Agenda - 02-16-1988 - Laserfiche WebLink

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9 New Thoroughfares In The Urban Area Many new thoroughfares are included in the Recommended Plan in the suburban areas. Of these new thoroughfares, several miles of freeways are included. Northern Durham Freeway: The major new proposal embodied in the Recommended Plan is an outer loop freeway around Durham. The Northern Durham Freeway starts at I-85 nor- theast of Durham. It stretches westward to north Guess Road, and southwest to 1-85, west of the proposed Eno Drive. The I-85/Eno Drive interchange has been removed because of spacing along 1-85. The Northern Durham Freeway will provide the anticipated need for access from northern Durham County to 1-85 and Treyburn, thereby relieving several existing roads (e.g., Roxboro Road, North Duke Street, Guess Road, and Cole Mill Road) which are presently or anticipated to be overburdened. Eleven interchanges will provide ample access to major north/south thoroughfares and will provide a bypass for central Durham for through traffic along I-85. Each end of Northern Durham Freeway has a long-range proposed extension, discussed below. Eastern Durham Freeway: The eastern portion of the recommended outer loop extension would provide direct access from I-85 to the Northern Wake Freeway and ROU Airport, thereby improving access to northern Durham, Granville and Person Counties. This proposal is shown as long-range because construction of the existing plan's East End Connector and I-85/US 70 interchange modification (connect- ing 1-85 to I-40 via US 70 and the Durham Freeway) would achieve similar benefits at less cost while solving other existing problems near Durham. Traffic projections indicate that this interim loop eventually would need relief before the end of the planning period. Northwest Loop: The western section of the recommended Freeway loop system from the Pleasant Green Road area southwestward to I-40 provides a direct connection between northern Durham County and I--40 north of Chapel Hill/Carrboro. It's construction would provide needed relief to US 15-501 between Durham and Chapel Hill as well as effectively siphoning traffic currently using NC 86 away from Hillsborough. The alignment parallels a railroad bed to minimize necessary earthwork while minimizing negative impacts on nearby residential areas. This improvement is expected to be needed prior to the year 2010; nonetheless, it is shown as long-range because it is a new idea which needs further study. Its inclusion on the Recommended Plan, the local government can protect the corridor from encroaching development. 5.5