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Douglas County staff and consultant present Safe Streets for All plan, cite crash hot spots and invite public input
Summary
Public works and a Parametrix planner summarized a federally funded Safe Streets for All safety plan, cited INDOT crash data (2019''2023) showing 2,600+ crashes with seven local fatalities and invited residents to a March 18 open house and a short online survey.
Douglas County public-works staff and a contracted planner briefed the Board of Commissioners on March 5 about a federally funded Safe Streets for All planning effort that will identify safety projects and policy recommendations countywide.
Amy Cummings, a transportation planner with Parametrix, said the study uses INDOT crash data from 2019 through 2023 and that the countywide dataset includes more than 2,600 crashes. Cummings told the board the analysis identified seven traffic fatalities on local roads during that period, 17 crashes that involved pedestrians and seven that involved bicyclists, and that the team prioritized locations that have produced serious or fatal injuries.
"We're looking at all modes of transportation and identifying opportunities to improve transportation safety," Cummings said, and emphasized the team''s focus on cost-effective small- and large-scale solutions and on projects that could later be competitive for construction grants.
Public outreach: Cummings said more than 100 people had completed an online survey so far and invited residents to a public open house on March 18 (Douglas County Community & Senior Center dining room, 4''2:00 p.m.) and to take a brief eight-question survey (QR codes and flyers were distributed). She also said the team will produce a draft plan in the spring (target: May) and update maps as new crash data become available.
Josh Nordlo of Public Works noted the team is coordinating with INDOT, metropolitan planning organizations and prior local plans (transportation master plan, safe routes to school, trail plan) to identify candidate projects and appropriate lead agencies.
Cummings and Nordlo said the plan will separate state routes from local roads to clarify which agency would typically lead improvements, and they invited the public to review maps of the high-injury network at outreach events.
What comes next: staff and consultants will identify candidate projects and return with a draft plan in the spring; outreach events and the survey will inform priorities and help identify missing problem locations for the plan.
