The City of Dayton, Ohio is looking to build a pedestrian bridge over US-35 at Abbey Avenue, and they are asking the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) for $2.5 million from its Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program.
The $2.5 million in funding would cover half of the cost of the bridge.
In a grant request to the USDOT, the City of Dayton said “the speed and crossing distances” create “extreme challenges” for really anyone who isn’t in a car.
The intersection is 138 feet wide, and pedestrians have about 49 seconds to cross. With approximately 35,000 cars using that roadway everyday, with speed limits ranging from 50 to 55 MPH, it poses a danger for many in the community.
In the proposal from the city, they cited data from 2020 that came from the U.S. Census Bureau showing that 42 percent of people in the nearby neighborhoods do not have a car compared to 18 percent for the city of Dayton and 20 percent of Montgomery County.
The City of Dayton said US-35 has “created a barrier between the west Dayton neighborhoods it sought to enhance” since it's inception in the 1980's, and the new pedestrian bridge is looking to solve that issue.
Before construction can begin, Dayton needs the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) to agree to pay half of the $5 million cost, Dayton would pay for the rest.
The city wants to start construction in March 2024 and finish the project in December 2025.
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Source: WHIO.com
