Otter Tail County seeks public input on roadway safety plan by May 12

A May 12 deadline now sits between Otter Tail County residents and the final shape of a roadway safety plan that could steer future fixes on the roads they use every day. County leaders are asking for public comments on the draft Comprehensive Roadway Safety Action Plan before it goes to the Otter Tail County Board of Commissioners later in May, with local reporting indicating a May 26 presentation.

The plan reaches beyond a routine policy update. Built with federal Safe Streets and Roads for All funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, it is meant to reduce serious injuries and deaths on county roads for everyone who travels them, whether by car, bicycle, on foot, by transit or in commercial vehicles. County officials have described it as a data-driven effort, but one that also depends on local experience from the people who know which stretches feel dangerous at school rush, after dark or under farm traffic.

That local input matters in a county with a broad road network. The Otter Tail County Highway Department says it maintains 1,067 miles of County State Aid Highways and County Highways, along with 74 bridges. The plan is expected to help the county sort out which corridors, intersections and crossings should rise to the top, whether the concern is in Fergus Falls, Perham, Battle Lake, New York Mills or the townships in between.

The urgency is clear in the county’s own numbers. In Otter Tail County, 30 traffic crash fatalities were recorded from 2017 to 2021 on county highways. County Engineer Krysten Foster said the county would use the grant to evaluate traveler safety for all modes and work with partner agencies on engineering approaches that move road safety toward zero deaths. County Board Chair Wayne Johnson said the county was prioritizing investment in resident and visitor safety.

The safety action plan is being shaped by a task force of local leaders, transportation professionals and community representatives. County documents say the plan should remain dynamic, able to adapt as conditions, crash patterns and priorities change. It is also designed to identify high-crash and high-risk locations, rank them and outline countermeasures that can help the county compete for future funding.

For residents who drive the same roads to work, school, the grocery store or the lake, the next two weeks are the chance to say where the danger is and what should be fixed first. Once the comment window closes May 12, the county is expected to move quickly toward a final decision later in May.