Austin gets $288K grant for ADA-compliant trails, crossings

AUSTIN (KXAN) — A nearly $300,000 federal grant will help the city of Austin upgrade its trails and pedestrian crossings to be ADA-compliant.

Austin City Council approved Thursday the acceptance and allocation of a $288,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation's Safe Streets and Roads for All program. The city will provide a $72,000 match for the grant, with that local funding coming from the Austin Transportation and Public Works' capital and operating budgets this fiscal year.

This latest federal funding will help the city finish its ADA transition plans for Austin's urban trails and pedestrian crossings. City transportation staff will work on securing a new contract with a consultant to help produce those ADA transition plans across a two-year timeframe, as authorized by the grant.

The goal of those plans is to outline a course of action for upgrading that infrastructure and will complement Austin's existing ADA transition plan for sidewalks and parkland trails, per council documents.

"This planning effort is an important part of the City's obligations under the American with Disabilities Act and demonstrates the City's commitment to ensure its approach to ADA accessibility includes all components of the pedestrian network," documents read in part.

In September, that same federal program allocated more than $59 million to road safety projects across Texas. Among that funding pool was nearly $10.5 million awarded to Austin for its Safer Transportation Routes using Inclusive, Demonstrative and Equitable Solutions (STRIDES) project — centered around upgrading almost 50 intersections in Austin using low-cost safety treatments.

Last fall, Austin City Council accepted a nearly $23 million grant from the federal program to assist in traffic safety projects across town. That funding was poised to help enhance more than 60 locations citywide, with projects centered around pedestrian hybrid beacon installations, improved visibility and lighting at pedestrian crossings as well as revamping multiple intersections.

The Safe Streets and Roads for All initiative is a nearly $5 billion program incorporated into the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Its efforts focus on regional, local and Tribal projects that will help minimize traffic fatalities and serious injuries.