Appendix III: Transportation Engineering Author: VHB Engineering NC, P.C. Dorothea Dix Park is located near Downtown Raleigh, a rapidly growing metropolitan area. Planning for Dix Park includes planning for how people will access the park. The following analysis outlines the recommended changes to the surrounding street network to serve the park and its visitors. 418 Dorothea Dix Park Master Plan 419 Dix Park Transportation Dix Park Transportation Ashe & Bilyeu • Western Blvd Intersections • Western Blvd = 30k 27k (2015) • Ashe/Bilyeu • Pullen Rd Ext Bilyeu closed at Western • Hunt/Central Prison • Rocky Branch GW realigned • S Boylan • Future realignment/consolidation of Ashe? • Simple signal with crosswalk • Union Station Bike/Ped Connection • Ped bridge…or tunnel? Cross grade is a challenge • Bus Loop 9/14/2017 2 9/14/2017 1 9/14/2017 3 420 Dorothea Dix Park Master Plan Appendix III - VHB Engineering 421 9/14/2017 4 9/14/2017 6 South Boylan • Western lvd olan to north (2015 Central Prison & Hunt • Critical access for buses sericeeergenc vehicles • Western lvd (2015) • Fe otions for trafic groth anticiated • hit estern lvd SW straighten ore i bridge rebuilt • eav western orientation or trafic • Consolidate relocate Central PrisonGo orehead est • imle signal ith crosswalk? • Realign unt to west • Ped bridge otions • rainage issues • lorence treet alternative? • Crosswalk or ed tunnel? • Western elevates heading east increasing height differential • Possible re-connection o Cabarrus? • BR station otential 9/14/2017 5 9/14/2017 7 422 Dorothea Dix Park Master Plan Appendix III - VHB Engineering 423 9/14/2017 8 9/14/2017 10 9/14/2017 9 9/14/2017 11 424 Dorothea Dix Park Master Plan Appendix III - VHB Engineering 425 Union Station Connection • here does bikeed bridge connect? • tracs roert • West to olan ridge? • outh to Duont Circle lorence t? • Travel through station? 9/14/2017 14 9/14/2017 12 9/14/2017 13 9/14/2017 15 426 Dorothea Dix Park Master Plan Appendix III - VHB Engineering 427 9/14/2017 16 9/14/2017 18 Bus Loop • Wolline oerations • oaleigh oTriangle • Connections • lair t to Partners Way • Pullen r etension ilyeu t closure she t) • Kendall Cir / unt r / Central Prison / Cabarrus t • lair r Umstead r / arbour r • Centennial P ain Caus r / chieveent r • nitiative ay 9/14/2017 17 9/14/2017 19 428 Dorothea Dix Park Master Plan Appendix III - VHB Engineering 429 9/14/2017 20 9/14/2017 23 9/14/2017 22 9/14/2017 24 430 Dorothea Dix Park Master Plan Appendix III - VHB Engineering 431 Dix Park Master Plan, Discovery Phase December 2017 Discovery Transportation Summary Transportation access to and circulation within the Dorothea Dix Park site has adapted to its evolving functions.Transportation Today, the transportation Summary network is singularly focused on automobile access, channeling vehicles to sparse entrances to the site. Internal streets were built to connect the former hospital campus to outbuildings occupied by North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services offices. The streets are narrow and designed for low traffic volumes. The Rocky Branch Greenway along Western Boulevard is the only formal bicycle path accommodation on the site, and sidewalks between buildings are the extent of the site’s formal pedestrian accommodations. However, people enjoy walking and bicycling on the low traffic streets. Access to the site was historically limited because the site was not a public destination and purposely secluded from adjoining properties and neighborhoods. As such, roadways bordering Dix Park were designed to accommodate regional traffic. These multilane roadways are barriers to connections with nearby neighborhoods and parks. Entrances onto Dix Park are designed to discourage and restrict direct access. There are no direct connections between the Dix Park site and the State Farmer’s Market. The Dix Park Plan will describe another evolution in the site’s future transportation network. Access to neighboring properties will be opened. Bicycling, transit, and walking will be critical travel modes for accessing the park. In pursuit of these goals, this memo examines the current conditions of the transportation network on and adjoining the site. It considers the priority issues and obstacles to visitors safely and comfortably travelling to and through this premier destination, while minimizing the need to drive or park a vehicle. Cyclists and pedestrians need safer access to the Dix Park site Cycling and walking near the Dix Park site is currently limited to neighborhood streets severed from the site by major roadways and part of a local greenway. Western Boulevard and Lake Wheeler Road are the most significant barriers to bicycle and pedestrian access to Dix Park. There are no formal bicycle or pedestrian accommodations at entrances along Lake Wheeler Road. Pedestrians and cyclists cross Western Boulevard at Boylan Avenue, Hunt Drive, and Ashe Avenue, but the crossings are neither intuitive nor convenient. The Boylan Street pedestrian crossing is intimidating and requires that pedestrians and cyclists cross in two stages. Cyclists can more easily access Dix Park from the west, crossing Centennial Parkway at the Blair Drive entrance, but this entrance also lacks formal pedestrian and bicycle accommodations. The Rocky Branch Trail enters the site from the west as a shared use path parallel to Western Boulevard. The path also extends across South Saunders Street east of the Dix Park site. Walking and bicycle paths through Dix Park should create direct and connected routes to regional destinations On the Dix site, the Centennial Bikeway Connector greenway (along Centennial Parkway) and the Rocky Branch Trail (parallel to Western Boulevard on the south side) are the only formal bicycle paths or extensive walking accommodations on the Dix Park site. Existing sections of the Rocky Branch Trail are in major disrepair and do not provide safe or accessible crossings across Western Boulevard to Pullen Park, North Carolina State University (NCSU) Main Campus, or the Boylan Heights neighborhood. 432 Dorothea Dix Park Master Plan Appendix III - VHB Engineering 433 ix ark Master lan, iscovery hase Di Park Master Plan, Discovery Phase ecember 017 December 201 Future greenway connections across ake heeler Road will provide more direct access to the State • icycle lanes along Martin Luther ing r oulevard from Poole Road to the South aunders Farmer’s Market and regional greenway systems such as the Walnut Creek Trail. Also, sidewalk treet underpass on Western oulevard. improvements on Lake heeler oad between entennial arkway and Maywood Avenue and ast of Avent Ferry Road, the only fully-signalized intersection is at Hunt Drive, near the midpoint of this Maywood Avenue between ake heeler oad and South Saunders Street will improve pedestrian segment. The partial interchange at Pullen Road includes a signal for eastbound traffic only. Other maor access to the ix Park site. intersections are the complicated Ashe AvenuePullen Park Drive/ilyeu treet unction, and the outh ommuter cyclists freuent a route using lair oad, mstead oad, and either Hunt Drive or oylan oylan Avenue intersection, which does not allow left turns from outh oylan Avenue, and includes a Avenue on the Dix Park property to connect between the NS entennial ampus and owntown nearby pedestrian-activated signal. The signalized intersections described above all include signalized aleigh. his route is an important system and can be made more direct and comfortable for cyclists as pedestrian crosswalks. The only driveways along this portion of Western oulevard serve Governor part of the Dix ark Plan. Cyclists and pedestrians travelling from downtown aleigh will often use South Morehead chool and the NC Motor Fuels ab. Street or abarrus Street to access the Dix site at the oylan Avenue entrance. he 2016 ike aleigh With limited access and longer stretches of uninterrupted traffic flow, the character of this portion of Plan called for shared lane bicycle markings for oylan Avenue, Ashe Avenue, and abarrus Street. Western oulevard differs from most of the remainder of the roadway. eading west from Avent Ferry hese markings improve driver awareness of cyclists but do not provide separated facilities onto the Dix Road to I-440, the median narrows, with signalized intersections and driveways becoming more site from owntown aleigh. freuent. As a result, traffic stops more freuently, and long delays and ueues are typical during peak travel periods. Traveling to downtown on Western oulevard, the transition from stop-and-go The three major roadway corridors adjoining Dix Park each present different opportunities for conditions to freer-flowing and back again is an unepected progression. While traffic is capable of improved multimodal connectivity to the park higher speeds along this segment of Western oulevard, the benefits in terms of overall travel time are estern oulevard not very substantial, due to more congested conditions immediately to the west, and downtown. A relatively steady 5-mph flow of traffic along this portion of Western oulevard (achieved through Western oulevard borders the northern edge of Dix Park, but the -mile segment of primary interest efficient signal progression) would have minimal impact on overall capacity or commute times. extends beyond the ark boundary, westward to Avent Ferry oad, and eastward to the Mcowell/Dawson interchange. t provides direct vehicular access to Dix Park via Hunt Drive and South Although vehicular crashes do not appear to be unusually freuent or severe, there are concerns about oylan Avenue. Access via ilyeu Street is also possible via arbour rive, but this indirect route is the safety of pedestrians and bicyclists along this portion of Western oulevard. Crossing the street can much less obvious, and will be eliminated upon completion of the Pullen oad extension. be challenging due to traffic speeds and volumes, roadway width, and the lack of adeuately protected pedestrian crossings at convenient locations.