Northeast Lancaster Drive (Courtesy/Marion County Public Works)
Marion County officials say a $3 million construction project funded by mostly federal dollars will help reduce crashes and traffic buildup on a half-mile stretch of Northeast Lancaster Drive.
The road work will take place between Northeast Center Street and Monroe Avenue, the oldest portion of Lancaster Drive, said county spokeswoman Yancee Gordon.
Currently, curves in the middle of the street intended to drain water away from the road on both sides are too steep between the street and commercial driveways, causing crashes and near-crashes. It also forces drivers to enter and exit Lancaster Drive at an angle or at “very slow speeds” to avoid scraping their vehicle on the pavement, causing congestion, Gordon said in an email.
“I grew up kind of behind this intersection for a period of my life, and I can still hear the sound of the front of vehicles scrape as they fly into that parking lot because there’s such a ridiculous grade,” commissioner Danielle Bethell said at a Jan. 26 meeting.
The project’s $3.08 million budget, including around $2.35 million in federal funding, will cover design, acquiring land and construction.
The county contracted with Salem-based Quincy Engineering, which designed the project. County commissioners on Jan. 26 voted to add around $470,000 to the contract for construction administration, inspections, surveying and engineering services, bringing the contract total to around $1.21 million.
For the construction itself, Gordon said the county plans to advertise bids in the spring.
The work is expected to be completed by spring 2023, said Ryan Crowther, capital projects manager for the county, at the meeting.
The project will include rebuilding the pavement with four travel lanes, a median refuge where people crossing can stop, and bike lanes. It will also include replacing curbs and sidewalks to make them more accessible for people with disabilities and rebuilding points of access to the road to improve flow in and out of commercial properties, Gordon said.
Crowther said at the meeting that curb lines would be raised to smooth out commercial driveways.
The project area stretches 0.45 miles, Crowther said. The work will be done at night.
Gordon said the curbs and sidewalks haven’t received the maintenance they’ve needed over the years. “Replacing them in a piecemeal fashion would be expensive and brings significant design challenges,” she said. Curbs, sidewalks and accesses have deteriorated as a result, and many are almost impassable for scooters and disabled pedestrians.
Heavy traffic, the steep high points on the street and underground utilities being shallow under the roadway have previously made maintenance difficult on Lancaster Drive.
Contact reporter Ardeshir Tabrizian: [email protected] or 503-929-3053.
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