DENVER (KDVR) -- The Boulder City Council formally approved on Thursday a conceptual design project that the city said will make travel on North 30th Street "safer, more connected and comfortable for all."

30th Street is a current "top crash location" in Boulder, according to the city, which said the road is a part of its "High Risk Network," which is comprised of streets the city said account for 48% of serious and fatal-injury crashes, despite representing just 7% of city streets.

"We can prevent these avoidable crashes, and we can do it with community- and data-informed decisions," said Valerie Watson, interim director of the city's Transportation & Mobility Department, in a statement.

The city said it will advance design on part of the street in the fall, with construction anticipated to start in 2027, at the earliest.

The first part of the project will involve the funded final design and construction on part of the project corridor, 30th Street between Pearl Street and Colorado 119, or the Diagonal Highway and the 30th Street and Arapahoe Avenue intersection.

This part of the project was funded by a $23 million Safe Streets and Roads for All grant awarded to the city in 2023 to be used to help prevent roadway fatalities and serious injuries.

"Council and funding support allows us to move into the work of finalizing design and construction to save lives, particularly on this street where we see high numbers of people walking, bicycling and taking the bus every day," Watson said.

During Thursday's meeting, council members reviewed and approved the recommended conceptual designs and the project's Community and Environmental Assessment Process, a formal review process the city said considers "various impacts" of public development projects to "inform the selection and refinement of a recommended alternative."

The city's Transportation Advisory Board unanimously recommended the council approve the project.

The 30th Street project also supports the city's Vision Zero Action Plan, which aims to reduce the number of traffic-related fatalities and serious injuries to zero.

The city said it will take several years to implement the remaining project recommendations, as funding becomes available.