- Meetings &
Public
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TAAC
Members
---
Next Trenton Access Advisory Committee (TAAC) meeting: none.
Oxford
subarea / Northwest Butler Transportation Study --- Please
see NW
Butler Transportation Study page. |
Last
updated: December 12, 2003.
Current Status
and Recent Progress
Project
Status
12/12/03 -- The Ohio
Department of Transportation's TRAC (Transportation Review Advisory Council)
committee -- ODOT's official project review board -- released
its revised list of major new highway projects on Tuesday, December
9, 2003. The list did not include funding for the State Route
63 Extension. The $27.7 million that had originally been allocated
for the project was withdrawn by TRAC because of insufficient local match
funds. The inability to secure local funding has effectively
closed the project. It is unlikely that there will be any further
development of the SR 63 Extension at this time. (TRAC 2005-2010 Major New Construction Program
Draft List.)
4/18/03 -- The draft
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) was sent in February 2003
to the Federal Highway Administration for review and comment.
Following this review, a public hearing will be scheduled to
receive public input on the EIS. Officials are planning for a
possible public meeting date in summer 2003.
12/7/01 -- The Ohio
Department of Transportation's TRAC (Transportation Review Advisory Council)
committee -- ODOT's official project review board -- announced
Friday, December 7, 2001 that it would not authorize 2006 construction
money for Phase 2 of the proposed State Route 63 Extension. The
project is one of several key road projects in Ohio that did
not receive funding commitments from the State. The proposed
interchange at I-75 and Greentree Road also did not make the
cut. (See the list and TRAC's news release.)
Gordon Proctor, Director
of the Ohio Department of Transportation and chairman of the
TRAC,
said federal funding for new construction in five years is uncertain.
"We cannot foresee any money for new construction in 2006
unless Congress acts to renew federal funding authorization,"
he said. "It would be irresponsible to make a large number
of funding commitments right now." Federal funding accounts
for approximately 80 percent of TRAC's money. Until the current federal transportation
funding bill is renewed or a new bill passed, it is difficult
for transportation officials to commit funding into 2006. The
current bill expires in October 2003.
Butler County Engineer
Greg Wilkens has stated that he will need more information before
he would know what impact the TRAC's decision would have on the State Route
63 Extension.
During much of 2000
and 2001, representatives of the Engineer's Office worked to
refine the proposed new highway alignment, meeting with local
property owners and governmental agencies. On October 12, 2001,
Wilkens addressed the TRAC committee to request an additional $63.1
million and suggest a phased construction program to better utilize
state and local resources.
TRAC has recommended applying the previously
committed $27.7 million grant to build the portion from Wayne
Madison Road east to S.R. 4 and S.R. 63 as the first phase; however,
additional local money will be required to fund the entire phase.
The western section from Wayne Madison Road to U.S. 127 would
be built as Phase 2 at a later date if additional funding is
obtained.
Time
Line
Construction will be
dependent upon the availability of additional state highway funds
or the ability to obtain local matching funds to supplement the
grant. If funding is secured to construct the project, design
and engineering can begin following any final revisions to the
alignment. This will be followed by the right-of-way acquisition
phase. The federal grant for 2004 construction funds would be
applied to Phase 1 construction to build the section from Wayne
Madison Road to S.R. 4 and S.R. 63. If additional state and federal
funds are granted by TRAC and applied to Phase 2, construction
of the portion from Wayne Madison Road to U.S. 127 is still possible;
however, no dates can be speculated at this time.
Public
Involvement Workshops
Additional public workshops
will likely be held as the project progresses.
A third public involvement
workshop was held on December 18, 2000 to identify and review
the TAAC's (Trenton Area Access Committee) recommendations to
date for the locally preferred alternative and seek public feedback.
Comments regarding the alignment were generally favorable from
the 264 people who attended the workshop.
An official public
workshop was also held on October 19, 2000 to share the results
of the project environmental studies and receive citizen feedback.
The workshop was very successful and productive with 388 people
in attendance.
S.R. 63 Extension
Project Overview and FAQs
The State Route 63
Corridor Study refers to a collective undertaking by local and
regional representatives, including the Butler County Engineer's
Office, to study the possible establishment of an east-west transportation
corridor across northern Butler County. The advisory committees
were formed early in the study process and meet regularly to
provide input and guide the Study. Three options are being considered:
- 1) Build a controlled-access
highway on new or combined new and existing alignment within
the corridor;
- 2) Upgrade and possibly
widen existing roadways;
- 3) No build.
A new road may be supplemented
by spot improvements to surrounding roads as well as mass transit.
What
does State Route 63 have to do with this Study?
If the Study outcome
proposes that a new highway on a new alignment is the best solution,
one option may be to extend State Route 63 west from its current
terminus at State Route 4.
Why
is the Study being done?
The Butler County Engineer's
Office is planning for future transportation needs so that public
monies are appropriately budgeted, and safety and efficiency
issues are met.
What
kind of oversight is being provided on behalf of area citizens?
The Study is being
conducted under the review and guidance of two primary groups
which represent the full range of political jurisdictions in
the area, as well as interest groups, businesses, and public
agencies. Regularly scheduled meetings are held and are open
to the public.
The Trenton Access
Advisory Committee (TAAC) brings together representatives from
various communities and businesses in the Trenton area to focus
primarily on the corridor between State Route 4 and U.S. 127.
This group consists of representatives from the BCEO, Cities
of Trenton and Monroe, the Village of Seven Mile, Wayne, Madison,
and St. Clair Townships, the Ohio Department of Transportation
(ODOT), and the Miller Brewing Company.
The Northwest
Butler Transportation Study group focuses on the area from
U.S. 127 to U.S. 27 near Oxford as well as other transportation
needs in the County's northwest quadrant. It consists of representatives
from the BCEO, City of Oxford, Oxford, Milford, Reily, and Hanover
Townships, ODOT, Miami University, and the Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana
Regional Council of Governments (OKI). OKI is leading the Study
to review specific transportation issues in the Oxford subarea.
Local
Participation and Funding Support
All work to date has
been locally funded by the Butler County Engineer's Office. For
the Trenton subarea, the BCEO is in the process of assessing
local funding needs for all planning, design, right-of-way, and
construction costs.
Project
Purpose and Need
There are several elements
of the Study goals and project purpose:
- To dramatically improve
travel efficiency and safety in northern Butler County;
- Reduce roadway network
capacity problems;
- Integrate project
with future improvements to existing S.R. 63 in the City of Monroe;
- Relieve congestion
in the rapidly growing Trenton area;
- Create a better transportation
linkage for the Miller Brewing facility and other industries;
- Better, safer access
to Oxford, Miami University, and all points in northwestern Butler
County;
- Support for land use
plans;
- Economic enhancement.
Study
Corridor Location
The original corridor
study area stretched from the Cities of Monroe and Trenton, west
across the northern Townships to the City of Oxford --- an area
28 miles long, 4 miles wide, and encompassing approximately 112
square miles of influence. This larger corridor was subdivided
into three study areas: Trenton subarea, Monroe subarea, and
the Oxford subarea. The Trenton and Monroe subareas were combined
and given the highest priority in terms of State ranking and
project funding. This combined area stretches from S.R. 4 in
Monroe to U.S. 127 near Seven Mile. The Oxford subarea is now
part of a separate study known as the Northwest
Butler Transportation Study.
The maps in the next
three sections provide an historical overview of the S.R. 63
Study, beginning with identification of the large study area
and followed by development of the Preferred Alternative Alignment.
Maps:
Study Area / Corridors
- Map 1 - Monroe to Oxford Study Area Map,
October 1999
--- This map illustrates the entire study area and identifies
the two subareas: Trenton Subarea and Oxford Subarea. IMPORTANT:
The large blue lines, solid and dashed, outline study areas only.
They do not depict actual roadways or proposed roadways.
- Map 2 - Trenton Subarea Preliminary
Alternative Corridors, February 2000 --- Illustrates two broad corridors
ranging in width from 2,000 to 4,000 feet for detailed study
that meet the project purpose and need for transportation improvements,
safety, and efficiency and are also consistent with the goals
set forth by the Trenton Area Advisory Committee. The detailed
study took place during the spring and summer of 2000 and included
ecological, historic and prehistoric archaeological and architectural,
and hazardous materials / waste sites that occur within these
two corridors. The results of these studies will be used to help
make decisions on the location of possible transportation improvements
within these corridors. IMPORTANT: The two shaded corridors do
not depict actual roadways or proposed roadways. They represent
study areas only. (An actual new highway right-of-way within
either corridor would only be about 300 feet wide.) The red line
does not depict an actual roadway or proposed roadway. It represents
the overall study area boundary only.
- Map 3 - Trenton Subarea Parcel
Identification
--- This map, similar to Map 2, depicts the same shaded corridors;
however, certain parcels and property owners are identified. IMPORTANT: The two shaded corridors
do not depict actual roadways or proposed roadways. They represent
study areas only. The red and dark blue lines do not depict actual
roadways or proposed roadways. They outline larger study areas
only.
The following map is
presented for historical purposes so that current study areas
can be compared with the original Trenton Bypass concept:
- Map 4 - Original Trenton Bypass --- Approximate location of
the original Trenton Bypass, journalized by the Ohio Department
of Transportation in the 1970s.
Maps:
Possible Alignment Locations
The following three
maps were presented at the October 19, 2000 public involvement
workshop:
Maps: Preferred Alternative
Alignment
The following maps
were presented at the December 18, 2000 public involvement workshop:
The following map was
based upon public workshop comments and individual stakeholder
participation:
The following map contains
only one slight modification:
The following map is
the most recent revision:
Construction
Time Line
A federal grant for
2004 construction funds has been allocated for the Trenton Subarea;
however, construction will be dependent upon the availability
of additional state highway funds or the ability to obtain local
matching funds to supplement the grant.
Cost
Final estimates will
be developed when the results of the Study are complete. $47
million was the original preliminary estimate for construction
of a new highway in the Trenton subarea; however, this estimate
has been upped to approximately $93 million.
Public
Involvement
Meetings of the State
Route 63 Corridor Study committees are open to the public; however,
public input meetings specifically targeted to the general public
will be held at various times throughout the course of the Study.
All meetings will be posted in the yellow
box at the top of this page.
The first public input
meeting was held on September 9, 1998 at Edgewood High School
and focused on the Trenton subarea. Over 100 people attended
this meeting which was structured to identify transportation
problems and issues in the area and initial thoughts from the
public on possible solutions.
A second public meeting
was held on October 19, 2000 in the Community Room of the Cinergy
Woodsdale Generating Station in Madison Township. This informal
and highly productive workshop, attended by 388 citizens, was
structured to review the study process and project purpose, review
the study corridors, and to unveil several feasible alternative
alignments for a possible new roadway location. One of the main
goals of the workshop was to hear ideas from the public about
how these feasible alternatives should be adjusted or refined
to make them better.
A third public involvement
workshop was held on December 18, 2000 to identify and review
the TAAC's (Trenton Area Access Committee) recommendations to
date for the locally preferred alternative and to seek public
feedback. Additional public involvement sessions will likely
be planned as the project progresses.
Project
Chronology
The State Route 63
Corridor Study was an aggressive undertaking that grew out the
original Trenton Bypass concept. That project came about in the
late 1970s when the Miller Brewing Company made plans to open
a plant south of Trenton. When the plant didn't open, interest
in the bypass waned during the 1980s. With the eventual opening
of Miller in 1990 and subsequent commercial and residential development
in the area, the BCEO revived the Trenton Bypass and modified
it to accommodate today's traffic needs.
No longer a bypass
looping from S.R. 73 around Trenton, the initial phase of the
project soon encompassed a corridor from S.R. 4 just north of
S.R. 63, west toward Miller Brewery, and terminating at U.S.
127 in the Seven Mile area. At the same time, officials with
the City of Oxford and the northwest townships began analyzing
local transportation needs in the Oxford subarea. A separate
study, the Northwest Butler Transportation
Study, was developed to evaluate north-south transportation
needs, including the U.S. 27 corridor from Oxford to Ross. The
Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana
(OKI) Regional Council of Governments began a Major Investment
Study on the Oxford subarea with a primary objective to build
community involvement and consensus about this portion of the
study area.
The Butler County Engineer
made a presentation to the Ohio Department of Transportation's
TRAC
(Transportation Review Advisory Council) committee -- ODOT's
official project review board -- in June 1998 to generate support
for the State Route 63 Extension. The nine-member board is comprised
of several key personnel who are charged with the difficult task
of prioritizing finances for dozens of major projects statewide.
With support from numerous local and state officials, Miller
Brewing, Miami University, and other members of the local business
community, a strong case was presented for the new Butler County
corridor.
As a result, the Ohio
Department of Transportation moved the Trenton subarea project
up from Tier 3 to a Tier 2 ranking, which means it moved from
the "back burner wish list" to a higher position on
the list of major projects. The Tier 2 ranking also enabled the
BCEO to proceed with environmental studies.
A second presentation
was made to the TRAC
committee on October 1, 1999 in an effort to elevate the Trenton
portion to Tier 1 status and the Oxford portion to Tier 2. A
Tier 1 ranking would give the project guaranteed construction
funding. The Butler County Engineer, the Butler County Commissioners,
and numerous other political and corporate leaders were part
of a team that urged TRAC members to consider economic impact
and growing transportation demands when evaluating the future
funding status for this project. Results of the TRAC committee's decision were released on
December 3, 1999 (see news release),
and the project was indeed given a Tier 1 ranking for the Trenton
subarea and a Tier 2 for the Oxford portion. With the new Tier
1 status, $27.7 million in state highway funds were allocated
to the Trenton portion of the S.R. 63 Extension. A public comment
period was in effect through April 2000 after which the ranking
became permanent.
During much of 2000
and 2001, representatives of the Engineer's Office worked to
refine the proposed new highway alignment, meeting with local
property owners and governmental agencies. On October 12, 2001,
Butler County Engineer Greg Wilkens addressed the State's TRAC
committee to request an additional $63.1 million and suggest
a phased construction program to better utilize state and local
resources. By this time, the Oxford subarea portion was phased
out of the SR 63 Extension plans in an effort to scale back the
project and make it easier to secure project development and
construction funds. Studies continued on the Oxford subarea under
the Northwest Butler Transportation Study.
The TRAC announced on December 7, 2001 that it
would not authorize 2006 construction money for the proposed
State Route 63 Extension. The project was one of several key
road projects in Ohio that did not receive funding commitments
from the State. Gordon Proctor, Director of the Ohio Department
of Transportation and chairman of the TRAC, said federal funding for new construction
in five years was uncertain. "We cannot foresee any money
for new construction in 2006 unless Congress acts to renew federal
funding authorization," he said. "It would be irresponsible
to make a large number of funding commitments right now."
Federal funding accounts for approximately 80 percent of TRAC's
money. Unless the existing federal transportation funding bill
were to be renewed or a new bill passed, it would have been difficult
for transportation officials to commit funding into 2006. The
bill expired in October 2003.
TRAC recommended applying the previously
committed $27.7 million grant to build the portion from Wayne
Madison Road east to S.R. 4 and S.R. 63 as the first phase; however,
additional local money would be required to fund the entire phase.
The western section from Wayne Madison Road to U.S. 127 would
be built as Phase 2 at a later date if additional funding was
obtained.
On December 9, 2003,
TRAC
released its revised list of major new highway projects. The
list did not include funding for the State Route 63 Extension.
The $27.7 million that had originally been allocated for the
project was withdrawn by TRAC because of insufficient local match
funds. The inability to secure local funding effectively closed
the project. It is unlikely that there will be any further development
of the SR 63 Extension.
Related
News Releases and Info
Project
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