Projected to cost $31.5 million dollars over a 2.5 year construction period, the road widening and alignment project along Highway 211 is slated for completion in May 2014 — just in time for the US Open.
Division Construction Engineer John Olinger, of the NC Department of Transportation [NC-DOT], presented a progress report on the project to a large crowd assembled at the Moore County Senior Center on Thursday, September 22.
Clearing work completed over the Summer opened up the area for utility companies to come in, Olinger explained, and construction will commence next month on the new four-lane divided highway that will extend from Hwy 73, near the West End Fire & Rescue station, to the Pinehurst traffic circle.
The newly aligned and widened road will improve sight distances and be much safer for travel; however, Olinger cautioned that the 12 to 18 months of construction will be particularly tough for traffic congestion.
Lane restrictions will funnel vehicles through construction areas between 9:00 am and 4:00 pm, though the roadway will be fully accessible during peak commuting times. The exception is work between Gun Club Road and the Pinehurst traffic circle, which will be completed at night to limit congestion.
“This is not a huge graded project, so work should go quickly,” Olinger said. “The new alignment will require a lot of lane shifts and the traffic will be primarily impacted for the first half of the project.”
Responding to a resident’s concern that the approved design with a dedicated lane to Hwy 2 at the traffic circle will not resolve the area’s congestion, Olinger agreed.
“Eventually something will have to be done with the traffic circle, and we’re looking at that and trying to figure out what to do. It is a problem, and everybody knows it.”
“But it is a problem that must be looked at as a separate project,” he explained. “This [211 widening] is something that can help a little bit; and, if and when something is done with the circle, then we will have this two-lane road in place.”
Looking down the road in the other direction, Olinger also anticipated future work to Hwy 211 from West End to Candor.
“The long range plan is to take the four-lane road all the way out to Rt. 220,” he said, adding that such an expansion would likely be a phased project.
“We usually don’t do more than eight miles at a time because of funding, but it is on the books to go all the way to 220,” Olinger said.
Other DOT projects in 2011
“Moore County has not had a lot of road work other than resurfacing done in a long time,” Olinger noted, “but it is just a coincidence that three projects were funded and scheduled for this next year.”
The least controversial project will replace an aging railroad bridge at Hwy 15-501 in Aberdeen, just south of the split with Hwy 1. The project design also includes a total rework of the existing intersection to a more traditional signal.
“This is a fairly big project with a creek and a railroad,” he explained. “The bridge itself will span 1100 feet and will be five lanes along 15-501 between US 1 and Hwy 211.”
Turning to the second project in Aberdeen, the interchange at Morganton Road and Luther Way, he said he was aware that some are opposed to the final approved plan.
“This project has been in design for a long time,” Olinger explained. “The situation is complicated with a bridge, neighboring businesses, a hotel, park land, and a cemetery. What we have won’t please everybody; but we will get a lot of bang for our buck, and it will improve traffic flow.”
The project calls for a six-lane bridge with a southbound ramp and loop. Where the road merges with Hwy 1, there will be two thru lanes and a dedicated turn lane down to a new access point on Luther Way. The existing entrance and egress points at Luther Way will be closed, essentially creating a closed cul-de-sac. Vehicles leaving Luther Way must travel south and will have a dedicated acceleration lane.
“We looked at several ways to keep Luther Way open; but there was no way to keep it safely tied to Morganton Road, because of limitations at the cemetery property,” he said.
Estimating that vehicle traffic exceeded six to seven hundred vehicles at a time on Sunday mornings between the two churches on Luther Way, the Senior Pastor of Grace Church said he opposed the design.
“You are creating a hornet’s nest,” he cautioned.
