Approximately $39-$40 million will be invested in the U.S. 33/Route 161/Post Road interchange. A depiction of the proposed project, including the creation of a shared-use path for pedestrians, is shown above. Anthony Turowski, District 6 deputy director for the Ohio Department of Transportation, said construction will take place from 2022 through 2025. (Graphic submitted)
As development in Jerome Township continues, local and state officials are busy working to improve roadways in the area.
The Jerome Township Trustees recently heard a presentation from the Union County Engineer’s Office and Ohio Department of Transportation regarding upcoming infrastructure projects and those already underway.
“I was surprised by how much is going on in one township,” said Anthony Turowski, District 6 deputy director for ODOT.
Assistant Union County Engineer Bill Narducci noted that the area is beginning to see “pre-COVID levels” of traffic once again.
Likewise, crashes increased from about 1,100 in 2020 to 1,200 in 2021. He said Union County saw an 11% increase in crashes between the years, compared to a 7% increase statewide.
He noted that many county- and ODOT-funded projects aim to improve driver safety.
For example, Narducci emphasized work done on the U.S. 33/U.S. 42 interchange in 2021, which was the most dangerous site for crashes, with 26, that year.
He said approximately $2 million in ODOT funding was spent to improve the interchange, including adding exit ramp lanes and traffic signals.
Narducci said work on the Route 161/Cosgray Road intersection was also completed in 2021, after beginning design work for the area in 2016.
Along with a multi-lane roundabout, lighting and landscaping was added.
Due to disputes with the developer contributing to the project, utility work and right-of-way acquisition, he said the project faced a number of delays.
However, he said the finished product was worthwhile.
“It functions really well… we have not heard negative feedback on this project,” Narducci said.
The project costed approximately $6 million and was “100% locally funded,” he said.
Narducci said the county is also in the process of making improvements to a much-talked-about intersection in Jerome Township, Industrial Parkway and Mitchell-Dewitt Road.
The Union County Engineer’s Office is currently hiring a design consultant to analyze alternatives for the area, which could range from a roundabout to installation of traffic signals.
Narducci said the project will be completed with a combination of ODOT safety funds, local dollars and developer contributions.
He said he anticipates construction to occur in 2023 and last between three and four months.
In the meantime, he said “interim improvements,” like additional signage, have been added.
Narducci said the county is also working toward improvements on Warner Road.
He said 1.3 miles of the roadway, to the Kile Road intersection, will be widened and a traffic signal will be added at the Industrial Parkway intersection.
At this point, Narducci said his office has estimated a $3.6 million cost for the project. They have secured approximately $480,000 in grant funding so far.
He noted that developers will contribute toward the project based on the results of traffic impact studies.
The state is also working on a number of road improvements in Jerome Township.
Turowski, with ODOT, said future improvements to the U.S. 33/Route 161/Post Road interchange are a “really good example of collaboration,” as they will be funded jointly.
Between $39- and $40 million will be invested in the area, though a final bid has not been accepted, as they opened on March 10.
The improvements to the interchange, which will include the creation of a shared-use path for pedestrians, will occur from 2022 to 2025.
He said the pavement on U.S. 42 will be repaired and widened in 2024. ODOT plans to rebuild shoulders, resurface the roadway and add a left turn lane at Jerome Road.
ODOT is currently working on right-of-way acquisition for the project, Turowski said.
He said ODOT is also acquiring the right-of-way as the first step toward improvements at the U.S. 42/Industrial Parkway intersection. Meanwhile, he said his department is also working toward funding and designs for the project.
He said ODOT officials plan to build turn lanes on each leg of the intersection and add lanes to the middle.
Turowski said development in the area will be beneficial for the proposed roadway improvements.
“Every time someone develops in this area, we’re able to get a little bit of money” toward projects based on traffic impact studies, he said.
Work on the U.S. 42/Industrial Parkway intersection will likely begin in 2024 and last about a year, Turowski said.
Beginning in May, Turowski said drivers will see work on the U.S. 33 resurfacing project, which will span through Jerome Township to the Marysville city limits.
The work is funded completely by ODOT, and will continue through September of this year.
Turowski said ODOT is also currently working on the design for replacing the Beecher Gamble Road bridge.
He said it is currently lower than it should be and is bumped and damaged by larger trucks on occasion. Construction to raise the bridge by two feet and modernize its design will begin in 2024.
In response to a question from Trustee Barry Adler, Turowski said he does expect some available dollars from the federal government allocated for infrastructure projects to help close existing funding gaps.
The Union County Engineer’s Office is currently investigating designs to improve the intersection of Industrial Parkway and Mitchell-Dewitt Road. Options include the creation of a roundabout, illustrated above, though Assistant Union County Engineer Bill Narducci emphasized that it is a concept only and has not yet been decided upon. (Graphic submitted)