Wisconsin tribes receive $1.8M in federal grants to boost road safety

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By JIMMY NESBITT

Special to The Daily Reporter

Five Wisconsin tribes have been awarded nearly $1.8 million in federal grants to improve road safety.

The grants were announced Thursday and are provided through the Federal Highway Administration‘s Tribal Transportation Program Safety Fund. Nationwide, $21 million will be distributed to 61 tribes in 13 states to support 84 projects.

In Wisconsin, the funding will support a range of roadway improvements, pedestrian safety upgrades and long-term planning efforts across tribal communities.

The Forest County Potawatomi Community received $420,886 for a roadway departure safety project on County Highway S and $191,554 for an education trail safety project aimed at protecting pedestrians and trail users. The Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin was awarded $710,836 to design the reconstruction of the CTH H/D and W intersection in Sauk County, targeting a high-risk traffic area.

The Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians secured $218,000 to design new pedestrian pathways, while the St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin received $10,000 to update their transportation safety plan, focusing on long-term strategies to reduce crashes and improve roadway safety.

“The grants we’re announcing today will help Tribes develop transportation safety plans, install proven safety countermeasures that can reduce crashes in rural areas, and improve and analyze safety data to prevent these kinds of crashes from occurring in the future,” Federal Highway Administration Administrator Sean McMaster said in a press release. “We’re pleased to provide these grants that can improve safety and mobility.”

Since its inception, the FHWA Tribal Transportation Program Safety Fund has awarded roughly $141 million through multiple rounds of competitive grants, supporting more than 1,000 tribal projects. Priority is given to initiatives that integrate safety improvements into existing infrastructure, according to the release.

“These grants will help save lives on reservations by ensuring higher safety measures are achieved for Tribal nations,” Assistant Secretary of Tribal Government Affairs James A. Crawford said in the release.