LAKEPORT >> The City of Lakeport recently received a grant of $1.87 million by the Active Transportation Program (ATP) for the Hartley Street Safer Route to School Project to start making improvements on Hartley Street
The project will improve the safety of students who walk to and from school by making enhancements to sidewalks and crosswalks and put in place radar feedback signs that will slow traffic and reduce reckless speeds on Hartley Street. This will provide a direct connection to the campuses to create safety for students.
The Lake Area Planning Council (APC) worked with the City of Lakeport to develop the grant. John Specka, Senior Planner at APC, said when putting in for the grant application they weren’t sure if it would get approved or not.
“(We) thought it was more of a shot in the dark and then it sort-of panned out,” Specka said.
Initial stages of the improvements that involve environmental studies would begin in 2019 and with construction of the street starting in 2021 Specka added.
Hartley Street is a rural road with steep curves that give limited sight to drivers and is only one of three routes existing to get to the campuses. Currently, sidewalks occur on only two areas of Hartley Street. This means more than half of the school route holds conflicts between those walking and those driving.
The County Health Status Profiles in 2016 ranked Lake County as the lowest or near the lowest for health measures. Lake County is ranked 50 out of 58 for health behaviors that include obesity, physical inactivity, access to exercise opportunities and alcohol-impaired driving deaths. The county was also ranked 54 for motor vehicle traffic crashes. With Hartley Street Safer Route to School Project, Lake County could potentially improve these areas.
