Wonderful things happen when people are encouraged to bring more colour and vibrancy to their streets; life feels more energetic and fun, sure, but more than that – people feel closer to each other.

Another thing happens too: cars slow down, so streets not only become more enjoyable, they become safer. And isn’t sustainable, safe and connected what we all want our local towns and neighbourhoods, our homes to be?

Streets Alive is a funding program in Western Australia that aims to improve the safety of local roads through community-based action, to make them more active, vibrant and people-friendly.

It is a collaborative effort delivered by Town Team Movement, in partnership with Main Roads WA and the Western Australian Local Government Association (WALGA).

The purpose of this short course is to provide more information to enable you to:

1. Understand why safer speeds and better places are better for everyone
2. Prepare a Streets Alive funding application
3. Be part of the change to help to make our streets safer and more community and business-friendly

The course is written for a general audience, rather than experienced transport professionals.

It is also available via the Teachable App, which includes an off-line mode.

The program consists of two funding streams

Stream 1 offers community grants of up to $10,000 for capacity and capability building, research and design, low-cost street interventions/trials, and certified road safety training.

Stream 2 offers grants of up to $100,000 for temporary and permanent changes to the street environment that are collaboratively designed and installed. 

To date 112 projects have been supported totalling over $1.8 million in funding. Overall, 70% of recipients are community organisations, and 30% are local governments, with 60 of the successful applicants being in regional Western Australia. More than 6,800 volunteers and over 250 community groups have participated in the program to date. Three speed reductions are already in place in the Shire of Brookton, the City of Fremantle, and the suburb Kardinya. 

You can find out more about the funding available and when and how applications can be made on the Streets Alive website.