The Oxford Area Chamber of Commerce learned more about the ongoing M-24 Corridor Access Management Plan and how it will ease traffic on Lapeer Rd. at their meeting last Thursday.
Jim Hartman, Project Manager for the Corradino Group and Steve Stramsak, Traffic and Safety Engineer for the Michigan Department of Transportation, both presented the results from their study that started six months ago.
Access management is a program which controls the ‘location, spacing, design and operation of driveways and street connectors to roadways.?
Starting this past April, Hartman said the Corradino Group collected traffic counts, collected safety/crash data, collected demographic data and took aerial photographs of the corridor to help them with their plan.
According to Hartman, Oxford had a 30 percent increase in the job growth rate and a 20 percent increase in population over the last 10 years. ‘As we look to the future, you’re going to double your population, according to Southeast Michigan Council of Governments,? he said. ‘This issue won’t go away.?
Hartman said the main objective of the plan is to reduce congestion along the M-24 corridor, which stretches from I-75 and Lapeer Rd. north to Oakwood Rd. ‘If we do some of those things, it may cut down speed and we could even reduce the potential for crashes,? he said.
From 1994-1996, a total of 2,059 crashes occurred on the M-24 corridor. From 2002-2004, the number of crashes decreased by 173, which Hartman said was a good sign.
To help reduce the number of crashes along the corridor in Oxford, the study also included diagraming conflict points, which is a point in the roadway where two vehicle paths intersect, or where driveways are not defined, which creates confusion among drivers.
Specifically, Hartman pointed out how the stretch of Lapeer Rd. from Oakdell Rd. south to the intersection of Drahner had numerous problems with conflict points, like when a driver is trying to turn north onto the road while another wants to turn south at the same time. ‘The conflict points are infinite in that section,? Hartman said.
The plan for fixing these problems, according to Hartman, is to create more northbound and southbound crossovers in the appropriate areas, close bi-directional crossovers which cause delays, and also increase the four-lane highway to five where needed.
The plan also calls for closure of certain businesses driveways on Lapeer Rd. and create a shared access easement behind various businesses for easier accessibility.
Getting traffic to flow at the correct speed was a concern of the study, too. Hartman said there’s a possibility of installing rumble strips on southbound Lapeer Rd. just after Market St., where speeds drop from 55 mph to 30.
‘Every time there’s a speed differential is where a lot of crashes occur,? he said.
The men said they believe the studies and the changes they plan to make will reduce air pollution/fuel consumption by 5-10 percent and reduce conflict points and crashes by 20 percent. Stramsak said the access management plan will be an ‘ongoing process? and that the study is expected to be completed late this year or early next year.