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NYMTC Regional Pedestrian Safety Study - New York Metropolitan ...

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VI. FUNDING<br />

Funding for pedestrian safety projects came up frequently during the interviews. This section<br />

provides a brief summary of funding strategies and sources.<br />

6.1 Funding Strategies<br />

The new manual, How to Develop a <strong>Pedestrian</strong> <strong>Safety</strong> Action Plan (Zegeer et al., 2006; available<br />

at http://www.walkinginfo.org/pp/howtoguide2006.pdf), suggests four strategies for funding<br />

pedestrian safety improvements:<br />

♦ Routine accommodation in new projects<br />

♦ Partnerships<br />

♦ Dedicated funds and set asides<br />

♦ Annual maintenance budget<br />

Routine accommodation in new projects: Several agencies in the <strong>NYMTC</strong> region are already<br />

doing this as a routine planning measure, and in fact, all roadway and transit projects should be<br />

analyzed for associated pedestrian improvements. Project selection criteria for inclusion in the<br />

TIP could be modified to promote projects that have pedestrian safety components. NYSDOT<br />

has a “<strong>Pedestrian</strong> Generator Checklist” in Chapter 18 the NYSDOT Design Manual for<br />

determining if pedestrian improvements should be made as part of a project. [Available at:<br />

http://www.dot.state.ny.us/cmb/consult/hdmfiles/chapt_18.pdf]<br />

Partnerships: The partnership might be with another public agency or with a private developer.<br />

Possible examples of projects to partner with are utility work along a roadway could or the<br />

construction of a new school. An important partnership that should be considered for many<br />

projects is using NHTSA funds (through the local Traffic <strong>Safety</strong> Board and GTSC) to add<br />

enforcement and education components to engineering projects. Another suggestion is grouping<br />

several small pedestrian improvement projects and including them with a nearby larger project.<br />

Dedicated funds and set asides: NYSDOT, <strong>NYMTC</strong>, or a local government can set up a<br />

dedicated fund or set aside a percentage of a larger fund to be used specifically for pedestrian<br />

safety improvements. NYSDOT Regions typically block out funds for future pedestrian projects<br />

in their 12 year capital programs. A similar possibility is to establish a sidewalk fund with fees<br />

paid by developers in lieu of building sidewalks in their projects. The funds could then be used<br />

for pedestrian facilities where they are most needed. The manual cautions that the dedicated<br />

fund should not be used for routine accommodation in projects.<br />

Annual maintenance budget: Small improvements, such as widening a sidewalk or providing<br />

high visibility crosswalks, can be included during maintenance.<br />

An important strategy for obtaining funding is to develop a sidewalk plan (or sidewalk and<br />

bicycle plan) to identify and prioritize pedestrian infrastructure needs. The plan would provide<br />

<strong>NYMTC</strong> <strong>Pedestrian</strong> <strong>Safety</strong> <strong>Study</strong> 95

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