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6 <br /> - has sight distance problems at major intersections, and <br /> - has forecasts of substantial increases in traffic . <br /> In the year 1999 the completed widening of Airport Road <br /> (Project U-2302) will approximately double the capacity of <br /> Airport Road and provide increased access to the land served <br /> by Homestead Road. As a result of the improvements to <br /> 'Airport Road and the development pressures in Chapel Hill, <br /> this segment of road will experience a dramatic increase in <br /> 'traffic almost immediately upon the completion of the <br /> improvements to Airport Road. <br /> In addition, Orange County broke ground on October 1 for a <br /> new human services, center on the south side of Homestead <br /> Road; the center is scheduled for completion in the spring of <br /> 1998 . Orange County is concerned about the safety of its <br /> clients as they travel on Homestead Road between the center <br /> and Airport Road. There are severe safety problems <br /> associated with turning movements and sight distance along <br /> this section of road. <br /> As a result of last years TIP request, scheduled <br /> improvements to Homestead Road were moved from 2002 to 2001 . <br /> Orange County is very appreciative that the project has been <br /> advanced. However, there will still be approximately two <br /> years during which the students and teachers of Chapel Hill <br /> High School and the clients of the new human services center <br /> will be exposed to a much higher probability of an accident <br /> than if Homestead Road had been improved at the same time as <br /> Airport Road. <br /> Therefore, Orange County strongly urges, and respectfully <br /> requests, the North Carolina Board of Transportation to continue <br /> to include this project in the 1998-2004 TIP and to accelerate <br /> construction to the year 1998, because of the high potential for <br /> accidents at the entrances to Chapel Hill High School or along <br /> other sections of the road. <br /> II) I-305 : widening of I-85 to six lanes and reconstruction of <br /> interchanges from Orange Grove Road to Durham County Line - Even <br /> though this project remains an "IDENTIFIED FUTURE NEED", Orange <br /> County requests that its staff be allowed to participate in the <br /> planning of the facility. The County is specifically interested <br /> in the following infrastructure improvements as they relate to the <br /> I-85/US 70 Economic Development District : <br /> a) Erosion Control Measures - Orange County requests that <br /> permanent erosion control measures be included in the <br /> project. <br /> b) Pedestrian and Bicycle Facilities - Orange County requests <br /> that its staff be allowed to participate in the determination <br /> of where and what type of facilities are to be included in <br /> this project. Among the features requested for inclusion are <br /> sidewalks and bike lanes (see the Regional Bicycle Plan for <br /> 2 <br />