August 31, 2023: Officials broke ground on the Broadway Complete Streets Project in the City of Sacramento on August 16, 2023. The transformative project will reduce the busy four-lane commuter bypass to a pleasant two-lane road with shared spaces for bikes, scooters, transit riders, and pedestrians. Broadway will look like a much different corridor once construction is complete. 

Parallel to the US-50 Freeway, Broadway spans from the Sacramento River on the west side, through the city to the neighborhood of Oak Park in the east. The Broadway corridor is rich with Sacramento history: Once bustling with industry, community events, and even a baseball field, in the first half of the 1900s, Broadway was alive with activity. But that has changed a lot over the years. 

Now cars, trucks, and motorcycles buzz through as they make their way to connecting neighborhoods while pedestrians and cyclists are left with few comfortable spaces to walk and ride through. “The word ‘terrifying’ has been used by cyclists to describe the experience attempting to ride bicycles along Broadway,” said Megan Johnson, senior engineer for the City of Sacramento during the project’s groundbreaking event. She emphasized that the goal is to create a safe street for everyone along Broadway, including cars, cyclists, pedestrians, and transit riders.  

“This investment is so special,” said Mayor Darrell Steinberg, City of Sacramento, during his address at the groundbreaking. He admitted that the corner at 16th and Broadway is in fact his favorite area of the city because of its richness and history. Steinberg also called for more strategies and investments to continue rebuilding historic corridors to better link transportation to housing and make safe streets for everyone: “This is an example of what’s possible when we all work together.” 

The project received more than $14 million in funding from various Sacramento Area Council of Governments programs. The groundbreaking marked phase one of two of the project’s construction, which will span from 3rd Street to 24th Street, and will eventually reach 29th Street.  

In attendance at the groundbreaking were business and property owners from throughout the corridor. Dave Gull, founder and CFO of New Helvetia Brewing Company on the corner of 18th and Broadway, noted the countless car, cyclist, and pedestrian accidents he has witnessed outside of his business. He hopes that the street improvements will help make it safer, and also help bring in more customers to businesses.