Sitka's next step in a multi-year federal road safety push — RFQ goes out as SS4A program nears its authorized end

In communities like Sitka, where plenty of people walk to school and work whether the weather wants them to or not, road safety isn't an abstraction. Sidewalks, crosswalks, and lighting are the difference between a routine commute and a near-miss in the rain.

That's the point of the federal Safe Streets and Roads for All program, which Sitka tapped in early 2023 with a $550,000 planning grant from USDOT. The city is now hiring a consultant to take that work to the next stage. Qualifications are due July 8.

The timing isn't optional. The SS4A program was authorized through 2026 under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, and the current authorization runs out September 30. Communities still moving from planning to implementation — Sitka included — are essentially racing the federal fiscal year to lock in funding before the next Congress decides whether the program continues.

Sitka isn't alone. Ketchikan and Juneau received parallel SS4A planning grants in the same 2023 round, putting three Southeast Alaska communities on the same trajectory toward implementation funding for actual sidewalks, crossings, and street design changes.

"Folks just walk to school or to work, and there's a lot of need for safety improvements," said Seema Garrett, a transportation planner who has worked on SS4A applications.