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Sparks council approves $6.7M Prater Way ‘road diet’ to cut crashes, accept modest peak delays
Summary
The Sparks City Council approved RTC’s $6.7 million Prater Way rehabilitation and lane‑restriping (road‑diet) project after staff said the design would reduce crashes by an estimated 34% annually while increasing peak travel time by roughly 35 seconds; the work is expected to be bid in about a month and built this summer.
The Sparks City Council on March 9 approved a $6.7 million rehabilitation and lane‑striping plan for Prater Way that staff said will reduce crashes and add multimodal safety features while producing modest increases in peak‑hour travel time.
RTC project manager Kim Diegel and Sparks transportation manager Andrew Dankra told the council the proposed configuration — a “road diet” in the Prater Way corridor between Pyramid Way and Probasco — was developed after community outreach and a public information meeting. Diegel said the corridor experienced 105 crashes and three fatalities between 2019 and 2023 and that staff’s analysis shows the recommended configuration would reduce crashes by an estimated 34% annually while producing an approximate 35‑second travel‑time increase during peak hours.
Diegel listed safety additions including widened sidewalks (4 to 5 feet), pedestrian refuge islands, audible rapid‑flashing beacons near Shriver Dilworth Middle School, a new crosswalk near Dilworth, bike racks, flashing beacons at Stanford Way and additional speed signage. Dankra said emergency access is retained because the center turn lane and roadway footprint remain unchanged.
Council members asked about triggers to return to the current lane configuration and whether special events were modeled. Diegel said staff typically do not design for one‑off special events and that a future change would be considered if traffic patterns materially worsened; the design could be revisited during routine pavement preservation cycles (every three to five years).
Councilman Abbott moved to approve RTC’s lane‑striping configuration titled “road diet” as shown in exhibit 3; the motion was seconded and carried unanimously. Dankra said staff expects to advertise the project for bid in about a month and begin summer construction, aiming to complete paving by fall.
The approval directs staff and RTC to proceed with the recommended striping and safety elements; council and staff said the configuration can be adjusted later if monitoring shows unacceptable effects on traffic flow.
