CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – Safety for students walking to and from school has been a growing concern in Clarksville, particularly after a serious accident involving a Clarksville High student.

Part of the issue is that more students are now walking to school because of bus route changes. Starting in August, CMCSS expanded the Parent Responsibility Zones, decreasing the number of addresses near each school served by buses.

In response, the City of Clarksville today announced the addition of 13 sidewalk projects to the Transportation 2020+ Plan, all of which they said will focus on increasing safe walkable access to Clarksville-Montgomery County Schools.

Funding the projects

According to a news release, the estimated total cost of these projects is $5.4 million and will make use of the $6 million approved by City Council during the FY 22-23 budget process. The plan, which was created in collaboration between the Street Department, Parks & Recreation and the Mayor’s Office, includes approximately 19,584 feet of sidewalk and will directly affect 6,053 homes.

These projects will be added to Tier 1 of the Transportation 2020+ Plan and are in various stages of development, according to city officials.

“These projects are a great addition to our Transportation Plan and will go a long way in providing safe connections between families and their schools,” said Mayor Joe Pitts. “We’ve been hard at work finding projects that can be executed swiftly and make the most of the $6 million in funding.”

MORE: School zones in Clarksville getting more dangerous with more walkers, more distractions

The Street Department worked closely with CMCSS in selecting which areas to focus on to help connect as many homes to schools as possible.

“We appreciate the support of the City of Clarksville and collaborative spirit in the community as we all seek to provide the best education and safest environment for children,” said Director of Schools Jean Luna-Vedder.

“City engineers and CMCSS Operations staff conducted an analysis of accessibility barriers at schools and identified a list of potential projects. … This significant undertaking will improve safety and accessibility to over 6,000 homes currently residing in parent responsibility zones and provide safe routes to schools for future CMCSS students.”

The plan

The following projects are included in the new sidewalk plan:

These are the projects added to Tier 1 of the Transportation 2020+ plan (contributed).

Alongside the 13 sidewalks are an additional six, which will be explored by the Street Department. The city said these projects will connect neighborhoods to local parks and would contribute to extensions of Clarksville’s Greenway system.

While not connected directly to schools themselves, these projects also fill in critical sidewalk gaps in existing connections. The proposed projects include the following:

Here is a list of additional projects being considered in conjunction with the street department. (Contributed)

Progress on existing projects

The Street Department has also highlighted progress on several key sidewalk projects that were already included in the existing Transportation Plan.

A list of the ongoing sidewalk projects (contributed).

These projects will be added to the Transportation 2020+ webpage on the city website so that residents can track their progress.