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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2/6/2024 Item 6a, Hicks Kathryn Anne < To:E-mail Council Website Subject:Agenda Item 6A - Please fund an updated South Broad Street Traffic Safety Study This message is from an External Source. Use caution when deciding to open attachments, click links, or respond. Dear City Council, I am writing today to first express my gratitude for all you've done to improve safety for those of us in the community who chose to walk and ride instead of driving our cars. As a resident in the Woodbridge/Meadow Park area, I along with so many others in our community, I too hope that we can take the next step in improving our community's safety by next looking to improve South Broad Street. I would like to ask that unallocated funds from the mid-year budget review, Item 6A, be set aside to hire a traffic engineer to update the study that was done for the South Broad Street Plan, adopted in 2014, and make recommendations for improving the safety of the South Broad Street Corridor as it relates to reducing the speed of drivers and improving safety for all road users and access for those that walk and bike. By taking this first step towards improving the safety of this travel corridor the City can continue to work toward addressing its Climate Action and Sustainable Transportation goal; making this street safer to walk and bike will reduce car dependency. This will also support the City's DEI and Housing and Homelessness goals as it would be a step towards removing barriers to safe transportation opportunities and create greater transportation equity in our community, specifically for the new affordable housing units in the South Broad area. Additionally, m aking this street safer will allow for better and more equitable access to the great businesses that operate on South Broad Street, supporting the City's Economic Resiliency Goals. Several people I know in this neighborhood will drive the few blocks to businesses such as the Co-op and Taste because they do not feel safe walking or biking on Broad Street. Specifically, I would love to see the study look at improving safety through reducing speeds on the residential portions of Broad Street, from South Street to Damon Garcia Park and implement projects 1, 2, 7, and 8, in section 7. My partner rides this road almost every day to get to his work out by the airport, I have friends that live right on Broad Street, and a number of the kids that I coach mountain biking live in the surrounding neighborhood. I am deeply involved in our cycling community and fear the day that someone I love is injured or killed by a speeding or distracted driver in the corridor. I look forward to seeing you all on Tuesday night. Thank you, 1 Kathryn Hicks 2