For the third time this year, Pierce County has been awarded a U.S. Department of Transportation highway safety program grant. The grant will contribute $400,000 towards county roadside improvements designed to enhance safety for drivers.

Improvements include the removal of designated roadside trees and addition of paved shoulders and beveled pavement edges in selected areas. The money will cover work on the Key Peninsula and in rural areas near Eatonville, Roy, Orting, and elsewhere throughout the county.

Work at individual locations will begin as early as September and continue through June 2010. Preliminary engineering is estimated to cost $60,000, with the remaining $340,000 applied toward construction costs.

This is the third road safety grant received by Public Works and Utilities this year. Earlier grant projects include reconstruction of a prominent curve and steep hill on 9th St. East near the north end of Lake Tapps, and the addition of traffic signals at the busy intersection of 112th and A Streets South.

The grants have been made available as part of the most recent federal highway reauthorization law, the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), which guarantees funds totaling $244.1 billion for highways, highway safety, and public transportation.