Many communities and State Departments of Transportation have a shared goal of creating safer streets. They recognize that without collaboration, creating a healthier, more resilient future for communities won’t happen— but what can happen to cause roadblocks to progress? Members of the SGA team were in Bristol, Connecticut in March to begin answering that question as part of the Complete Streets Leadership Academies (CSLA). Connecticut is one of 4 states chosen to participate in the CSLA program, which includes a series of virtual seminars and a two-day in-person workshop.
This year’s Complete Streets Leadership Academies have two main goals. During the program, participating communities will implement a temporary demonstration or “quick-build” project that showcases ways to improve mobility safety in communities. This process will be used to inform the second goal of the program– to identify best practices around collaboration between local jurisdictions and State Departments of Transportation. For this in-person session in Connecticut, representatives from the cities of Bristol, Middletown, and Waterbury came together with the Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT), other key stakeholders, and instructors from SGA and Stantec (a member of the National Complete Streets Coalition), for a two-day workshop to further develop action plans, expand knowledge, and provide space for in-person collaboration. Throughout the workshop and the entire program, SGA captures recommendations for improved processes, best practices, and resources to foster collaboration and efficient implementation of projects to address the nation’s roadway safety challenges. We are then able to share these learnings across our CSLA cohort and other Complete Streets programs.
One thing is clear—change cannot be achieved without leadership, and examples of leadership were on display in Connecticut.
Leadership means showing up
Workshop participants demonstrated their commitment to improving street safety in Connecticut by taking time and resources to travel to Bristol. Additionally, the Mayor of Bristol and the Commissioner of CTDOT joined on day two of the event to give encouraging remarks about the hope they have for creating safe and engage in the workshop exercises.
Attendees were active participants in the conversations that took place throughout the workshop. Each individual contributed to honest and productive dialogue around the projects planned for each community. Participants also had the opportunity to share insights about barriers they have experienced during the process, and SGA will incorporate these learnings into our final report on the program.
Leadership means respect and appreciation
There was a range of expertise represented in the room in Bristol, from transportation planning and engineering to community advocacy, public health, and more. Throughout the two days, each individual leveraged their knowledge and skills to suggest improvements to the quick-build implementation projects being designed by the three cities. During a walk audit of Bristol’s project site, real-time observations informed the discussions and made the following design experience that much stronger. The combination of expert knowledge, lived experience, and outside perspectives gave the cities tools they can use to enact more successful Complete Streets projects now and in the future.
Leadership means making a commitment
Each of the cities and CTDOT left Bristol with three clear and achievable action steps to keep their projects moving. Each community’s action steps were targeted to their specific needs from working on an informed approach to community engagement to implementing pre-project data collection. This is important in furthering the work of the quick-build projects The time and resources given to this program demonstrate a recognition that the type of change needed is not quickly achieved. It is an ongoing process with continued opportunities to improve and grow.
It will take time to truly assess the impact of the Complete Streets Leadership Academy. Implementation of the quick-build projects will gauge progress on developing partnerships and improved communications. Perhaps the most critical pathway to long-lasting positive change around mobility is the leadership that shows up in everyday efforts to improve communication and collaboration between important stakeholders.
There’s hard work ahead for the stakeholders in Connecticut and SGA to build on the leadership and progress demonstrated in person in Bristol. Confronting barriers, streamlining processes, and prioritizing collaboration are overarching goals of this Complete Streets Leadership Academy cohort and were common themes at the workshop. A collective commitment to change from all those who have the power to implement Complete Streets in their communities is critical in creating safer streets across the U.S.
These Complete Streets Leadership Academies are supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention under cooperative agreement OT18-1802 supporting the Active People, Healthy Nation SM Initiative, a national initiative led by the CDC to help 27 million Americans become more physically active by 2027. Learn more.