Council supports $25 million Safe Streets grant application to improve West State Street corridor

Bristol City Council on May 12 approved a resolution supporting the Bristol Metropolitan Planning Organizationapplication for a Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) implementation grant to pay for safety improvements on the West State Street corridor.

Michael Bray, transportation planning manager for the Bristol MPO, told council the local road safety plan identified the corridor from Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard to 24th Street as high priority after reviewing 11,089 reported crashes from 2020to2024. Bray said the grant application seeks the maximum recommended federal award and that the current project estimate is $25,000,000: "The total project cost right now is estimated $25,000,000," he said, adding the likely federal share would be $20,000,000 with the two cities responsible for a combined $5,000,000 match.

Bray said the plan used a "high injury network" analysis to focus limited resources and noted the corridor included a 2022 fatal pedestrian crash. He described likely countermeasures under consideration, including signal timing synchronization, median pedestrian refuge islands, improved crosswalk visibility and corridor access management; several of the measures would also require stormwater and utility work.

Council members asked how match costs would be handled if the cities could not cover their shares. Bray said scope could be revised in preliminary engineering and that in-kind contributions (staff time, materials) and state funding options could reduce the cash match. He said the Commonwealth Transportation Board has a process to request state matching funds for federal discretionary grants and that SmartScale and Tennessee processes were alternatives but would cover different extents and timelines.

Staff recommended approval of the resolution by caption only; a council member moved to approve and a second was recorded. The clerk called the roll and recorded unanimous approval (Farnam, Littleton, Osborne, "Holly", Holmes recorded as voting yes in the transcript roll call). Council discussion emphasized the project's safety benefits and potential to spur redevelopment and aesthetic improvements along the corridor.

Bray cited the grant application deadline as May 26 (5 p.m. Eastern) and outlined a tentative schedule if awarded: notice of award potentially in February, project start in fiscal year 2028, approximately two years for preliminary engineering, and construction complete by June 2032 under grant rules.

The council's resolution supports the MPO's application and does not itself commit the city to specific funding beyond the required match; staff said the match strategy will be developed if the award is made. The council approved the resolution by roll call.

What happens next: the MPO will submit the SS4A application by the May 26 deadline. If the project is awarded, staff will return with further plans for preliminary engineering, funding strategies for the local match and required grant agreements.