Outdated Safety Plans Could Be Replaced With $890,989 Federal-Backed Overhaul

Pasadena will ask its Finance Committee on Monday to approve a contract that would replace transportation safety documents nearly two decades old—an overhaul largely funded by the federal government as part of a nationwide push to eliminate traffic deaths. If approved, the item would go to the Council for final approval.

The proposed $890,989 contract with consulting firm Fehr & Peers would consolidate the city’s 2006 Pedestrian Plan, 2015 Bicycle Transportation Action Plan and recent Safe Routes to School work into a single Active Transportation Plan. Federal highway safety grants will cover 80 percent of the cost.

The update aligns with Pasadena’s Vision Zero commitment: eliminating traffic fatalities citywide by 2035. Equity and safety will guide the planning process, according to city documents, with a focus on complete active transportation networks, safety, education and infrastructure improvements.

The federal Safe Streets and Roads for All program awarded Pasadena $712,791 for the project. The city’s required local match totals $178,198—roughly one dollar for every four from Washington.

Staff from the Departments of Transportation and Planning and Community Development evaluated the nine proposals submitted in response to a July solicitation. An interdepartmental committee scored firms on proposed solutions, experience, cost and small or micro-business status. Evaluators interviewed the top four firms before making their recommendation. Fehr & Peers earned 88 of 100 possible points.

The Los Angeles-based firm has worked extensively with Pasadena. It developed the city’s Focused Local Roadway Safety Action Plan, adopted in 2025, and completed a pedestrian safety study identifying high-collision intersections. The firm also developed guidance for pedestrian crossing treatments across multiple roadway types. The Fehr & Peers team for this project includes local nonprofit Day One, design firm HERE, Lochner and Environmental Science Associates.

Alta Planning & Design placed second with 85 points. Nelson\Nygaard Consulting Associates ranked third with 84 points.

Of 85 firms that downloaded the request for proposals, only nine submitted bids by the Sept. 1 deadline. Two Pasadena-based firms competed: Kimley-Horn and Associates scored 71 points, while Linscott, Law & Greenspan Engineers received 50. Federal grant requirements prohibited evaluators from applying local preference.

Three of the nine proposing firms qualified as small or micro-businesses.

The contract includes a base amount of $809,990 plus a 10 percent contingency for change orders. Work is expected to begin in February.

Staff will seek City Council authorization allowing City Manager Miguel Márquez to approve no-cost amendments, such as timeline extensions. Federal guidelines require corresponding amendments to the Department of Transportation’s fiscal 2026 operating budget, directing funds to contract services.

The project supports council goals promoting quality of life and the local economy. It also advances multiple Mobility Element policies addressing vehicle emissions, street safety and public health.

The Safe Streets and Roads for All program, administered by the Federal Highway Administration, made $1.177 billion available nationally to local, regional and tribal agencies. Pasadena secured an Action Plan grant in 2023.