Governor Dannel P. Malloy today announced the “Community Connectivity Grant Program” (CCGP), an infrastructure improvement program that seeks to provide funding for local initiatives that will improve the safety and accessibility for bicyclists and pedestrians in urban, suburban and rural community centers. These community centers serve as places where people can meet for employment, educational, social and recreational activities.  

The CCGP is one component of the broader Community Connectivity Program.  The primary goal of the Community Connectivity Program is to make conditions safer for people of all ages to walk, bike and take transit, and thereby encouraging more people to use these healthy and environmentally sustainable modes of travel. At the same time, these improvements will make Connecticut’s community centers more accessible places to live and work.

The Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT) will administer the program and will solicit applications for grants from municipalities.  Grants will be awarded on a competitive basis and will range between $75,000 and $400,000.  Municipalities will be allowed to submit one application per community. 

The CCGP is the second phase of the Community Connectivity Program.  The first phase offered Connecticut’s municipalities assistance to conduct a Road Safety Audit (RSA) at important bike and pedestrian corridors and intersections.  An RSA is a formal examination of an existing road or intersection to identify safety issues and counter-measures to help improve safety and reduce crashes.  The RSA’s began in the spring of 2016. A total of 80 were completed over a period of twelve months.  “We expect many of the communities that participated in the RSA program will be submitting applications to advance these projects” stated Patrick Zapatka, Program Manager.

Under Let’sGoCT!, Governor Malloy’s initiative for Connecticut's transportation future, $11 Million per year is authorized for multiuse trail improvements and $10 million per year is authorized for the Community Connectivity Program.  The final amounts for the CCGP are contingent on action by the State Bond Commission.

“This new Community Connectivity Grant Program will provide funding directly to municipalities to perform targeted capital improvements that will improve safety and accessibility for pedestrians, bicyclists, and transit users,” said CTDOT Commissioner James P. Redeker. “Every project will provide safer, more accessible travel for our residents.”

The solicitation and application process will start May 26, 2017.

For more information on the Community Connectivity Program, please visit: http://ctconnectivity.com/.  Further details regarding the Community Connectivity Grant Program will be posted to the CTDOT web site by May 26, 2017.