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Corridor Study for Hal Greer Boulevard Huntington, West Virginia Prepared for: KYOVA Interstate Planning Commission City of Huntington, West Virginia West Virginia Department of Transportation Ohio Department of Transportation United States Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration Federal Transit Authority Prepared by: Kimley-Horn & Associates 3169 Holcomb Bridge Road, Suite 600 Atlanta, Georgia 30071 011658002 September 2004 This report does not constitute standard specifications or regulations. The contents do not necessarily reflect the official views or policies of the aforementioned agencies. CHAPTER 1 Introduction Hal Greer Boulevard represents the and neighborhoods near Hal Greer history of Huntington, and provides an Boulevard. opportunity to drive back in time. Starting at the Ohio River and heading Hal Greer Boulevard holds a key role in south toward the Cabell Huntington several initiatives, including the Hospital, you pass through a revitalization of downtown; the growth kaleidoscope of history and architecture of Marshall University and Cabell- that represents the heart of Huntington’s Huntington Hospital as those institutions history. This concept is best expressed serve our community; the construction in an editorial comment featured in of the KineticPark technology and Landscape Architecture magazine: business center, and in the businesses that have chosen a Hal Greer Boulevard “In every town there’s a address to serve Huntington. universal type of Great Old Street that we all know… once It is important that Hal Greer Boulevard and perhaps still the single street is able move people between these which unfolds for the visitors the important places, and to function as a most knowledge about a city. It lifeline for the many citizens who live offers a cross section of the city’s nearby. This boulevard will continue to history, poses object lessons in demonstrate the history of Huntington urban decay and revival…” and deserves a much-needed facelift beyond the widening currently under The editorial continues, making the point construction. that is perhaps most important in thinking about Hal Greer Boulevard: BACKGROUND “More than just an exercise in Hal Greer Boulevard is one of the major nostalgia… {this street} is a corridors making up the transportation potential civic asset, yet to be network of Huntington, West Virginia. saved and built upon as a special Also known as WV 10, and formerly district with rare qualities for known as 16th Street, Hal Greer urban life.” Boulevard provides one of the primary routes into downtown Huntington. It Hal Greer Boulevard is the “people stretches from I-64 south of Huntington street”. This is one of the few places in to westbound US 60 (3rd Avenue) along Huntington where people walk instead the Ohio River. As developments such of drive — they walk to Marshall as Pullman Square in downtown University, downtown, Cabell Huntington and Kinetic Park near I-64 Huntington Hospital, the clinics, the are constructed, and as Marshall doctors’ offices, the community centers, University and Cabell Huntington Hal Greer Boulevard Corridor Study Page 1 Final Report Hospital continue to grow, traffic the community to be affected is not demand along Hal Greer Boulevard will consulted in the development stages. continue to increase. Citizens have an intimate knowledge of This study was commissioned by the the places they live and travel, as well as KYOVA Interstate Planning problems they encounter along the way. Commission, the Metropolitan Planning To ensure that the Hal Greer Boulevard Organization (MPO) covering Corridor Study considered these Huntington, West Virginia, which important issues while simultaneously retained Kimley-Horn and Associates to keeping the community’s best interests conduct the study. It is the second phase in mind, a Study Advisory Group was of a two-part project. The first phase of formed and engaged early in the the study was prepared by the West planning process. In order to make sure Virginia Department of Transportation the community was adequately (WVDOT), and as a result of that study, represented, citizens from a broad range Hal Greer Boulevard is currently being of backgrounds were invited to widened to five lanes from Washington participate in the Advisory Group. Boulevard to Charleston Avenue. Because the current study of the north The Advisory Group met three times section of Hal Greer Boulevard has during the planning process. The first overlapped with the construction of the was an initial meeting where the project south section, comments and discussion was introduced and impressions, about the first phase necessarily became concerns, and ideas about the corridor an integral part of this study. were gathered. At the second meeting, proposed improvements to the corridor The study area for this project includes were presented to the stakeholder group, Hal Greer Boulevard between who gave their reactions to the potential Charleston Avenue and 3rd Avenue. improvements. At the third meeting, This study’s purpose is to recommend final recommendations were presented to ways in which the Hal Greer Boulevard stakeholders. corridor can be improved. These recommendations have been developed The initial set of potential improvements with input from local stakeholders, as was also presented at a public meeting. well as the public. At this meeting, the project was introduced, a summary of issues raised PUBLIC I NVOLVEMENT by stakeholders was provided, and the public was given ample time to ask Public involvement is an important questions and present their thoughts component of a successful corridor about Hal Greer Boulevard. study. Even the most well-conceived recommendations are destined to fail if A summary of the comments received from the public throughout the planning process may be found in Appendix A. Hal Greer Boulevard Corridor Study Page 2 Final Report CHAPTER 2 Existing and Future Conditions LAND USE I NVENTORY operating conditions people experience when traveling on a transportation Kimley-Horn conducted a site visit to facility. Level of service can be defined the Hal Greer Boulevard Corridor in for intersections, highways, and even April 2004. During this site visit, land sidewalks. To describe the LOS of a uses for property abutting the corridor facility, it is given a letter designation. were identified. These land uses are LOS A indicates ideal operation shown in Figure 1. The corridor conditions. For an intersection, that comprises a variety of land uses, from means the average driver passing Cabell Huntington Hospital and through the intersection stops for only a associated medical-related uses at the very short time. LOS F is the worst southern end of the study area, to level of service, and generally translates Marshall University and associated into long delays and stop-and-go traffic. university-related land uses at the northern end. Between these locations, the corridor consists mainly of single- family and multi-family residential properties, with a limited number of commercial uses. The corridor is separated into two sections by the CSX Railroad, which crosses Hal Greer Boulevard between 8th and 9th Avenues. Level of Service A For the Hal Greer Boulevard Corridor Study, WVDOT provided peak period intersection turning movement counts that were conducted on a weekday in March 2004, which did not coincide with Marshall University’s spring break. Hal Greer Boulevard near 4th Avenue Counts were taken at six intersections along Hal Greer Boulevard: 3rd Avenue, 4th Avenue, 5th Avenue, 7th Avenue, 8th EXISTING TRAFFIC LEVEL OF SERVICE Avenue, and Charleston Avenue. These traffic counts are shown in Figure 2. Level of service (LOS) is a term used by Based on these traffic counts, LOS was traffic engineers to describe the determined for several intersections Hal Greer Boulevard Corridor Study Page 3 Final Report Figure 1 Legend Hal Greer Boulevard Land Use Map Railroad Commercial Parking Lot Corridor Study Multi-Family Residential University-Related Empty Building/Lot 0 Feet Single-Family Residential Railroad Parcels 3rd Avenue to 7th Avenue D 3 U R E T D V H Marshall A A A V University H V E T E 5 7 6 T T H H A A V V HAL GREER BLVD E E Restaurant 4 Furniture Store T H Gas Station A V E 8th Avenue to Charleston Avenue 1 E D 0 9 V T O T E H A H U V A L N A A T V O V N O E T E A N S t S n E I l A l a r L a T u V Used Cars H Muffler/ a R l t R Drug E o s Brake Store 8 e A o A Store T P R H H C A HAL GREER BLVD C V H E Child Care Center A R 1 t 1 Gas Pizza L Truck Rental s Auto i Laundry t E T Station Shop E Repair n Wood Products H e V S D Auto Parts Store A T A O V H N T E 0 A 1 V E XX PMPeakHourTrips NOT TO SCALE Turning Movement Existing TrafficSignal LEGEND Hal Greer Boulevard C h a Corridor Study r l e s 3 t 5 7 8 rd 4 o th th th th n Avenue Avenue Avenue Avenue Avenue A v e n u e 1291 171 107 155 149 107 214 53 27 181 53 59 74 64 58 572 599 617 411 22 85 22 40 117 19 319 553 505 85 580 414 52 2 163 118 170 1480 88 237 235 90 52 28 442 16 18 78 27 50 Counts Traffic 618 632 574 325 157 90 32 Hal Greer Boulevard Figure 2 topics of discussion by the stakeholders included: Construction-related issues Pedestrian safety Aesthetics Maintenance Drainage problems Confusing intersections Traffic congestion FUTURE TRAFFIC LEVEL OF SERVICE Level of Service F To determine projected future traffic along the corridor using Synchro traffic volumes, the existing traffic counts were analysis software and methods from the increased by 2% per year until the year Highway Capacity Manual 2000.