The city of San Luis Obispo will soon receive $6.95 million in state grant funding to make the Higuera Street corridor safer.
On Wednesday, the California Transportation Commission awarded the city $6.95 million from the State Active Transportation Program to complete street improvements along the Higuera Street corridor between Marsh Street and Los Osos Valley Road, including accessibility and safety enhancements for walking, bicycling, and driving.
In addition, the grant will fund improvements to bicycle and pedestrian links east and west of the Higuera Street corridor to benefit safer bike and walking routes to Hawthorne Elementary and Laguna Middle School.
The Higuera Complete Streets project was identified in the city’s 2021 Active Transportation Plan and prioritized based on input from local parents and proponents for safe routes to school.
It will enhance a 2.5-mile route between Marsh Street and Los Osos Valley Road, providing protected bike lanes, pedestrian crossing enhancements, traffic signal upgrades, and measures to reduce illegal speeding and improve safety for all road users.
The project funding will also be supplemented by a $750,000 Community Betterments Grant recently awarded by the San Luis Obispo Council of Governments, which supports the Higuera Street corridor improvements as well as a new Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon crossing at the intersection of South Street/King Street near Hawthorne Elementary School.
The Higuera Complete Streets project is currently in early design and will include more public outreach opportunities in 2023, leading to an anticipated construction in 2024/2025.
For more information about this project contact Adam Fukushima, active transportation manager at afukushima@slocity.org.
