DURHAM -- The state Department of Transportation (NCDOT) will hold an informal public meeting on Tuesday to give area residents a chance to discuss the proposed East End Connector, which will go from the Durham Freeway (N.C. 147) to north of Holloway Street (N.C. 98).
NCDOT representatives will be available to discuss the project in an informal setting between 4 and 7 p.m. in the gymnasium of the Holton Career and Resource Center, 401 N. Driver St. The entrance to the center and parking are behind the building, between Taylor and Southgate Streets.
The East End Connector project will provide a direct freeway connection designed to interstate standards between the Durham Freeway and U.S. 70. The 3.6-mile project will begin on the Durham Freeway near Glover Road and end on U.S. 70 just south of Cheek Road. The project will upgrade U.S. 70 to a freeway from Holloway Street to Pleasant Drive. U.S. 70 has already been upgraded to a freeway north of Holloway Street.
The initial phase of the connector includes two continuous through lanes in each direction divided by a 50-foot median, plus merge lanes as needed. A future phase of the connector would include adding an additional continuous through lane in each direction that would be constructed in the median.
The purpose of the proposed project is to improve traffic capacity by relieving future congestion on the Durham Freeway through downtown Durham. It will provide direct access to Interstate 40 to the south and Interstate 85 to the north, and it will divert traffic from local roads such as Roxboro, Mangum, Gregson and Duke Streets in downtown Durham.
Right-of-way acquisition was scheduled to begin this year, with construction to begin in 2013. However, NCDOT is re-evaluating this schedule as part of the upcoming State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) and will announce a new schedule this summer. NCDOT is in the process of prioritizing for a draft STIP, which will show the projects NCDOT can afford to fund from 2015-20.
To learn more, visit www.ncdot.gov/performance/reform.
Maps displaying the location and design of the project and a copy of the environmental document, the Environmental Assessment (EA), are available for public review at: The city Transportation Division, 101 City Hall Plaza (4th floor), and at the NCDOT Highway Division 5 Office, 2612 N. Duke St.,. The EA and the hearing map are also available online at: www.ncdot.gov/projects/eastendconnector/, and the EA can be viewed at: www.durhamnc.gov/departments/works/pdf/EECEEA10_2009.pdf.
Comments and suggestions received before, during, and after the meeting will be considered as project plans are refined. Written comments will be accepted until May 14. Anyone desiring additional information may contact Drew Joyner at 1598 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1598, phone (919) 431-6700, or e-mail: djoyner@ncdot.gov.
NCDOT will provide auxiliary aids and services under the Americans with Disabilities Act for disabled persons who want to participate in the hearing. Anyone requiring special services should contact Joyner as early as possible so that arrangements can be made.
