Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Vision Zero topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Wheat Ridge hears county-led Vision Zero safety-action plan; targeted intersection recommendations promised
Summary
Jefferson County and consultants presented a regional Vision Zero safety-action plan to Wheat Ridge council on Aug. 3, outlining a High Injury Network, a Safe System approach and targeted corridor/intersection countermeasures with community outreach starting in September.
Jefferson County’s Vision Zero safety-action plan, presented to the Wheat Ridge City Council on Aug. 3, maps a regional approach to reducing fatal and severe injury crashes and promises targeted countermeasures on the county’s High Injury Network.
Christian Branko, a consultant working with Jefferson County and partner jurisdictions, told council the plan compiles five years of crash history (2020–2024), identifies hotspots and will pair that analysis with a suite of proven engineering, programmatic and policy interventions. "Vision Zero…focuses on eliminating all fatal and severe injury crashes," Branko said, adding the effort centers vulnerable roadway users — bicyclists, pedestrians and motorcyclists — while using a five‑component safe‑system framework.
Branko said the county used a Federal Highway Administration Safe Streets and Roads for All grant and local match to fund planning work and that the team will produce corridor‑ and intersection‑specific recommendations informed by the High Injury Network. He described an outreach schedule that includes an online open house and survey in September, pop‑up events across the county and virtual office hours with project staff.
Council members pressed for clarity on the plan's next steps and implementation tools. Mayor Pro Tem Holting and others asked whether the draft would include intersection‑level remedies and specifics such as signal‑timing changes or lane reconfigurations; Branko said the draft will present targeted countermeasures tied to the crash types observed at each location and that implementation funding would be pursued at the local and federal level.
The county will run stakeholder and public review before presenting a draft plan to the public in early 2027 and seek local agency adoption thereafter. Rocky Mxalka, the city’s engineering manager and Wheat Ridge’s stakeholder representative, said staff will coordinate local review and cross‑promote county outreach through Wheat Ridge channels.
