Alaska DOT tells Senate panel Anchorage accounts for disproportionate share of pedestrian deaths; debate over fencing vs. lane drops

ANCHORAGE — Alaska Department of Transportation officials told the Senate Transportation Committee on Feb. 19 that Anchorage accounts for a disproportionate share of the state's pedestrian fatalities and serious-injury crashes and outlined a mix of engineering, enforcement and behavioral measures to reduce deaths.

"Deaths and serious injuries are unacceptable," Shanna McCarthy, communications director for the Alaska DOT, told the committee as she described the department's use of a Safe Systems approach that aims to design out lethal outcomes.

Pam Golden, the department's state traffic and safety engineer, said Anchorage comprises about 39% of the state's population but a much larger share of vulnerable road user fatalities and serious injuries. Golden said DOT plans a detailed review of crash narratives in Anchorage to identify contributing factors and potential near-term countermeasures.

Committee members pressed DOT for Alaska-specific, pre-pandemic trend data. Senator Sarah Tobin, who represents the Fairview area, said the committee needs historical context before committing to measures such as barriers, lane drops or reduced speed limits. "I myself have been hit multiple times by vehicles and had them just drive away," Tobin said, urging more community engagement on proposals.

DOT described proven and pilot countermeasures: leading pedestrian intervals, improved lighting, targeted enforcement, pedestrian-safety zones, and road diets. Golden cited federal research showing a roughly 29% crash reduction in certain 4-to-3 lane conversions, but she cautioned that much of that research covers two-way road diets and may not map exactly to Anchorage one-way couplets like Inger/Gamble.

On controversial interim measures, DOT defended temporary pedestrian fencing in locations such as parts of downtown and the Minnesota corridor as a quickly deployable step while longer-term reconfigurations are pursued. "The fencing is something that can be done quickly," Golden said, while acknowledging community concerns that barriers can be unpopular and sometimes climbed over.

Anchorage Police Department Lieutenant Mark Patzke, commander of the traffic unit, described enforcement and education tied to federal grant funding. He said APD executed about 682 traffic stops under a vulnerable road user grant in 2024 and contacted roughly 274 pedestrians as part of education and outreach; in 2025 APD logged about 697 stops and 337 pedestrian contacts.

Several senators said they prefer more permanent engineering solutions — including lane reductions and bike lanes — over temporary barriers. DOT said it is moving forward with pilots and studies, including an Elmore Road speed pilot and vulnerability audits in Muldoon and Tudor, and that the Inger/Gamble corridor work will include utility undergrounding and temporary lane reductions this summer to collect real-world data.

DOT also called attention to a recent 86-day stretch (Nov. 22, 2025–Feb. 16, 2026) without a pedestrian fatality statewide and said the agency wants to replicate whatever combination of countermeasures contributed to that pause in deaths.

The committee requested DOT provide Alaska-specific historical crash data, the timeline for projects proposed in Fairview and other neighborhoods, cost breakdowns for pedestrian-safety-zone treatments, and details about public outreach plans. DOT said some projects would be proposed in a supplemental budget and that it will return with more data.

The committee did not take formal action; members asked DOT to follow up. The Senate Transportation Committee adjourned at 3:03 p.m.