A program to identify road improvements for traffic safety was approved by the city council in San Clemente, California, on June 6 and will qualify the city to apply for further state and federal grants to improve road infrastructure.

“This is a program that a lot of cities are utilizing, and it helps us establish a baseline and analysis of a lot of the streets in our cities to find our troubled areas,” said Assistant City Engineer Zach Ponsen during a planning commission meeting in May during a discussion on the issue.

City officials said they are hoping the program will reduce traffic fatalities and injuries for residents.

The city received such a grant in 2020 and contracted with a planning and design consultancy firm to identify high-impact areas of the city’s roadways that need the most improvement.

At the May meeting, city staff informed the commission the consultancy, in 2021, identified multiple high-risk street segments and intersections, including Avenida Pico at the I-5 Freeway onramp, Avenida Palazida and El Camino Real, and El Camino Real at the I-5 Freeway onramp.

Additionally, other troubled areas identified were Calle del Cerro and Avenida Pico to Avenida Vista Montana, Avenida Pico and the I-5 Freeway to San Clemente High School, Ave del Mar and El Camino Real to Ola Vista, and El Camino Real and Escalones to Avenida Barcelona in downtown San Clemente.

But city officials say the consultant’s work was preliminary and more in-depth analysis would be needed for future projects, which would require more funding.

The city currently has city transportation and pedestrian plans, but they have not been updated since 2016.