{"id":87847,"date":"2026-01-15T20:34:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-15T20:34:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/87847\/"},"modified":"2026-01-15T20:34:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-15T20:34:11","slug":"1-25m-grant-means-safety-improvements-for-eastons-larry-holmes-drive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/87847\/","title":{"rendered":"$1.25M grant means safety improvements for Easton\u2019s Larry Holmes Drive"},"content":{"rendered":"

Larry Holmes Drive, one of the main gateways into Downtown Easton<\/a>, could see significant changes soon as the city advances traffic and pedestrian safety improvements.<\/p>\n

The city announced in a news release that Easton secured $1.25 million in grant funding at the end of 2025, with more than half of that total dedicated to safety upgrades along Larry Holmes Drive, a corridor previously identified as a priority under the city\u2019s Safe Streets for All plan.<\/p>\n

According to the release, $663,932 in combined funding from the Statewide Local Shares Account and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation<\/a>\u2019s Multimodal Transportation Fund will support a series of improvements aimed at slowing traffic and making the roadway safer for pedestrians.<\/p>\n

Planned upgrades include pedestrian bump-outs to shorten crossing distances, high-visibility crosswalks and other traffic-calming measures intended to improve conditions for both vehicles and foot traffic.<\/p>\n

Larry Holmes Drive has been a focal point of Easton\u2019s broader traffic safety analysis. In September<\/a>, as part of the Safe Streets for All plan, the city reviewed crash data from 2020 through 2024. There were more than 1,100 crashes during that period, including 523 that resulted in injuries. <\/p>\n

Of those, 29 involved serious injuries and four were fatal crashes. The analysis showed that 80 percent of high-injury crashes occurred along just 15 miles of roadway, with Larry Holmes Drive and Philadelphia Road emerging as key corridors for intervention.<\/p>\n

The city previously discussed the possibility of a roundabout at the intersection of 3rd Street and Larry Holmes Drive, along with curb extensions, raised crosswalks, pedestrian refuge islands and upgraded lighting to calm traffic and reduce conflict points between vehicles and pedestrians.<\/p>\n

\"RenderingThe City of Easton is proposing a roundabout in the 3rd Street and Larry Holmes Drive intersection downtown as a traffic-calming measure.Courtesy of the City of Easton<\/p>\n

Beyond Larry Holmes Drive, additional transportation funding will support upgrades elsewhere in the city. <\/p>\n

According to the release, a $339,416 Green Light GO grant from PennDOT will be used to replace aging traffic signals and install ADA-compliant curb ramps at all four corners of the Berwick Street and Seitz Street intersection.<\/p>\n

The grant package also includes funding for public safety infrastructure. A $150,000 Statewide Local Shares Account grant will be used to construct a new police evidence storage building, replacing the city\u2019s current facility, which is located within a floodplain. <\/p>\n

Easton received a $20,000 public safety grant from Northampton County<\/a> to fund a feasibility study exploring shared emergency services between the city and Wilson Borough<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Other grants focus on parks, tourism and community amenities. The city received $60,000 in combined funding from the Pennsylvania Environmental Council\u2019s Statewide Waterway Access Grant and Northampton County\u2019s Grow NORCO program to support lighting and engineering improvements at Scott Park, with an emphasis on enhancing public access to the waterfront. <\/p>\n

Easton also secured a $15,000 Northampton County Hotel Tax grant to support enhancements to the annual Easton Winter Village in Centre Square.<\/p>\n

Most of the funded projects are expected to begin in 2026, with some continuing into 2027. <\/p>\n

Mayor Sal Panto Jr. said in the release the funding will help modernize infrastructure and improve safety across the city, while supporting Easton\u2019s long-term development and quality of life.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy working together with our state and county leaders, we are ensuring that Easton remains a premier destination to live, work and visit for generations to come,\u201d Panto said. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Larry Holmes Drive, one of the main gateways into Downtown Easton, could see significant changes soon as the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":87848,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[153,155,154],"class_list":{"0":"post-87847","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-bethlehem","8":"tag-bethlehem","9":"tag-bethlehem-headlines","10":"tag-bethlehem-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87847","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=87847"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87847\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/87848"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=87847"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=87847"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=87847"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}