FLAGSTAFF, Ariz – The City of Flagstaff has been awarded $9.6M from the United States Department of Transportation to implement the Butler Avenue Complete Streets Conversion. The City will convert 0.9 miles of arterial road in the urban center of Flagstaff to a Complete Street. The project includes installing bike lanes that are grade-separated from motor vehicle traffic; three protected intersections; a new pedestrian crossing; upgrades to an existing pedestrian crossing; and pedestrian comfort features, such as landscape buffers, that also result in reducing speeds through the historic Southside Neighborhood in the core of Flagstaff.
Flagstaff Mayor Becky Daggett said “Safe streets for all is our goal and this grant will put our pedestrian and bike designs for Butler Avenue into action. Thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Flagstaff has received $58M to date and residents and visitors alike will get to enjoy transportation and infrastructure projects designed to make moving around town on foot, bike, bus, and car easier and more convenient. Thanks to Arizona’s Senators Kelly and Sinema for their part in making this happen.”
The City would like to thank MetroPlan of Greater Flagstaff for its significant contribution to the grant application and the grant writing process. Kate Morley, the Executive Director of MetroPlan noted “MetroPlan’s strategic goals include bringing more federal transportation funds to the region. This project was an obvious choice for this grant program because of the critical, multimodal safety enhancements it creates for Flagstaff most vulnerable roadway users.”
Butler Avenue from Milton to Sawmill is an arterial roadway with speeds ranging between 35 and 40 mph and has been identified as the single-highest bicycle-crash corridor within City jurisdiction by the Active Transportation Master Plan. Within the last five years, the corridor has had 282 recorded crashes, including nine serious injury incidents and one fatality involving a bicyclist.
Work on the project is expected to begin in spring 2024 and be completed by summer 2026. A project factsheet with more information is available online.