31 / 105
27
5
Recommendations
5.2 Roadways, cont’d
Church Street.
Church Street is anticipated to undergo numerous
changes, all of them in connection with its close proximity to the rail-
road on its east side (Figure 5.9). Hopson Road in Durham will eventu-
ally have a grade separation under the railroad, connecting to NC 54,
and Church Street will connect northward to Hopson Road in Durham
County. The roadway connecting to Church Street north of the coun-
ty line is currently named Keystone Park Drive, but discussions are un-
derway with NCDOT and Durham County to rename it Church Street.
The current access from Church Street across the railroad to NC 54 in
Durham will be severed at that time, due in large part to poor sight
distance and roadway / railway geometry that, when combined with
high traffic volumes, makes the intersection unsafe. In addition, the
railroad crossing at Barbee Road/Watkins Road will also be closing,
cutting off direct access to NC 54 for residential areas along northern
Church Street.
Church Street is being sporadically widened to accommodate a
three-lane section now, and the south end will eventually become a
RIRO (right-turn in, right-turn out) intersection with Morrisville-Carpenter
Road following the reconstruction of the NC 54/Morrisville-Carpenter
Road intersection to the east. Church Street is an NCDOT-owned
road, so NCDOT controls the speed limit and limits median plantings.
Church Street will serve a more localized function in the future, with
the potential to become a beautiful and simpler, more pedestrian-
oriented version of Town Hall Drive. The recommendation for this street
is a two-lane boulevard with a planted median and multi-use path
(Figure 5.10). Median crossovers should be limited to major street inter-
sections. Through the Town Center south of Jeremiah Street, and the
Shiloh Historic Area north of McCrimmon Parkway, the median will be
removed and roadway narrowed to minimize impacts. A roundabout
at Jeremiah Street is planned to slow traffic and signal the entrance
into the Town Center.
Additional Treatments.
The speed limit on Church Street should be
25mph to conform to the local design of the street and to set it apart
from the higher-level traffic functions of Town Hall Drive to the west
and NC 54 to the east.
Recommendations for other major, north-south streets are as follows (see detailed recom-
mendations and diagrams in Appendix E):
Town Hall Drive
is currently a five-lane (4 lanes plus center turn lane) facility in most areas,
although the southern end is four lanes with a grass median. The recommendation calls
for the entire roadway to be a four-lane, median-divided facility with striped bike lanes.
The lane width will be narrowed somewhat to permit these changes within the current
pavement and right-of-way.
Triangle Parkway
is planned to provide an additional route
into Research Triangle Park by connecting NC 147, NC 540 and McCrimmon Parkway. The
section north of NC 540 is scheduled to be constructed by the North Carolina Turnpike
Authority by 2012, with a four-lane expressway design; the section south of NC 540, end-
ing at the intersection of Town Hall Drive and McCrimmon Parkway, will be a four-lane,
median-divided boulevard. Although the southern section is included on the Transporta-
tion Improvement Program (TIP), it has not yet received funding.
Davis Drive
is currently
being constructed as a four-lane facility, with ultimate expansion to a six-lane boulevard
(right-of-way for six lanes has been reserved). There will be a parallel 8’ multi-use path on
both sides in Morrisville, which will align with the Research Triangle Park trail system.
The extension of
McCrimmon Parkway
from Airport Boulevard to Evans Road (on new loca-
tion) will be four lanes, with a planted median, bike lanes, and parallel multi-use paths. The
same cross-section applies to the short connection of McCrimmon Parkway between NC
54 and the existing portion of the road to the east. While McCrimmon Parkway east of NC
54 is planned to be four lanes in the short term, expansion to six lanes is possible if a traffic
impact analysis shows the improvement is needed and it is approved by the Town Coun-
cil, or if the NC 54 Corridor Study shows a future need and it is approved by Town Council.
Slater Road
connects from Airport Boulevard north to NC 540 and will be improved as
a four-lane, median-divided roadway.
Old Maynard Road
, located in the far western
part of Morrisville bordering the Breckenridge subdivision, is planned to be renamed
Louis
Stephens Drive
and connected northwest into Research Triangle Park by 2010, providing
a north-south alternative to Davis Drive. Initially, this roadway will be two lanes without
curb and gutter or sidewalk (except where it exists in Morrisville’s jurisdiction). By 2020, it is
Figure 5.10 Recommended Church Street Ultimate Cross-Section