Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A)

SS4A grants provide funding to prevent roadway fatalities and serious injuries. Whether your city would like to use funding to add additional sidewalks or improve existing roadways, there are several ways to apply this funding and implement safety measures. This training will also help participants consider the climate change and environmental impacts of their project.

Grant Summary

Agency

U.S. Department of Transportation

Category

Public Transportation

Eligible Applicants

States, metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs), local governments, and Indian tribes, and multijurisdictional groups of the above organizations.

Total IIJA Funding

$5 billion available for fiscal years (FY) 2022-2026.

FY25 Grant Funding

At least $1 billion in SS4A funding is expected in FY25.

Match Requirements

A 20% match of total project costs is anticipated based on the FY24 NOFO.

Key Dates

The FY25 NOFO is expected in February 2024. For reference, the FY24 NOFO was released on February 21, 2024, and closed on August 29, 2024.

Overview

The Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) grants aim to prevent roadway fatalities and serious injuries through regional, local, and Tribal safety initiatives. These grants are designed to create safer streets for all users—pedestrians, bicyclists, public transportation riders, motorists, micro-mobility users, and commercial vehicle operators. SS4A offers two grant types: Planning and Demonstration Grants for developing and enhancing safety plans, and Implementation Grants for executing those plans.

Eligible Activities

Per the FY24 NOFO, eligible activities include:

• Planning and Demonstration Grants: Develop an Action Plan; conduct supplemental safety planning to enhance an Action Plan; and carry out demonstration activities to inform the development of, or an update to, an Action Plan.
• Implementation Grants: In addition to the above eligible activities under Planning and Demonstration grants, Implementation grants must be used to execute projects and strategies identified in an Action Plan.

Opportunities for Climate and Racial Wealth Equity

SS4A grants not only improve roadway safety but also aim to make streets more accessible and equitable. Many underserved communities, including those with higher proportions of people of color, rural areas, and those historically affected by poverty and inequality, stand to benefit from these enhancements. Applicants must demonstrate how their projects address climate change and environmental justice impacts.

Per the FY24 NOFO, each applicant selected for SS4A grant funding must demonstrate efforts to consider the climate change and environmental justice impacts of their project.

Key Funding Criteria

Based on the FY24 NOFO, applications for Planning and Demonstration Grants will be evaluated on the project’s impact on safety and equity. DOT will also use additional context provided in the grant narrative as part of its evaluation.

Implementation Grants will be evaluated on the project’s impact on safety, equity, engagement, and collaboration, effective practices and strategies, and other DOT Strategic Goals. The FY2024 NOFO includes detailed descriptions of each evaluation criterion.

Additional Information

Implementation Grant applications must also meet one of the following conditions:

• Have ownership and/or maintenance responsibilities over a roadway network.
• Have safety responsibilities that affect roadways.
• Have an agreement from the agency that has ownership and/or maintenance responsibilities for the roadway within the applicant’s jurisdiction.

Program details are available on the DOT’s Safe Streets and Roads for All website.