DOT seeks input on highway projects
By Steve Herring
Published in News on June 10, 2018 3:05 AM
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
Improvements to the U.S. 70 Bypass are included in the State Transportation Improvement Program.
WILSON -- The public will have the opportunity Tuesday to express their opinions on which proposed projects the N.C. Department of Transportation should build in its six-county Division 4.
Included in the proposed plans is the upgrading of a nearly 7-mile section of U.S. 70 West to freeway standards.
The informal meeting will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. in the division's conference room, 509 Ward Blvd., Wilson. Staff members will conduct the meeting.
Division 4 includes Wayne, Edgecombe, Halifax, Johnston, Nash and Wilson counties.
Citizens are invited to stop in and provide input on how the division plans to rank its project priorities.
The department is asking for public feedback on which regional- and division-level projects should become top priorities in the next cycle of the State Transportation Improvement Program, a 10-year vision for funding and completing projects.
The DOT is collecting feedback statewide through July 9.
Data scores for more than 2,100 transportation improvement projects statewide were released by the DOT in April in the first round of an evaluation process to determine which projects will be scheduled for construction.
Also at that time, 77 high-scoring statewide mobility projects were identified that will be programmed for funding during the next decade.
They include 48 highway projects totaling $3 billion, 11 rail projects for $270 million and 18 aviation projects for $9 million.
The approximately $125 million U.S. 70 project is included.
That project extends from the western end of the U.S. 70 Goldsboro Bypass in Wayne County to just west of Pondfield Road in Johnston County.
It would be divided into two sections, potentially including three new interchanges with overpasses and ramps, as well as new service roads.
Once the improvements are made, that section of road will be fully controlled access.
Last November, Wayne and Johnston county residents had the opportunity to make comments and ask questions about the project during a public meeting in Princeton.
The Wayne County end of the project, 3.45 miles, is expected to cost $62.9 million.
It scored 75.24 points out of a possible 100.
It stretches from just east of Earl Drive at the western end of the U.S. 70 Goldsboro Bypass to just west of Luby Smith Road.
Right-of-way acquisition and construction could start in fiscal year 2023.
The second part of the project, which is mostly in Johnston County, would cost $62 million. It extends from just west of Luby Smith Road to just east of Pondfield Road.
It received 77.64 points out of a possible 100.
Right-of-way acquisition could start in 2025 and construction in 2027.
The DOT will provide auxiliary aids and services under the Americans with Disabilities Act for anyone with disabilities who wants to participate in the Tuesday public meeting.
Also, anyone requiring special services should contact Lauren Putnam, public involvement officer, at 919-707-6072 or lnputnam1@ncdot.gov.
The public may also provide input at ncdot.gov/sti where there is a short, interactive survey to identify priority projects.
The online survey features an interactive state map with the proposed projects; citizens may review project information and provide feedback on which projects they think are important.