The Municipal February 2022

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Editor’s Note

Funding trickles in roads fared even worse with a D, which is unchanged from the 2017 report card. Sarah Wright | Editor Of roads, the American Society of Civil Engineers website notes, “However, these vital lifelines are frequently underfunded, and over 40% of the system is now in poor or mediocre condition. As the backlog of rehabilitation needs grows, motorists are he wheels of government forced to pay over $1,000 every year in turn slowly, but finally a $1 tril- wasted time and fuel. Additionally, while lion bipartisan infrastructure bill traffic fatalities have been on the decline, has become law. According to over 36,000 people are still dying on the WhiteHouse.gov, this legislation nation’s roads every year, and the number will deliver clean water and eliminate lead of pedestrian fatalities is on the rise.” service lines; provide reliable high-speed “Dangerous By Design 2021,” published internet; repair and rebuild roads and by Smart Growth America and the National bridges; improve transportation options Complete Streets Coalition, found that for millions of Americans and reduce Florida led the nation in pedestrian fataligreenhouse emissions through the largest ties. Their report showed 5,893 pedestrian investment in public transit; upgrade air- fatalities between 2010 and 2019, amounting ports and ports; invest in passenger rail; to average annual pedestrian fatalities of 2.8 build a network of electric vehicle chargers; per 100,000, and a danger index of 201.4 as of the 2021 report. The next nearest danger among other improvements. The funding is badly needed across the index — Alabama — dropped to 174.6. The board. The “2021 Report Card for America’s overall national average is 63.3. Infrastructure” gave an overall grade of CWriter Dani Messick is spotlighting one for the U.S.’s infrastructure as a whole. Our Florida city’s efforts to improve pedestrian safety using tactical urbanism. Deerfield

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8   THE MUNICIPAL | FEBRUARY 2022

Beach worked with Broward Metropolitan Planning Organization on the endeavor through its BTactical initiative. All in all, the project has been well received. A little further north, Hillsboro, Va., has also sought to increase pedestrian safety while also undertaking a massive infrastructure project that went beyond its roads. Writer Julie Young shares Hillsboro’s ambitious ReThink9, a $34 million, multifaceted road that included two roundabouts, raised crosswalks, sidewalks, a new municipal drinking water system, wastewater treatment facility, stormwater collection system, underground utility lines and state-of-theart dark-sky-compliant streetlamps. An impressive endeavor for a town of 200! Other topics in this issue include the U.S.’s oldest city, St. Augustine, Fla., and its mission to prevent flooding while also speeding recovery should it happen; Cedar Rapids, Iowa’s, volunteer Snow Buddies program; and finally the benefits of using hydrodemolition. As we get into the swing of the new year, may your roadways be relatively pothole free!  .