Sunday, May 19, 2024
After partnering with the Central Texas Council of Governments (CTCOG) on the federal Safe Streets for All (SS4A) (see grant) , Coryell County leaders are waiting to see how much their portion of grant funding will be, and also talked about an action plan for the future.
"This covers all seven counties in the COG (Coryell, Bell, Milam, Mills, Lampasas, Hamilton and San Saba)," said County Attorney Brandon Belt, who is developing a request for proposals for the county plan. "The goal is to make streets safer and to have zero deaths (on local roadways).
Commissioner Kyle Matthews said there will be an emphasis on county roads with fatalities.
The majority of the areas in which fatal automobile accidents occur in Coryell County are either on federal or state highways or adjacent to them, said County Judge Roger Miller, adding "there are not nearly as many on other roads."
Some of the smaller counties with less traffic, such as Mills County, may choose to opt out of the program because of the cost sharing required by each participating county, Miller said.
"I ask that we do have an independent RFP (request for proposals) that is not dependent on the COG's but is complementary," he added. "We need some road classification criteria and data to support that."
Belt said the SS4A program is part of a broader emphasis on improving safety countywide.
"This is part of the comprehensive safety action plan for the county," Belt said. "We wanted to identify areas that are safety concerns for the county and develop a plan to address those issues. The list can also include notifying the state of areas of concern that they have control of, and they can use that information to ask for funding to fix problems."
Commissioner Matthews said even federal or state roads can be included in the county's list if there have been fatalities on them.
Miller said he agreed "it is in our best interest to include federal and state highways which are safety concerns. There are multiple examples where local roads intersect with state and federal roads, creating hazards. I believe there are pots of money available to address those concerns."
Commissioner Scott Weddle noted that when first responders are called to the scene of accidents on state and federal highways, that is an example of local resources being used in response to safety issues.
"The CTCOG representative said there would be an opportunity for the county to work with (the Texas Department of Transportation) in the future to address those areas of safety concern," he said.
As to whether school districts might have road safety concerns, Belt said there is a crosswalk leading from schools to the Gatesville Boys & Girls Club "that has a drainage ditch bigger than most small children, so that's at least one thing."
Because the funding will be limited, Miller said if costs are significantly more than expected, the county can reach out to cities and school districts to determine their participation.
