Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
18 <br /> The Planning Board had concerns over any disruption to the NCDOT <br /> priority road paving list for fear that the priorities may be <br /> changed due to the choosing of one or two needed improvements. <br /> Preferred at this time to "stick to the schedule. " <br /> 3) Projects in the I-85 Corridor - It is recommended that the <br /> County continue to request for better coordination efforts through <br /> both the funding of enhancements to the I-85 corridor as well as <br /> through staff involvement in the design and review process for the <br /> projects. An additional enhancement project which qualifies for <br /> funding is that of landscaping and beautification efforts at <br /> interchanges. Because the I-85 interchanges in Orange County are <br /> located in various jurisdictions, this would involve a <br /> multijurisdictional effort. <br /> Additional projects which could be considered in the Orange County <br /> TIP Priority List are as follows: <br /> * improvements to various railroad crossings. There are <br /> several at grade crossings which are in need of improvement, <br /> from track crossing to grade work on the roadway facilities. <br /> An example is Buckhorn Road. Buckhorn Road has an interchange <br /> with I-85, therefore several trucks travel over the Southern <br /> Railway crossing between US 70 and I-85 . The existing grade <br /> of the tracks can cause many safety problems for trucks as <br /> well as cars. Recommended improvements involve better <br /> signalization and gradework to the road. Funding for this <br /> type of improvement comes from money allocated especially for <br /> rail improvements or could come from STP dollars. <br /> The Planning Board agreed that there are several railroad <br /> crossings in the county which warrant grade improvements. <br /> They requested all crossings with the main Southern Railroad <br /> line be addressed for the priority list. <br /> Further investigation by staff indicates two rail crossing <br /> projects with significant grade problems that also carry <br /> a large amount of traffic. They are the crossing at Buckhorn <br /> Road and the crossing at Mt. Herman Church Road. Both of <br /> these crossings are also in the county's proposed Economic <br /> Development Districts. They are also both in MPO jurisdic- <br /> tions. The Mt. Herman Church Road crossing is in the DCHC <br /> MPO, and the Buckhorn Road crossing is in the Alamance County <br /> MPO. These may require some coordination efforts. <br /> Other rail crossings for consideration include: <br /> Mt. Willing Road in Efland <br /> University Station Road <br />