Olathe ready to spend $900k on traffic safety near schools this year. Here’s why
After a two-year project focused on improving traffic safety in certain neighborhoods and near schools in response to community concerns about speeding cars, traffic crashes and unsafe pedestrian crossings, the city of Olathe is poised to continue work this year on improving roads and sidewalks.
This year, the city plans to spend more than $900,000 on improvements like traffic control devices, new signage, parking lot modifications, and other measures for driver and pedestrian safety.
Earlier this month, the city council approved $50,000 in city funds for these improvements. The city money will supplement a $856,000 grant the city received for a Safety Action Plan. Under conditions of the grant, the city will pay around $8,000, or just 1% of the project.
“We get calls all the time from neighborhoods about kids walking to school or just pedestrians using the neighborhood’s streets and… how can we improve safety,” said Nate Baldwin, city engineer, at the Jan. 20 city council meeting.
Residents have noted problems with speeding vehicles and dangerous intersections, Baldwin said. From these concerns, the city birthed an annual traffic safety project in 2024, which aims to address problem areas.
In the last two years, the city installed pedestrian refuge islands, or places where pedestrians can safely stop in a divided road as cars pass. They also installed flashing signs that alert drivers pedestrians are crossing.
It is unknown where, exactly, some of these improvements will take place in 2026.
City staff is evaluating 31 potential locations to install new pedestrian refuge islands this year. The cost for those would range between $10,000 to $20,000 each, Baldwin said.
The city is also considering 77 community requests for the flashing light signs at different locations, Baldwin said. Those run about $33,000 to $35,000 each. It’s unlikely that the signs will be appropriate at every location requested, he said.
Part of how the city will determine where to do work is by talking with school districts and traffic engineers, Baldwin said, to determine what areas would benefit most from the safety improvements.
Members of the public can submit traffic safety requests on Olathe Connect, an online platform designed to be a virtual City Hall, where people can report issues and request city services.
A spokesperson for Olathe, Cody Kennedy, said the city is working on updating its Olathe Safe streets webpage, where people can find more information about the traffic safety plan.
“Timelines for projects vary as the city coordinates traffic safety improvement priorities on what can be accomplished as part of ongoing construction projects,” Kennedy said.
Grants help after budget cuts
Last year, the city funded the annual neighborhood and school traffic safety improvement project at a higher level. This year, grant monies will help supplement where cuts in the budget had to be made from the previous year, Baldwin said.
“This project, in the past, was funded at a higher level than it is today, but that’s the case for a lot of our annual programs,” Baldwin said. “There’s a lot of tough decisions that we have to make.”
City councilman at large Matthew Schoonover said he has heard concerns from parents about traffic safety around Black Bob Elementary, 14701 S Brougham Dr.
“I would certainly encourage us to look at that and what improvements we need to do,” Schoonover said at the Jan. 20 city council meeting.
Schoonover asked Baldwin if the $50,000 in city money was enough to meet needs this year and whether the council should consider additional funding for future projects.
“We’re always looking for additional money to do what we can out there, but I think staff did a really great job of going after grant funding to… do as much as we can,” Baldwin said.
