Safe Streets Funding in Jeopardy

Federal funding cuts for programs that supported safe streets and bike infrastructure will likely contribute to increased pedestrian deaths and halt or delay pedestrian safety projects around the country, reports Lois Parshley in Grist.

“These safety concerns were highlighted in a recent report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which found Americans were 50 percent more likely to die walking in 2022 than in 2013.” Interventions that prioritize safety over traffic speed would help reverse this trend, but the administration appears intent on ending funding for active transportation and road safety efforts such as the BUILD grant and any “funding to advance climate, equity, and other priorities counter to the Administration’s executive orders.”

According to Parshley, “Other funding likely to be caught up in these restrictions include projects within the Active Transportation Infrastructure Investment Program, which supports multimodal travel; the BUILD program, which is designed to meet local or multi-jurisdictional needs; and the Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program, which helps communities harmed by past transportation decisions.”

According to a DOT project manager who spoke to Grist, “It’s not only making people afraid to carry on with good work that was underway, but has a chilling effect on everything we do going forward.”