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Regional Safe Streets plan recommended to council after PDC presentation
Summary
The Central Virginia Planning District Commission presented a USDOT-funded Safe Streets and Roads for All safety action plan, identifying a high-injury network and regional goals; PDC recommended the plan to council for formal consideration, noting eligibility for federal construction dollars if localities adopt safety goals.
Kelly Hitchcock of the Central Virginia Planning District Commission presented a regional Safety Action Plan to Lynchburg officials Feb. 10, describing the plan’s goals, evidence base and funding context.
Hitchcock said the PDC secured a $280,000 USDOT Safe Streets and Roads for All grant, with a $70,000 local match, and assembled a 246-page plan that identifies the region’s high-injury network and priority interventions. "Fifty percent of those fatal and serious accidents happen on 8% of the roadway," she told the council, noting in Lynchburg 70% of fatal crashes occur on roughly 9% of its road miles.
The plan prioritizes engineering, enforcement, education and engagement tailored to pedestrians, bicyclists, older drivers and high-risk intersections. Hitchcock cited the Rivermont/Bedford Avenue intersection as an example where targeted state-funded improvements produced measurable safety benefits.
Council asked staff and the PDC for follow-up on corridor projects, corridor-level safety analyses, and how the plan aligns with state strategic highway safety objectives. The PDC asked for a recommendation to forward the action plan to full council; the body responded affirmatively in a voice vote during the meeting.
The recommendation makes the city eligible to seek federal construction dollars under Safe Streets and Roads for All and to frame future applications to VDOT and USDOT around the plan’s priorities. The PDC said the plan will be hosted at cdsafestreets.com for public access and will be used to guide five years of regional coordination and project selection.
