WSDOT Seeking Projects for Sandy Williams Transportation Program
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News Brief by Matthew Kincanon | FāVS News
The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) is seeking projects for the second year of The Sandy Williams Connecting Communities Program (SWCC) to help with transportation needs.
The program is named after Sandy Williams, a civil rights activist and journalism entrepreneur who worked to reconnect her Spokane neighborhood after the construction of I-90 split it in half. She died in a plane crash on Sept. 5, 2022, while making her way back to Spokane from vacation.
Part of the “Move Ahead Washington” transportation package, the program was established to improve active transportation connectivity for people walking, biking and rolling along and across current and former Washington state highways.
The package was signed into law by Gov. Jay Inslee in March 2022, which allocates $50 million over five years to:
- Repair transportation inequities by directing investments to environmentally overburdened, vulnerable and underserved communities
- Improve access to community destinations and services
- Provide contracting opportunities for minority and women-owned businesses and community-based organizations
The SWCC program focuses on high equity needs communities, which are those most affected by environmental health disparities and barriers to opportunities.
Funds can be used for projects such as walkways, bikeways, trails, crossings and neighborhood greenways in any phase from planning to construction.
Once awarded, SWCCP funds can be leveraged as a local match funding for federal funds including RAISE grants, Safe Streets for All grants, Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program grants and WSDOT-administered federal funding sources. Additionally, funds can bring resources to projects where state agencies such as the Transportation Improvement Board (TIB), regional or local funding cannot fully meet needs.
Last year, $12 million in funding was dedicated to 12 projects across the state and the start-up of the program.
For more information, contact the strategic policy advisor at WSDOTActive@wsdot.wa.gov or (206) 492-0993.
