NIMBY's again raising their ugly heads. The article mentions a possibility of upgrading the existing U.S. 301 to limited-access standards. That would be a very pricey endeavor with so much development already along or near the corridor.
I'm sure the NIMBY's prefer the "no-build" option.
The U.S. 301 freeway to Summit Bridge idea goes back to the 1960s, so who actually believes that the super-2 super or any other limited access route will ever connect to the span? All of that stated, the stretch of U.S. 301 is prone to accidents and I suppose that that factor does not matter to those who live along the corridor who cry out "do nothing!".
DelDOT revisits disputed 301 spur
Opponent calls Middletown workshop on project 'dog and pony show'
March 22, 2009
State transportation officials and opponents of a proposed road north of Middletown will meet again Monday, but both sides say they expect to hear little new information.
"This workshop is a dog-and-pony show," said Andye Daley, chairwoman of the Middletown Corridor Coalition, which is fighting the 4.5 mile Spur Road that would connect U.S. 301 to Summit Bridge. The road would run along the western edge of Daley's development of Chesapeake Meadow.
The alternatives to the Spur Road to be presented Monday reflect only minor adjustments to those presented previously by the Delaware Department of Transportation, spokesman Jim Westhoff said. The agency has been presenting its plans to small neighborhood groups in recent months.
"The spur will be used by more than 12,000 people a day, and this will be a significant benefit for people," Westhoff said.
Last June, the General Assembly ordered DelDOT to take another look at the Spur Road, present alternatives to the public and report back to legislators by May 1.
The public workshop will be 3 to 8 p.m. Monday at Volunteer Hose Company, and DelDOT will continue to collect comments until April 3.
Westhoff said no new alternatives have emerged to the Spur Road.
The Spur Road had always been considered along with the project's main focus: a limited-access highway connecting Del. 1 to U.S. 301 to alleviate congestion and safety issues. The project would be done in four phases over five years, with the Spur Road the last phase.
The entire project is expected to cost $704 million, with the Spur Road making up about $125 million of that.
"This is the first time we've looked at the alternatives separately," Westhoff said.
Daley said her group pressed legislators to force DelDOT to reconsider the alternatives before embarking on the project.
"It seems like there was a better way to do it, but they hadn't really thought about it," Daley said.
She said she opposes the Spur Road because it would cost too much without solving any problems. Instead, the state should upgrade the existing U.S. 301, Daley said.
That is one of the three alternatives that DelDOT will present Monday.
While it would cost only $75 million to $85 million and have a smaller impact on farms and forests, it will not solve safety and congestion problems, DelDOT says. Also, it would affect more homes and businesses.
Another alternative would be to limit access along the existing U.S. 301 and connect it to the new U.S. 301.
That would alleviate truck traffic and address safety issues, but it would cost $165 million and have a huge impact on Summit Airport, homes, businesses, wetlands and forests, according to DelDOT.
The third alternative would be to do nothing.
Westhoff said work on the first project's phase -- construction of U.S. 301 from Del. 1 to just east of the Norfolk Southern Railroad tracks north of Armstrong Corner Road -- could begin in 2011.
"That's in a perfect world, where everything goes exactly the way it should go," Westhoff said.
For more information about the project, visit:
www.deldot.gov/information/projects/us301/index.shtml.