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Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) grant program requirements and how they’re shaping communities

Fehr Graham partners with Alta to help communities implement Safe Streets for All funding and planning.

Our roadways are about to become safer for drivers and pedestrians, and it's about time. With millions injured every year, change couldn't come soon enough.

When streets and roads are unsafe, people pay the price. Shockingly, 40,990 people died in motor vehicle traffic crashes in 2023, as estimated by The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). In 2021, 42,939 people were killed in motor vehicle crashes. Of those, 7,388 were pedestrians.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) announced the Safe Streets and Roads for All grant to combat the nation's roadway safety crisis. Regional, local and tribal communities can use grant funds to make vital changes to improve roadway safety.

Fehr Graham partners with our sister firm, Alta, to help communities get and implement SS4A funding. By leveraging our combined expertise, we offer services that include developing Traffic Impact Studies and transportation forecasting, designing traffic control and planning transportation. Our partnership ensures communities receive support throughout the grant application process and implementation phases, maximizing funding opportunities and improving road safety. Fehr Graham and Alta are dedicated to creating safer, more efficient transportation systems across the Midwest and beyond.

Let's take a closer look to understand how funding is expected to help communities improve road safety measures, and why you should partner with Fehr Graham and Alta to secure funding and develop safe roadways near you.

The Safe Streets and Roads for All grant program

The Safe Streets and Roads for All grant program is committed to a goal of zero roadway deaths. To that end, the program provided $1.7 billion in federal funding to more than 1,000 communities across the U.S. in 2022 and 2023. The funding awarded to date is expected to improve roadway safety planning for 70% of the nation's population.

Here is what the program will look like for the financial year (FY) 2024.


SS4A grant program

Eligible applicants

Counties, cities, towns, transit agencies, special districts, Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs), federally recognized tribal governments

Eligible projects

  • Planning

  • Construction

  • Equipment and materials

  • Operations and maintenance

  • Technology demonstrations and deployment

  • Technical assistance, workforce development and training/education

  • Accessibility

Transportation type

  • Bike/pedestrian

  • Roadway

  • Transit

Types of grants

  1. Planning and demonstration grants:


  • To develop, complete or supplement an Action Plan. An Action Plan creates a well-defined strategy to prevent roadway deaths and serious injuries.

  • To fund supplemental planning activities and demonstration activities in support of an Action Plan.


  1. Implementation grants:


  • To implement projects and strategies identified in an Action Plan to address roadway safety issues. 

  • To fund infrastructural, behavioral and operational activities. 

  • Applicants must have an eligible comprehensive safety action plan to apply for an implementation grant. 

Funding information

  • $1 billion will be awarded yearly via competitive grants through FY 2026. 

  • Expected award sizes in FY 2024 are from $100,000 to $25 million. 

  • The federal cost-sharing for planning grants is 80%. The remaining 20% should be provided by the applicant through nonfederal funds. 

Source: U.S. Department of Transportation

The FY 2024 Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for this grant is open. Here's how the program can help your community improve roadway safety:

  • Develop road safety action plans.
  • Improve unsafe roadway corridors.
  • Test safety features, including separated bicycle lanes or curb extensions at intersections.

Partner with an expert today to improve your community's chances of receiving a Safe Streets and Roads for All grant. Let's take roadway safety to the next level.

How the Fehr Graham team can help communities secure SS4A grant

At Fehr Graham and Alta, we are committed to roadway safety across the Midwest and beyond.

Our experienced team of transportation engineers and planners has helped communities secure grants worth $200 million to strengthen their transportation systems. We can help you develop traffic impact studies and forecast transportation, and design traffic control and complete transportation planning.


To learn more about the Safe Streets and Roads for All grant program and how Fehr Graham and Alta can help you improve road safety in your community, contact us or give us a call at 815.562.9087.

Portrait of seth gronewold As the firm’s Lead Transportation Engineer, Fehr Graham Principal Noah Carmichael, PE, leads notable, complex and high-profile transportation infrastructure engineering projects. He works closely with municipal and governmental partners on public infrastructure planning and identifies funding opportunities to support community capital investment goals. Contact him at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 815.562.9087.