TO: Mayor and Members of City Council
THRU: Kristoff T. Bauer, Deputy City Manager
FROM: Rob Stone, P.E., Director of Public Services
DATE: August 6, 2018
RE:
Title
City Council Agenda Item Request - Murchison Road and MLK Highway - Council Member Haire
end
COUNCIL DISTRICT(S):
Council District(s)
2, 4
b
Relationship To Strategic Plan:
Desirable Place to Live, Work and Recreate
Executive Summary:
CM Haire requested information concerning Murchison Road improvements, connections to Bragg Boulevard, improvements around Glenville Lake at Mazarick Park, and to request support from NCDOT for a connection to the MLK Freeway. This request also includes a proposed extension of Lakeland Street around Glenville Lake to Filter Plant Drive. City Council directed staff to research this item at the June 4, 2018 work session.
Background:
City Council reviewed this item at the June 4, 2018 work session and discussed a variety of issues in the Murchison Road area. The consensus of Council was to direct staff to research these items.
Since Murchison Road and the MLK Freeway are owned and maintained by the NCDOT, planning for future projects along these roads would begin with the Fayetteville Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (FAMPO). The Fayetteville Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (FAMPO) is responsible for planning transportation projects within its metropolitan planning limits which include the City limits of Fayetteville. The City can make requests, through FAMPO, for new transportation projects such as new connections between Bragg Boulevard and Murchison Road, or a new interchange at MLK Freeway and Murchison Road, through this process.
These new projects are reviewed and prioritized with a process called the Strategic Prioritization (SPOT). This process is updated and new projects are prioritized on a two year cycle. The next cycle to request new projects begins in Spring of 2019. The proposed extension of Lakeland Drive could also be made using this process, but since all the impacted streets are City maintained, the City could opt to pursue this project without inclusion in the SPOT process and provide funding in its entirety for the project.
Issues/Analysis:
Existing highway projects in the Murchison Road area that have been through the Strategic Prioritization (SPOT) and are currently in the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP).
U-4900 - Murchison Road (NC 210)
Add additional lanes from I-295 southward to Country Club Drive (US 401 Bypass), Project is funded for $23.8 Million, Right of Way begins FY 2022, Construction begins FY 2024
U-5015A - Murchison Road (NC 210)
Widen to Multi-lanes from Rowan Street to Langdon Street, Project is currently unfunded, Estimated cost is $19.8 Million
The project was recently scored in the SPOT 5.0 Regional Highway Project Tier. Projects that receive funding in the Regional Highway Tier will be released by September 2018. If a project does not receive funding in the Regional Highway Tier, it will cascade down into the Divisional Highway Tier and can be scored again to compete with projects within that tier. Scoring for the Divisional Highway Tier projects will completed by FAMPO by October 31, 2018. Final project funding lists for all tiers (Statewide, Regional, Divisional) will be released in the 2020-2029 Draft State Transportation Improvement Plan (STIP) in January 2019.
U-5015B - Murchison Road (NC 210)
Widen to Multi-lanes from Country Club Drive (US 401 Bypass) to Langdon Street, Project is currently unfunded, Estimated cost is $26.7 Million
The project was recently scored in the SPOT 5.0 Regional Highway Project Tier. Projects that receive funding in the Regional Highway Tier will be released by September 2018. If a project does not receive funding in the Regional Highway Tier, it will cascade down into the Divisional Highway Tier and can be scored again to compete with projects within that tier. Scoring for the Divisional Highway Tier projects will completed by FAMPO by October 31, 2018. Final project funding lists for all tiers (Statewide, Regional, Divisional) will be released in the 2020-2029 Draft State Transportation Improvement Plan (STIP) in January 2019.
U-5101A - New Route - Shaw Road/Shaw Mill Road/Rosehill Road/Stacey Weaver Drive
Interconnect roadways and widen to multi-lanes from Bragg Boulevard (NC 87) to Murchison Road (NC 210), Project is funded for $24.5 Million, Right of Way begins FY 2022, Construction begins FY 2024
U-5101B - New Route - Shaw Road/Shaw Mill Road/Rosehill Road/Stacey Weaver Drive
Interconnect roadways and widen to multi-lanes from Murchison Road (NC 210) to Ramsey Street (US 401), Project is currently unfunded, Estimated cost is $57.7 Million
The proposed project to construct an interchange at the MLK Freeway and Murchison Road was discussed several years ago and the concept proposed at that time is attached to this item (Murchison Rd-MLK Interchange).
The issues associated with the concept for the proposed interchange at Murchison Road and MLK Freeway include:
• Right of Way impacts - The proposed interchange would require significant right of way to be acquired in the Murchison Road, Blue Street, Durham Street, Greensboro Street, Edward Street and Cumberland Street areas. Impacts could be significant to Mt. Sinai development, the neighboring cemetery, the City’s Catalyst 1 site, John Wesley United Methodist Church, the MLK Memorial Park, the Cross Creek Trail and CSX Railroad. Additional right of way and construction supervision may be required from the CSX Railroad to construct grade separated bridges at two (2) locations.
• Spacing between Bragg Boulevard, Murchison Road and CSX Railroad - There is approximately 780’ between Bragg Boulevard and Murchison Road and 760’ between Murchison Road and the CSX Railroad. This close spacing creates issues for construction of bridge and access ramps due to the vertical grade challenges that would have to be mitigated. As an example, CSX requires a minimum of 23’ clearance from the top of the railroad to the bottom of a bridge. Approval of this spacing may also be required from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). Construction of interchanges with close spacing also creates a traffic merging situation that requires vehicles entering/exiting MLK to access either Bragg Boulevard or Murchison Road to utilize the same travel lanes. This creates a weaving situation which at freeway speeds, creates higher potential for rear end and sideswipe accidents.
• Funding/Scheduling - This project could be submitted to FAMPO as a new project in the Spring of 2019. A project estimate would be developed as a part of the next Strategic Prioritization, SPOT 6.0, and the project would then be assigned a quantitative score from NCDOT and local input points from FAMPO. A project of this type would be estimated to be in the $25-35 Million range and if funded, would take several years to design and acquire rights of way.
Budget Impact:
This is a preliminary report for informational purposes only.
Options:
• Request FAMPO add potential transportation projects into the SPOT 6.0 process
• Request FAMPO include the proposed Murchison Road interchange at MLK Freeway in a pre-submittal process to NCDOT. This process will be open in Jan/Feb 2019 and will evaluate the project for feasibility prior to the official submittal as a new project in SPOT 6.0 in the spring of 2019
• Direct staff develop these new projects into the City’s CIP
• Provide another direction to staff
Recommended Action:
Staff seeks direction from Council concerning how to move forward on potential requests for new transportation projects in the Murchison Road area.
Attachments:
Possible Lakeland Drive Extension map, Previous MLK/Murchison Road Interchange concept map, City Council Agenda Item Request, CM Haire email regarding possible Lakeland Drive Extension, Murchison Road Area Transportation Projects Map, Presentation, FAMPO Regional Highway Scoring list