New Albany plans $14-million roundabout, extension of Market Street to ease traffic woes
Motorists who drive through the heart of New Albany and have had to deal with serious traffic delays will be seeing a fix to the problem this fall.
The city of New Albany plans to build an estimated $14 million roundabout and extension of Reynoldsburg-New Albany Road, at the current T-end of Market Street, in order to ease traffic congestion in the former village's center. Once the roundabout is complete, crews will begin extending Market Street to the northeast and connect it with 3rd Street at East Dublin Granville Road.
Why is the city extending Market Street and building a roundabout?
Following a review of the city's strategic plan dealing with transportation and mobility, New Albany officials concluded that traffic congestion within the parts of the city needed to be addressed, said Mike Barker, city public service director.
"We're very excited to begin this project and implement improvements to some of the (traffic) congestion and address those concerns," Barker told The Dispatch.
According to the city, the most traffic congested area in New Albany is at Main (U.S. 62) and High streets, where commercial buildings, like The Eagles Villa Pizza, prevent widening the streets or adding lanes. Once completed, New Albany officials say the Market Street extension will redirect about 20% of traffic from Main and High and provide a path around a congested area of the city.
How long will construction take?
Trees on the property on the east side of Reynoldsburg-New Albany Road have already been removed and replaced by a large pile of mulch. Construction of the roundabout on busy Reynoldsburg-New Albany Road at Market Street is expected to take between 18 and 24 months.
Barker told The Dispatch that the city is being intentional about the phasing of the project to give itself enough time building the roundabout so as to not severely disrupt traffic flow.
"We want to be cognizant of the traffic impact during construction," he said.
Barker said that's because there are not many options for motorists to use detours when construction begins, so they want to schedule out the project in two phases.
First, crews will complete construction of the roundabout at Market Street and Reynoldsburg-New Albany Road, then extend Market Street to connect with 3rd Street at East Dublin Granville Road (U.S. 62). Barker also said that once Market Street is connected with 3rd Street, they will more than likely change the name to Market Street and widen the existing street so that it can accommodate heaver traffic volume and parallel parking spaces.
Once completed, the roundabout would be the fourth in just under a 4-mile stretch of Reynoldsburg-New Albany Road, joining other roundabouts at Morse, Clark State, and most recently, Havens Road in Jefferson Township.
Where did the land for the project come from, and what's the price tag?
The land for the project, which amounts to 3.23 acres, was donated by The New Albany Co., a real estate company based in New Albany. The construction project is planned to go up for bid this summer.
The total cost of the roundabout and the Market Street extension is estimated at about $14 million, according to city officials. New Albany received a $244,000 grant for the project from the Ohio Public Works Commission as well as a $756,000 loan. The remaining cost will be paid for from the city's capital improvement fund, the city's website states.
@ShahidMeighan
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: New Albany to construct roundabout with extension of Market Street
