Interim Corridor Strategy Highway 126 West

Interim Corridor Strategy Highway 126 West Highway 101 in Florence to 1-5 in Eugene April 1998 Oregon Department of Transportation Region 2 2960 State Street Salem, Oregon 973 10 Interim Corridor Strategy Highway 126 West Highway 101 in Florence to 1-5 in Eugene Prepared for: Oregon Department of Transportation Salem, Oregon 973 10 (54 1) 726-2589 Prepared by: ~gogLane Council of Governments 125 East Eighth Avenue Eugene, Oregon 9740 1 (54I) 682-4283 April 1998 Table of Contents ES Executive Summary What is Corridor Planning and Why is it Being Done? Corridor Overview Major Findings and Conclusions What's Next? 1 Overview of Corridor Planning Introduction Corridor Planning Description and Purpose Planning Requirements Corridor Planning Process Corridor Planning Participants 2 Highway 126 West Corridor Overview General Corridor Description Corridor Segments Summary of Legislation, Prior Plans, and Studies Population and Employment Projections Land Development Projections Tourism and Recreational Travel 3 Existing Conditions and Facilities Introduction Highway System Railroads Air Service Public Transit and Inter-City Bus Bicycles Pedestrians and Walkways Pipelines Segment-by-Segment Summary- 4 Future Conditions Introduction Highway System Railroads Air Service Public Transit and Inter-City Bus Bicycles Pedestrians and Walkways 5 Issues, Opportunities, and Constraints Introduction Transportation Balance Regional Connectivity Highway Congestion Safety Economic Impacts Social and Land Use Impacts Environmental Impacts Energy Impacts 6 Interim Corridor Strategies Introduction Transportation Balance Regional Connectivity Highway Congestion Safety Economic Social and Land Use Environmental Energy List of Maps Highway 126 West Corridor Location Corridors of Interstate and State-Wide Importance Highway Segments Alternative Segment 4: West 1lth to Garfield to OR 99W Alternative Segment 4: West Eugene Parkway 1995 Annual Average Daily Traffic in Vehicles Per Day Corridor Strategies Map Legend - Existing Conditions Corridor Strategies Map - Existing Conditions, Florence to Eugene Highway No. 62 (four sheets) Corridor Strategies Map - Existing Conditions, Beltline Road No. 69 Corridor Strategies Map - Existing Conditions, Eugene-Springfield Highway No. 227 List of Figures Corridor Planning Process and Phases Population Projections Lane County Employment Projections Lane County Employment Growth by Type Eugene-Springfield Vacant Lands and Land Development Projections Projected Housing Units and Population in Unincorporated Areas at Build-Out Historic Traffic Volumes, 1975-1995 Monthly ADT Variation at Noti ATR (1995) Corridor Truck Traffic Volumes and Freight Movement Highway 126 Reported Accidents Weekday Ridership Counts, Veneta Route 93 Projected Traffic Volumes Projected Travel Times Present and Future Highway Congestion List of Appendices Summary of the Public hvolvement Program Steering Committee, Stakeholder Groups, and Interested Parties Overview of Oregon Highway Monitoring System Federal and State Policy Framework Regional and Local Policy Framework Description of Level of Service Corridor Segment Inventory Executive Summary Executive Summary This Executive Summary presents major findings and conclusions from Phase I of the corridor planning process for the Highway 126 West Corridor, extending from Highway 101 in Florence to Interstate 5 in Eugene. Please refer to Chapters 5 and 6 of this report for the full range of issues, goals, and objectives. What is Corridor Planning and Why is it Being Done? The Oregon Department of Transportation is developing plans for 3 1 transportation corridors identified in the Oregon Transportation Plan (OTP) as being of state-wide or inter-state importance. A corridor plan is a long-range plan for managing and improving transportation facilities and services to meet the needs for moving people and goods. A key element of corridor planning is consideration of the linkage between land use and transportation needs. The OTP establishes the general policies and planning direction for corridor plans. It also responds to related modal and program plans for freight movement; rail service; aviation, pedestrian, bicycle, public transportation; and safety that have been adopted. Corridor plans assist in the development of transportation projects for implementation through the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP). The purpose of the Oregon Transportation Plan is to guide development of a safe, convenient, and efSlcient transportation system that promotes economic prosperity and livability for all Oregonians. Corridor planning is organized into three phases, proceeding from the general to the specific. In the first phase, Corridor Strategy development, transportation goals, and management objectives are identified. The second phase is preparation of GeneralISystem Plans, which define the transportation improvement needs and accompanying land use framework. In sections of the Corridor with particular environmental, land use, or operational concerns, refinement plans can be developed as a thlrd phase. Interim corridor strategies address the operation, preservation, and improvement of transportation facilities in the corridors. Strategies cover a 20-year planning horizon, building upon federal, state, and local transportation and land use policies and plans. Collaboration among political jurisdictions and planning agencies, in consultation with residents, users, and, other stakeholders, results in a strategy that will guide subsequent development of a corridor plan and refinement plans, and serve as the basis for selection of individual improvement projects and implementation of new or expanded transportation services. Implementation of this corridor strategy and plan is dependent upon the availability of funding. Endorsement or adoption of the Plan by the Oregon Transportation Commission (OTC) does not Highway 126 West Interim Corridor Strategy, April 1998 guarantee financial resources to carry out the projects and programs contained in the Plan, nor can the OTC commit the financial resources of other agencies or public bodies. Corridor Overview The Highway 126 West Corridor is a 67-mile Access Oregon Highway Route and a principal arterial in the National Highway System from U.S. 101 in Florence to 1-5 in Eugene. It is important to a wide range of national, state, regional, and local users and is a significant route for commuters, tourists, and truck traffic. Highway 126 West is the primary route connecting the central Oregon Coast to the Eugene-Springfield metropolitan area in the southern Willamette Valley and is critical in regards to regional connectivity in southwest Oregon. As shown in figure ES- 1, the Corridor begins in the City of Florence, travels along the Siuslaw River and passes through areas dominated by Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and National Forest lands. The highway passes through or near the unincorporated communities of Cushman, Tiernan, Mapleton, Walton, and Noti before reaching the city of Veneta and then Eugene. The Corridor intersects a number of northlsouth-oriented highways including: Highway 101 on the Oregon Coast; Territorial Highway at Veneta; and Highway 99,I-105, and 1-5, in Eugene. This Corridor spans the entire Coast Range. Land ownership is a mix of state, private, U.S. Forest Service, BLM, and municipal. Land uses in rural areas are resource-related and scattered residential and, in the urban areas, primarily commercial and industrial development. Most of Highway 126 is a two-lane highway, with a limited number of passing lanes and climbing lanes located at key locations along the Corridor and a recently constructed bypass near the rural community of Noti. Major Findings and Conclusions This Interim Strategy (Strategy) was prepared by a Steering Committee composed of representatives of local, state, and federal agencies with jurisdictional responsibilities in the Conidor. The Steering Committee recognized that no single approach could address all of the needs identified during the extensive public outreach effort conducted for the study. For this reason, it proposed a blend of approaches to address the issues raised. This section presents the major findings and conclusions of this Strategy in the following categories. Safety Improvements Transportation-Land Use and Demand Management Strategies Alternative Modes and Inter-modal Links Freight Rail Refinement Planning Environmental Impacts System Improvements/Access Management Coordination Highway 126 West Interim Corridor Strategy, April 1998 Highway 126?-& West -A,-- Corridord:i Planning Highway 126 West 0 5 10 miles Scale August 1997 Hwy. 126 West Corridor 0 Incorporated City 0 Non-incorporated City Corridor Location Map Figure €5-7 Safety Improvements The Strategy proposes to prioritize safety improvements, including access management treatments, based on the frequency and severity of accidents. Further study of speeding problems is also proposed. Safety improvements will be identified and prioritized in Phase II of the planning process. Crashes most often occurred in the urban portion of the Highway along 1-105 to the intersection with 1-5. Accidents occurred second most frequently in the rural area between the Florence city limits and west Veneta city limits. Most injuries also occurred in these two sections. The travel conditions associated most often with accidents along the Corridor were wet pavement and nighttime. Safety was one of most frequently cited issues. General concerns expressed were that,

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