In the last week of February, Senator Edward J. Markey (MA) and Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) reintroduced the Complete Streets Act. This legislation would promote safer and more accessible transportation routes across the United States.

To create safer streets, the Complete Streets Act does three things

• Sets aside federal funds at the state level to support Complete Streets projects (five percent of annual federal highway funds).

• Requires states to create a program to provide technical assistance and award funding for communities to build Complete Streets projects.

• Directs localities to adopt a Complete Streets policy that meets a minimum set of standards (set out by the U.S. Secretary of Transportation) in order to access that dedicated funding.

A Complete Street is designed and modelled with ALL users in mind, a deviation from the traditional way of road building that tends to prioritize the needs and convenience of drivers in motor vehicles above bicyclists and pedestrians. The Complete Streets Act is modeled off of a Massachusetts law which sparked the adoption of nearly 200 local complete streets policies and implementation plans, and funded over 100 safety projects in just three years. Complete street policies not only result in roadways that are more accessible, they are safer roads for people walking, biking, scooting, taking public transit, and even driving.

Just last week, the National Safety Council released preliminary data showing that as many as 42,060 people are estimated to have died in motor vehicle crashes in 2020. This is the highest death estimate in 13 years, despite record drops in total miles driven due to the pandemic. Not only that, but the increase in that rate of death – 24% over the previous 12-month period – is the highest estimated year-over-year jump that the NSC has calculated in 96 years. According to the NSC, this finding underscores the country’s persistent failure to prioritize safety on the roads, which became emptier but far deadlier in the last year.

See our previous #GOPCThread covering how traffic fatality trends rose across Ohio in 2020.

GOPC has long been advocating for a statewide active transportation policy, which is currently underway at the Department of Transportation. A draft plan of Walk.Bike.Ohio was released earlier this year, the first bike and pedestrian plan at the state level. While it is important to create models and plans for Complete Streets, the results remain unchanged so long as there isn’t a meaningful increase in funding for active transportation projects.

Federal transportation policies have long influenced state roadway designs, allocating a disproportionate amount of funding on projects that prioritize increasing speed and roadway expansion. The federal Complete Streets Act aims to change that by making federal dollars available to incorporate the safety, comfort, and accessibility for all roadway users.

This bill is the product of more than a decade of work by the National Complete Streets Coalition and Smart Growth America to create safer, healthier, and more equitable communities. Read more about the Complete Streets Act, and how you can support it, in the official press release and at Smart Growth America’s website.