Boulder completes 3 new grant-funded crosswalk projects to light the way for safer streets

The city has completed three crosswalk construction and improvement projects at Aurora Avenue and Evans Drive, Colorado Avenue east of 33rd Street, and 15th Street and Iris Avenue. Funded by a Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG)grant, these crosswalks improve the visibility of people crossing to drivers, leading to safer crossings for all, including children and adults traveling to and from four nearby schools.

"Crosswalks are more than paint on the pavement. They provide better visibility for people driving to see our most vulnerable travelers cross, making travel around Boulder safer for all who can't drive or choose not to," shared Principal Transportation Projects Engineer Gerrit Slatter. "We appreciate DRCOG's partnership in building safer crossings for our community."

All three locations were hotspots for Boulder community requests for new or improved crosswalks. Locations advance Vision Zero, the city's goal to end severe crashes, and were also selected based on the city's broader transportation network, including findings from the 30th and Colorado Corridors Studyand the Neighborhood GreenStreets Program- low-traffic streets with safety enhancements where people of all ages and abilities can feel safe and comfortable walking, biking and rolling. The 15th Street and Iris Avenue improvements extend the north-south 13th Street GreenStreetby better connecting central Boulder to the Iris Fields ballfields and north Boulder neighborhoods.

Changes include flashing lights at crosswalks, ADA-compliant curb ramps, new signage, and concrete curb extensions to shorten crossings for improved safety. Some locations also include bike route connections to the crosswalk, extended school zones to include crossings, and right-turn only access to reduce potential left-turn crash conflicts in the crosswalk.

Grant funding allows local dollars to go further in maintaining and improving infrastructure. Work was supported by a DRCOG Community Mobility Planning and Implementation 2019 grant toward small-scale crosswalk projects. Delivering safer crosswalks is one part of the city's comprehensive approach to transportation safety. The city is also in the process of refining its city-wide crosswalk guidelines.

Learn more on the Crosswalks webpage.

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