The city’s progress on its Vision Zero goals is threatened by a potential loss of bond funding.
Chicago recorded 100 traffic deaths last year, the lowest number since 2016. But road safety advocates warn that the city’s progress could stall if the budget for Vision Zero and Complete Streets programs is reduced, reports Sabrina Castle in Block Club Chicago.
As proposed, Mayor Brandon Johnson’s 2025-2029 Capital Improvement Program would cut bond funding for the two programs from $40 million in 2026 to $6 million in 2029. “But the city’s Office of Budget Management, in a statement, contended the Capital Improvement Plan is a ‘planning document … and does not represent a fully funded financing schedule, nor does it imply that funding ceases after a particular year.’”
According to OBM, bond packages usually take several years to be issued, so bond revenue going to CDOT for the next four years is largely from previous funding packages, Castle explains. However, Alderman Daniel La Spata, a member of the city’s Committee on Pedestrian and Traffic Safety, worries the city won’t be able to keep reducing traffic deaths “with the current investments that we see available to us.”
Read the full story: Chicago Traffic Deaths Reach A 9-Year Low, But Funding Cuts Could Threaten Progress
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