Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[xonhulu]

This article appeared in today's Newberg Graphic newspaper, about a push for a privately-financed-and-operated toll road as a bypass of Newberg:

http://www.newberggraphic.com/news/2009/October/09/Local.News/regional.bypass.to.return.as.private.toll.road/news.aspx

Bassically, this would be a direct connection from OR 18 to I-5 near Hubbard.  ODOT considered this alternative (the so-called "Regional Bypass") as a potential routing of the Newberg-Dundee Bypass but eliminated it largely because it didn't serve as much potential traffic as other routes and a lack of cooperation from Marion County.

Personally, I would like to see this highway built, but as a public highway.  That's largely because, selfishly, it be the most useful route for me.

[Bickendan]

Hmm, it's a bit further south than I'd have expected, but it's feasible.

[xonhulu]

Well, I have a feeling this has "pipe dream" written all over it.  The thing is, it wouldn't take much doing for ODOT to make a connector near this route, as there's a pretty good county road already running between OR 219 and I-5; all you need to do is connect OR 18 to it via a new bridge and a couple miles of new road.

[Tarkus]

The thing is, it wouldn't take much doing for ODOT to make a connector near this route, as there's a pretty good county road already running between OR 219 and I-5

Yes, Ehlen Road/Yergen Road/McKay Road.  Would have been nice if they could have made the whole thing Ehlen.   But yeah, that's a really nice road.  I've kind of thought they should route 219 onto McKay there at the T-intersection instead of going down to St. Paul, and then have 219 terminate at OR-99E in Aurora, making the St. Paul stretch into a western extension of OR-214. 

Extending it to the Newberg-Dundee Bypass sounds like an interesting idea.  The big expense would be crossing the Willamette, but I don't think that would be too prohibitive if the bridge were of 2-lane expressway standards.

I don't think a toll road as described in that article would make much sense, though.  Particularly if the Newberg-Dundee Bypass were to be tolled as had originally been planned. 

-Alex (Tarkus)

[xonhulu]

Yes, Ehlen Road/Yergen Road/McKay Road.  Would have been nice if they could have made the whole thing Ehlen.   But yeah, that's a really nice road.  I've kind of thought they should route 219 onto McKay there at the T-intersection instead of going down to St. Paul, and then have 219 terminate at OR-99E in Aurora, making the St. Paul stretch into a western extension of OR-214.

Marion County loves to have county roads abruptly change names, sometimes there aren't even intersections!  I had a friend who needed to go up to Newberg from Salem for a softball tournament, so he MapQuested the route, then was perplexed by having to switch roads so often until I explained that Ehlen/Yergen/McKay were actually all one road.

Interesting idea on rerouting 219.  I'd never thought of that myself.  However, I don't think OR 214 should be extended west.  In fact, I never thought 214 should even go to the Woodburn exit; that should be 211.  Think about it: 214 is signed to I-5 presumably so traffic on southbound I-5 can find the road to Silverton and Silver Falls.  However, that traveler would be better off exiting south of Wilsonville on OR 551, taking 99E south to Woodburn, and then picking up 214.  Meanwhile, travelers on northbound I-5 trying to find the OR 211 highway to Molalla/Estacada aren't served at all by signage at the Woodburn exit.  Before OR 551 received that designation, I thought 214 should've duplexed 99E through Hubbard and taken that route to I-5, and OR 211 should've gone through the 4-way intersection in Woodburn and continued out to I-5.  Moot point now.

Extending it to the Newberg-Dundee Bypass sounds like an interesting idea.  The big expense would be crossing the Willamette, but I don't think that would be too prohibitive if the bridge were of 2-lane expressway standards.

It would still be cheaper than the currently planned Bypass, and accomplish quite a few of the same objectives.  Couple it with an improved OR 219 bridge over the Willamette and a short east-side facility in Newberg connecting 219 and 99W, and you have your Newberg bypass.

I don't think a toll road as described in that article would make much sense, though.  Particularly if the Newberg-Dundee Bypass were to be tolled as had originally been planned. 

I agree completely.

[Tarkus]

In fact, I never thought 214 should even go to the Woodburn exit; that should be 211. 

That's a really good point.  I always thought that the way the routes were designated around Woodburn was a bit screwy.  219 made a little bit more sense when it used to be routed down River Road to Salem, but the current alignment between St. Paul and Woodburn is really kind of silly, and the little stretch of 214 to I-5 is just so disconnected.  Apparently, when 219 still went to Salem, the 214 designation went all the way out to St. Paul.

Signing it as 211 would also perhaps promote the fact that there's a fairly direct way to get from I-5 to Mt. Hood from Marion County, too.

And of course, I'm not sure that the 211 designation really fits 211 all that well . . . it goes east-west for much of its length.  And 214 goes largely north-south.  I'd almost consider making 211 into 214 and then turning existing 214 into 215.

-Alex (Tarkus)

[xonhulu]

That's a really good point.  I always thought that the way the routes were designated around Woodburn was a bit screwy.  219 made a little bit more sense when it used to be routed down River Road to Salem, but the current alignment between St. Paul and Woodburn is really kind of silly, and the little stretch of 214 to I-5 is just so disconnected.  Apparently, when 219 still went to Salem, the 214 designation went all the way out to St. Paul.

Not quite right.  219 left River Road in St Paul and took the St Paul Highway east to French Prairie Rd, then south on it (as it does today) until the junction with the Hillsboro-Silverton Hwy.  Today, 219 turns east towards Woodburn here, but historically 219 continued south on French Prairie Rd and then remerged with River Rd on into Salem, and 214 was on the route to Woodburn.  So 214 never made it to St Paul.  Two by-the-ways: the highway between French Prairie Rd and 99E in Woodburn was originally OR 242 back in the 30's-50's; and there is still one sign on River Rd in north Keizer which has a 219 shield on it.

And of course, I'm not sure that the 211 designation really fits 211 all that well . . . it goes east-west for much of its length.  And 214 goes largely north-south.  I'd almost consider making 211 into 214 and then turning existing 214 into 215.

More history: originally 213 didn't make it to Salem, or even Molalla.  It just ran from the Portland Airport to US 99E in Gladstone.  The highway between Oregon City and Molalla was OR 215.  OR 211 ran from Sandy through Estacada to Molalla, as it does today, but at Molalla it turned south and continued to Salem via Silverton as 213 does today.  The road between Molalla and Woodburn had no state route designation.  When 213 took over 215, it also took over 211 to Salem, and at that time 211 was routed west to Woodburn.  So originally 211 was more north-south than it is today.