The use of road safety assessments is a proven tool to identify safety issues, particularly for vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and bicyclists. It’s also a key strategy in Bellevue’s Vision Zero initiative. The in-person walking audits for Lake Hills Elementary School, Big Picture School, Phantom Lake Elementary School and Tillicum Middle School were completed in November 2022. The in-person walking audits for International School were completed in February 2023 and Newport High School in March/April 2023.
Assessment locations for 2023
During the second year of grant funding, in 2023, road safety assessments were conducted at these locations.
- Lake Hills Elementary School, Big Picture School, Phantom Lake Elementary School and Tillicum Middle School – November 2022
- International School – February 2023
- Newport High School – March/April 2023
Click to enlarge map of 2023 RSA locations.
Assessment locations for 2022
During the first year of grant funding, in 2022, road safety assessments were conducted at these locations in Crossroads and are summarized in a report, 2022 School Zone Ped-Bike Road Safety Assessments.
- Sherwood Forest Elementary School and Interlake High School – January 2022
- Highland Middle School – April 2022
- Sammamish High School, Stevenson Elementary School and Odle Middle School – May 2022
Click to enlarge map of 2022 RSA locations
Improving safety near schools
The city wanted to know how road safety impacted access to schools. To learn, Bellevue conducted six road safety assessments near 12 schools with grant funding from the Washington Traffic Safety Commission. The goal was to gather local knowledge and community insights that may not be captured in a more traditional, technically oriented review process.
Outreach to Bellevue School District parents, students and staff, neighborhood residents and other community stakeholders, was an important part of the road safety assessment process.
Sign up for Vision Zero updates, including notifications for future walking audits.
About the assessments
Most of Bellevue’s fatal and serious-injury collisions occur on a relatively small number of city streets, known as the high injury network (HIN). To help address safety concerns on specific HIN streets, Bellevue has implemented a series of road safety assessments to identify safety issues, particularly for vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and bicyclists. Recently completed assessments include Northeast Eighth Street and Factoria Boulevard Southeast.
Funding
Funding for the road safety assessments came through a $150,000 grant from the Washington Traffic Safety Commission and a $42,758 match from the city.
Background material
- News release (Jan. 5, 2022)