Does anyone have any experience with grant writing or petition campaigning for sidewalks or other neighborhood improvement projects?

I’m frustrated because my house is within walking distance of a playground, but we can’t walk there because there is a gap in the sidewalk system. There is also no shoulder on the road there and the street in this location is on a hill so you can’t see oncoming traffic approaching until the last minute. The traffic goes 40 miles an hour and is frequent enough to be dangerous and kind of scary. Even if you see the traffic coming, there is nowhere to escape it and you have to just hope that they will be paying enough attention to yield.

I want to get this section of road improved so that it’s safe to walk to the park. I’ve heard some people in a nearby town have had luck with some federal grants. I don’t want to resort to petitions, as I’ve seen them fall through numerous times—but I’d like to know about other people having some success.