Transportation (Pedestrian Safety)

SB 343 requires state highway departments to include bike paths and pedestrian pathways in all new highway construction or reconstruction projects funded by state or federal money. It creates specific exceptions allowing projects to skip these features only if the cost exceeds 20% of the total project budget, if they would cause excessive harm in a tight space, if there's no community need, or if a local community refuses to maintain them. The bill directs the state transportation department to create rules defining these exceptions, with a requirement for a senior official to review cost-based exceptions. This policy directly affects state highway planning and project developers working with state or federal funds.

SB 661 creates a $6 million program to fund safety improvements at high-crash intersections in cities and counties. Local governments can apply for reimbursement or grants to upgrade signalized and stop-sign intersections identified as having excessive crash rates, using data from 2019-2024. The program prioritizes projects in the 10% of counties with the highest intersection crash rates. This is a direct appropriation from the transportation budget for fiscal year 2025-26, with no new legal requirements.