'Vision Zero' In Worcester: Feds To Fund City's Road Safety Plan

WORCESTER, MA — Worcester's road to ending fatal and serious injury crashes on city roads will start with a plan.

The U.S. Department of Transportation this week awarded Worcester a $200,000 grant to developer a safety action plan under the Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) program. The plan will lay out how Worcester can reduce roadway injuries by changing behavior and infrastructure with a "vision zero" goal of ending them completely.

The federal government established the SS4A program with $5 billion from an infrastructure bill passed by Congress in 2022. Once Worcester finishes its action plan, the city will be able to apply for more federal funding for safety projects. The city's new Department of Transportation and Mobility will oversee the creation of the plan.

"Creating safe streets for people of all ages and abilities is a top priority for Worcester," said City Manager Eric Batista said in a news release. "We are grateful for the support from the USDOT and look forward to ongoing partnerships as we implement changes to address the inequitable impacts of traffic safety in our community."

The plan will accompany a larger movement toward better road safety in Worcester.

The group WalkBike Worcester on Nov. 21 marked World Remembrance Day — a day to remember people either killed or maimed in road crashes — and renewed a call for Worcester to implement "Vision Zero," a global campaign to end traffic deaths by making roadways safe for all users.

The event memorialized the seven people who had been killed in crashes in Worcester up to that date. The death of Candice Asare-Yeboah, 5, was not counted toward the total, however. That's because the girl died a month after a driver hit her in a crosswalk along Stafford Street.

According to MassDOT data, Worcester has had 38 injury crashes so far in 2023 and one death. Of those crashes, four involved bicyclists and three involved pedestrians.