Both Orange County and Carrboro officials have recently decided that widening N.C. 54 may not be the best avenue to a streamlined commute.
The Board of Orange County Commissioners heard the presentation of a report that recommended officials widen a passage of N.C. 54 West that runs through Carrboro at its Nov. 7 meeting.
More than four miles of this passage, which also runs through Alamance County, are in Orange County. Almost two of those miles run through Carrboro. The Carrboro Board of Aldermen decided to consider alternatives to widening by receiving the report in an Oct. 15 meeting.
Although the report the county received suggests the volume of cars may be causing crashes along the highway, Carrboro Board of Aldermen members Damon Seils said current safety updating initiatives could address these problems.
In his statements to the commissioners, Seils cited the potential for negative environmental impacts and increased commuter traffic on alternative local routes as possible outcomes of the proposed widening. Both Seils and county commissioners expressed concerns that the benefits of the project might not outweigh the costs.
“The recommendation in the report calls for a project that will cost many, many millions of dollars to address a problem that we think is smaller scale,” Seils said. “I think that there are other priorities for the region."
The Board of Orange County Commissioner and Carrboro Board of Aldermen said they will look to alternatives including signaling and safety improvements that are already underway to relieve congestion in the area. Orange County Commissioner Mark Marcoplos brought up park-and-ride and carpool lots as alternatives to the issue. Seils, as well as other county commissioners, expressed concerns as to whether the proposal is worth its cost.
“The many millions that would be spent on this project are many millions that would be spent on other projects that we think are more important priorities," Seils said.
The report will be considered by the Durham-Chapel Hill-Carrboro Metropolitan Planning Organization this week. But as the Town and County move forward, officials, including Carrboro Mayor Lydia Lavelle, are hopeful a compromising solution will be found.
