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6 <br />COMMENTS REGARDING <br />THE DRAFT 2002-2008 DURHAM-CHAPEL HILL-CARRBORO METROPOLITAN <br />TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM (MTIP) <br />SUBMITTED BY ORANGE COUNTY <br />Orange County gives priority to identified safety needs on existing roads and bridges <br />and to other transportation projects which foster alternatives to automobile travel. The <br />County also endorses environmentally responsible construction of all transportation <br />projects. Finally, the County supports adequate maintenance for existing transportation <br />facilities. <br />As a member of the Durham-Chapel Hill-Carrboro Metropolitan Planning Organization, <br />Orange County will continue to work with the Transportation Advisory Committee <br />(DCHC TAC) to develop a complete list of project priorities for the portion of Orange <br />County that lies inside the urbanized area boundary. Orange County submits the <br />following comments on selected projects in the Draft 2002-2008 DCHC Metropolitan <br />Transportation Improvement Program. <br />DRAFT 2002-2008 MTIP PROJECTS IN ORANGE COUNTY <br />1. U-2805: Homestead Road Widenin4 - Orange County requests the further <br />advancement of Homestead Road in the, TIP schedule for the following reasons: a) <br />Tip Project U-2302 (Airport Road widening), which was completed this year, <br />approximately doubled the capacity of Airport Road providing increased access to <br />the land served by Homestead Road; and b) there will be a period of several years <br />between completion of improvements to Airport Road and construction of <br />improvements to Homestead Road, and during that time, accident exposure will be <br />increased because Homestead Road was not improved at the same time as Airport <br />Road. It is important that improvements to Homestead Road not be delayed from <br />the scheduled construction date in 2004. We were disappointed that the <br />construction- d~fe bias-previously slipped trom mid 20p1 to 2U(14, and now has <br />slipped again from 2004 to 2005. <br />2. NC 86. Construct bicycle lanes: from Chapel Hill (Whitfield Road) to Hillsborough <br />(US 70). Scheduled improvements to Airport Road (NC86) in Chapel Hill will extend <br />bicycle facilities from UNC to Whitfield Road (SR 1731) in Orange County. NC 86 <br />from Chapel Hill to Hillsborough is experiencing increasing numbers of bicyclists <br />using this route and there are also two new schools along this route. This route is <br />listed as priority I of the primary bicycle routes proposed in the Orange County <br />Bicycle Transportation Plan adopted April 6, 1999. Orange County requests that <br />bicycle lanes be constructed. <br />This project is included In the Draft 2002-2008 STIP in the Bicycle and Pedestrian <br />Program as an incidental bicycle need. Orange County would also like it to be <br />considered as an independent bicycle project in the future. <br />