BOZEMAN — Everyone knows that Bozeman is growing. It’s obvious. Just look around. New apartment buildings are springing up, hotels are being built, and street construction.
Roads like Huffine Lane see more traffic today than they ever have before.
Curious about how Bozeman plans to enhance safety on Huffine Lane? Watch our video for insights from local officials about the new safety action plan
And with businesses popping up or expanding along its corridor, safety has become an increasing concern.
"We looked at crashes from 2019 to 2023. So that’s a five-year period. And we had 38 fatalities and 192 serious injuries within the planning area. So, we’re really looking at ways to reduce those," says RPA Engineering's Kerry Lynch.
According to the same data, these numbers have been climbing in the last five years. But she says local officials acknowledge the growth and see the need for safety enhancements.
"Gallatin County received grant funds from the US Department of Transportation from the Safe Streets For All discretionary programs. And with those funds, they’re developing an action plan," Lynch says.
The goal of the program is to eliminate fatalities and serious crashes by identifying safety concerns and recommending improvements.
Lynch says, "The county has adopted the eventual goal of zero—zero fatalities and serious injuries. But recognizing that that will take time, they’ve adopted and interim goal to reduce fatalities and serious injuries by half over the next ten years through implementing this plan."
Huffine Lane is highlighted in the plan, with significant recommendations to enhance the area around Gooch Hill, especially for pedestrians.
"We’re seeing a lot of people move outside of city limits into the county and because of that they’re having to get into the city for jobs and a lot of them don’t have access to a vehicle and so we’re trying to make it more accessible for people to walk and bike," says Lynch.
Once a community has a safety action plan in place, it can then apply for further funding to complete these projects.
"And some of them are shared-use paths. Walking and biking path along Huffine Lane connecting Four Corners to Bozeman. And the other one is some intersection upgrades at Huffine Lane and Gooch hill," Lynch says.
Lynch adds that a right-turn lane has also been identified for the Gooch Hill intersection.
County commissioners are expected to vote on the action plan next week.
