DELAWARE COUNTY — “Every life lost on our roadways is one too many,” Gov. Mike DeWine said July 23 as Ohio announced $72 million for transportation safety projects.
DeWine and Ohio Department of Transportation Director Pamela Boratyn named 33 transportation-related projects in 23 counties designed to reduce crashes, improve intersections and make roads safer for pedestrians.
The funding includes 13 intersection safety projects totaling $46.8 million and 20 pedestrian and roadway departure projects totaling $25.3 million. Projects are scheduled to receive funding between fiscal years 2027 and 2032.
Three Delaware County projects received a combined $7.47 million through the program:
- City of Sunbury: $1 million for a shared-use path along East Granville Street.
- ODOT District 6: $1.09 million to add left-turn lanes on State Route 315 at Home Road.
- Delaware County Engineer’s Office: $5.38 million to construct a roundabout at State Route 745 and Moore Road.
Other projects around the state include intersection upgrades, more visible signage and better-visible crosswalks, bike lanes and sidewalks.
The funding comes through ODOT’s Highway Safety Improvement Program, which is supported by a mix of state and federal dollars, ODOT Press Secretary Matt Bruning told Delaware Source.
Applicants apply for funding awards through the Highway Safety Improvement Program’s website.
Bruning said the awards typically cover only a portion of a project’s overall cost, though the State Route 315 and Home Road intersection project is receiving most of its funding through the program.
Sunbury’s shared-use path: A piece to a larger puzzle
Sunbury City Manager Daryl Hennessy told Delaware Source the shared-use path is one component of the broader State Route 37 widening project.
The main goal for the projects is to widen the current 10-foot lanes to 12-foot lanes.
The entire project is around a $10 million effort that utilizes about $6.5 million in federal funding, $2.5 million in city funding and $1 million awarded from the safety program for the shared-use path.
Hennessy was optimistic the overall project would start sometime next year, ideally in the spring after the main summer construction season. ODOT lists the shared-use path as a project for 2028.
The shared-use path would be a raised path that connects to a bridge that goes over the newly-widened State Route 37. The path would then merge into a central Ohio favorite — the Ohio to Erie Trail, Hennessy said.
Other State Route safety upgrades
Bruning explained while the Sunbury shared-use path is intended to improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists, the other two Delaware County projects were selected in response to crash histories at those locations.
“For State Route 315 at Home Road, the location saw 31 crashes from 2020 to 2024 with 45% of them resulting in injuries,” he said.
“Of the crashes, three were serious injury crashes. Twenty of the 31 crashes (65%) were rear-end crashes and 85% of those occurred on State Route 315. Left-turn crashes made up 23% of all crashes at this location.”
Along State Route 745 at Moore Road, Bruning said there were two fatal crashes and three injury crashes from 2021 to 2025. Six of the 13 crashes at this location during that time period were angle crashes.
“The biggest takeaway is that each of these projects targets specific things,” Bruning said.
“The two intersection projects are proven countermeasures to reduce crashes, specifically those that result in injuries or fatalities. The shared-use path project is an example of ODOT’s continued focus on moving people, not just vehicles.”
