,000.

Why it matters: DDOT originally studied a road‑diet across the full three‑mile corridor; protected bike lanes and a full corridor conversion are no longer feasible under current funding, staff said. Instead, the agency proposed lower‑cost countermeasures including intersection daylighting (enforcing 25‑foot clear zones), striped or solid medians to limit left turns, dedicated left‑turn lanes where warranted, concrete separator islands, rapid‑flashing beacons at crossings and signal studies at high‑crash sites.

The presentation detailed the agency's top five priority locations in order: (1) the segment from Bladensburg Road up to Hamlin Street (including Vista and 30th approaches), (2) the Lawrence–Rhode Island area (24th/24th treatments), (3) the Webster to Taylor corridor, (4) the 18th to Otis segment near schools, and (5) Galloway Street / Gallatin, which received the most public comments and has extensive crash history.

On specific treatments, Mayer described two alternatives at Bladensburg/Franklin: a lighter option retaining striped medians and limited movements, and a heavier safety option that would repurpose median space for dedicated left, right and two through lanes plus signal control. For 30th Street approaches, DDOT proposed median extensions, rapid‑flashing beacons and in some cases a signal if it meets federal warrant requirements.

Budget and timeline: Mayer provided construction ranges by location (examples: Galloway/Gallatin $70,000–$80,000; Webster–Taylor $50,000–$100,000; 18th–Shepherd $130,000–$160,000). Design for all five priorities was estimated at $250,000–$500,000; construction $850,000–$1.1M. Mayer said DDOT will use existing construction contracts to shorten procurement time but timing depends on crew availability and additional funding; staff hope to see some work start in 2026 if funds allow.

Next steps: DDOT will prioritize the highest‑harm intersections (initially the top three), hold ANC and neighborhood meetings for location‑specific design, issue Notices of Intent once designs are finalized, and post meeting materials and the recording to the project website. The project team also invited residents to an in‑person session at Perry Street Prep on Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon.

DDOT's stated objective is to reduce crash conflict points and improve pedestrian and bicycle crossings within funding constraints; staff said they will seek further funds and refine designs with ANCs and residents as the project advances.