Dallas council members question ‘minimal' Vision Zero road safety funding in bond plan

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Dallas City Council members voiced concerns Wednesday about whether a $500 million transportation bond proposal would do enough to back a pledge the council made in 2022 when it adopted a 'Vision Zero' road safety plan. The plan aims to eliminate traffic deaths by 2030 and reduce the number of serious injuries by 50%.

“We're a long way from where we need to be, and I know today we're not discussing the specific priorities street by street, but I do want to just make it known that 'Vision Zero' is an area that I want to see an increase,” said council member Jesse Moreno during a Wednesday council discussion on the status of the city’s bond package proposal.

As NBC 5 Investigates reported Tuesday, less than 2% of the $500 million in transportation bonds are currently earmarked for Vision Zero safety improvements. It amounts to about $8.8 million, in the council’s most recent proposal.

“It's pretty minimal, considering the size of this bond,” said District 1 Council member Chad West during Wednesday’s council meeting.

City records reviewed by NBC 5 Investigates indicate the majority of the Vision Zero bond money would be used to install streetlights at six high injury and death locations and to improve one intersection. An intersection that does not appear on the city’s list of the worst locations for fatal and serious injury crashes.

Council member Jaime Resendez, who represents the Pleasant Grove neighborhood where some of the city’s top crash locations are located, said staff needs to do much more to address his constituents’ concerns about road safety.

“It’s the top issue that I hear about in District 5. To me, this is, it really is, a life or death type of thing, you know, it really is,” Resendez told his colleagues gathered around the council horseshoe.

City staff responded to Resendez in the meeting, saying they would look for ways to include Vision Zero improvements in more of the street repair and reconstruction projects that will be funded by the bond package but are not listed under the 'Vision Zero' umbrella.

The bond package also includes about $50 million for what are called “Complete Streets” projects. Some of those projects incorporate Vision Zero strategies such as re-purposing or narrowing traffic lanes to slow vehicle speeds and create safer spaces for pedestrians and cyclists.

However, several council members indicated Wednesday that they want staff to provide more clarity on how the pieces fit together and how road safety is being prioritized in all city transportation projects.

“Anytime we look at re-constructing streets in our city Vision Zero tenants and Vision Zero goals need to be implemented in that,” Resendez told NBC 5 and Telemundo 39.

Wednesday’s vote on the bond plan was just a straw vote. The council will meet again in February for a vote to call a bond referendum in May, and then voters will ultimately decide whether to approve the plan.