The City of Cincinnati has received a federal Department of Transportation Safe Streets & Roads for All (SS4A) grant of $250,000 to address transportation safety priorities.

The City’s Department of Transportation & Engineering (DOTE) submitted a first round SS4A grant proposal in September 2022. With the award, the City will develop a Transportation Safety Action Plan (TSAP) to prioritize transportation safety goals, objectives, and strategies.

A TSAP is required to be eligible for future rounds of SS4A implementation funds. The City will work with OKI and ODOT to inform the planning process with data, for consistency with regional and state-wide plans.

“Our Transportation Safety Action Plan is another critical step forward in our work to made roads safe for all residents,” said Mayor Aftab Pureval. “Whether they’re driving, walking, biking, or rolling, our residents deserve a truly connected community. We are extremely grateful for OKI, ODOT, and our federal partners for their continued collaboration, and we look forward to building on this plan.”

The TSAP will consider multiple modes of transportation — pedestrian, vehicular, bicycling, and freight — and be developed using crash data, user surveys, and the results of pilot safety programs. DOTE estimates the TSAP will take one year to complete.

“Development of a TSAP will unlock the door to more federal construction funding for multi-modal traffic calming projects,” says DOTE Director John Brazina. “This means more money for narrowing wide streets, building protected bike lanes, raised crosswalks, curb extensions, and wider sidewalks.”

The SS4A initiative through the DOT was established by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL). The SS4A grant program is one of nearly two dozen grant-based programs funded by the BIL, intended to address transportation infrastructure deficiencies. Under the law, at least 40 percent of SS4A funding is set aside annually for Action Plan Grants and up to 60 percent is available for Implementation Grants. The SS4A program will allocate about $5 billion to state and local governments for TSAPs and road safety improvements.