This year’s report analyzes three new state-level policies: California Senate Bill 960, Maryland Department of Transportation’s Complete Streets policy, and New Jersey Department of Transportation’s Complete Streets Policy/ Procedure. SGA has previously scored policies from eight states (California, Iowa, Maine, Minnesota, North Carolina, South Carolina, Washington, and Wisconsin), with California’s 2021 policy achieving the highest score at 61.

States can play a crucial role in transportation and road safety. The most dangerous roadways are owned and controlled by states. Thus, state departments of transportation can develop and implement Complete Streets policies to ensure that roads are designed and maintained to achieve safety and access for everyone. Beyond the roads that they directly control, though, state departments of transportation have significant influence on policies and jurisdictions (such as cities, towns, and counties) through funding, planning, and rule making. They can also encourage and incentivize local jurisdictions to create their own Complete Streets policies to match local conditions and needs.

The three state policies reviewed for this report clearly outline their vision (Element 1) for Complete Streets. They also clearly describe relevant design guidance (Element 6), establishing standards that enable the effective design and construction of Complete Streets and serve as models for local jurisdictions statewide.

However, the three states reviewed for this report do not set criteria for choosing projects (Element 9) by not updating project selection processes to prioritize Complete Streets projects. Similarly, the three policies do not adequately incorporate performance measures (Element 8) meaning that assessing true impacts will be challenging. Despite a clear Complete Streets vision, further commitment is needed to implement the Complete Streets approach fully.

Considering the reach and broad impacts that state-level Complete Streets policies can have, states, territories, or similar jurisdictions may consider creating one. It is important that a new policy addresses all elements of the Complete Streets framework. States that currently have a lower scoring policy can work to strengthen their policies to ensure they achieve maximum benefits.