$90 million is now available to help local governments enhance safety and reduce fatalities on their roads, part of a comprehensive “Safe System” approach toward zero deaths being deployed by the State Department of Transportation to reduce fatalities on all highway systems across New York. The funding will support projects intended to prevent vehicles from inadvertently straying from their lanes and to lessen the severity of crashes that result from those instances. In New York State, about 40 percent of crash fatalities occur when a vehicle departs from its lane. The initiative is part of a multi-year, multi-agency action plan released last year by the New York State Department of Transportation to reduce such incidents and minimize the injuries and fatalities that result from them.
“Safe highways save lives and through the adoption of a ‘Safe System’ approach, we are holistically looking at our highway systems to see where our safety investments can make the biggest difference in reducing fatalities,” Governor Kathy Hochul said. “The funding we are making available today will help local governments design and implement projects that will enhance the safety of their roadways and make it more likely that drivers reach their destination unharmed.”
Striving to achieve a Safe System Approach toward Zero Deaths, the New York State Department of Transportation in the summer of 2024 released the Roadway Departure Safety Action Plan, which calls for a comprehensive approach to be undertaken by NYSDOT and its partner agencies to reduce fatalities and serious injuries that result when vehicles inadvertently depart their lanes or the roadway. Under the plan, NYSDOT is focusing on engineering improvements, public education, and awareness campaigns, and the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee is coordinating law enforcement activities.
A portion of the funds — about $10 million — has been set aside to support local municipalities in developing Local Road Safety Plans, which identify and analyze problem areas and prioritize potential safety improvements.
Minimum available funds per local project is $250,000 and additional information about the funding and how local governments can propose projects is available here. The following entities are eligible to sponsor a project:
- Counties, towns, villages and Native Nations
- Metropolitan Planning Organizations
- Counties interested in sponsoring a project on behalf of one or more municipalities within their county are also eligible to apply.
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