Laserfiche WebLink
On May 16, 2011, URS and City Staff provided a project update to the City Council during the <br /> Study Session. URS presented two alternatives for the crossing of Brush College Road and the <br /> Norfolk Southern Rail Yard, an underpass and an overpass, and displayed artistic renderings for <br /> both. The proposed cross-section was also shown. It included 2 lanes southbound, 2 lanes <br /> northbound, a center bi-directional turn lane and an 8' shared use path for pedestrian and bicycle <br /> traffic on the east side of the road. <br /> A key discussion point during the Study Session was that even after the bottleneck is corrected at <br /> the Norfolk Southern rail yard, a train crossing Brush College Road at Faries Parkway can cause <br /> significant traffic delays. Council was shown a traffic simulation video during the Study Session <br /> that showed vehicles backed up almost to William Street when a train crosses Brush College Road <br /> at this intersection. These delays were one of the highest priorities of survey respondents, second <br /> only to the safety concerns at the underpass. Council directed City Staff to pursue adding the <br /> intersection of Faries Parkway and Brush College Road to the scope of the Brush College Road <br /> Study. <br /> City Staff and URS met with officials from the Illinois Department of Transportation and the <br /> Federal Highway Administration on May 18, 2011. Representatives from both departments <br /> agreed that adding the Faries Parkway intersection to the scope of the current project was logical <br /> and should occur. <br /> SCOPE OF WORK: <br /> Staff has negotiated a scope of services and contract amount with URS for the additional work at <br /> Faries Parkway. In general, the additional work will include: <br /> 1. Collecting, processing and analyzing traffic data in the Brush College Road corridor. <br /> 2. Collecting other available data of the area and performing a topographic survey. <br /> 3. Interviewing key stakeholders in the project and holding public information meetings. <br /> 4. Preparing the following studies: <br /> a. Location Drainage Study <br /> b. Alternate Geometric Studies <br /> c. Structure Studies <br /> d. Environmental Studies <br /> e. Intersection Design Studies <br /> f. Traffic Maintenance Studies <br /> 5. Preparing a Study Report, a Project Development Report, a Type, Size and Location <br /> (TS&L) study and a Structure Geotechnical Report (SGR) for the selected option. <br /> A detailed scope of services is provided in Exhibit A. <br /> The intersection of Faries Parkway and Brush College Road presents several complications to the <br /> design of an underpass or overpass. There are railway tracks along the west and north side of the <br /> intersection. There is a cemetery at the northeast corner of the intersection and ADM's west plant <br /> sits immediately adjacent to the southwest corner of the intersection. URS will look at <br /> conventional traffic signal controlled alternatives, as shown in Exhibit B, but also innovative <br /> solutions. One example of this is included in Exhibit C which shows Brush College Road passing <br /> over Faries Parkway and includes two roundabouts at the interchange. <br /> Page 12 <br />