SANDAG Soliciting Bike and Pedestrian Projects

Courtesy of SANDAG:

Acting to implement its long-range plans to improve active transportation, SANDAG has put out a call seeking competitive bids for $8.8 million in grant funds to pay for bicycle and pedestrian improvements throughout the region.

Among the types of projects eligible for funding are new bicycle paths and boulevards, bicycle lane striping, new sidewalks and sidewalk improvements, high-visibility crosswalks, roundabouts and traffic circles, road diets, and pedestrian- and bicycle-related traffic-control devices.

Proposals submitted by the region’s 18 cities and the county government are due in July. The submittals will be scored on a competitive basis, with funding recommendations being made in late summer or early fall to the SANDAG board of directors. While the grants will be made only to the cities and the county, non-profit and community-based organizations may partner with the agencies to make joint proposals.

Funding for the approximately $8.8 million Active Transportation Grant Program comes from the Transportation Development Act and the voter-approved TransNet half-cent sales tax program. The funds will be apportioned to capital and non-capital projects as follows:

• $6.6 million, or 75 percent of the fund, for capital projects.

• $2.2 million for planning, education and bicycle-parking projects.

This is the first call for active transportation projects since the board of directors adopted Riding to 2050: The San Diego Regional Bicycle Plan in May 2010 and the 2050 Regional Transportation Plan and its Sustainable Communities Strategy in October 2011.

The goal of the Active Transportation Grant Program is to promote the “complete streets” vision, providing multiple travel choices for residents and connectivity to transit, schools, retail centers, parks, work and other community gathering places.

For more information visit www.sandag.org/active.