4. Future 2045 Build Scenarios

Based on the existing and projected traffic analysis, the US 27 corridor was analyzed for potential widening of the general-purpose lanes by one lane in each direction to six-lane and eight-lane alternatives (depending on the existing number of through lanes today). This Study identifies where those widenings might occur. Further study would be needed to determine capacity improvements when looking at the whole area of influence as a transportation system. Capacity improvements could be improvements to the US 27 corridor directly or nearby improvements that could improve safety and the operations of US 27.

4.1. Transportation Demand and Predictive Safety

The No-Build Alternative identified projected deficiencies along the corridor if no improvements are made to address increased demand. Capacity deficiencies were noted in the No-Build Alternative as measured by LOS values that are not within the acceptable range. The major improvements included adding capacity to the segments where LOS was not within the acceptable range. The segments and their improvements are shown in Table 13. The resulting range of LOS are shown in Table 14 and AADTs and peak hour analysis are shown in Figure 20 and Figure 21.

The Build Alternative AADT ranges from 17,500 to 71,500. The highest AADTs were observed from Highlands/Polk County Line to south of SR 66. The analysis of the widening capacity improvements addressed the vehicular capacity issues along most of the areas compared to the No-Build Alternative. However, with an increase in capacity within the improvement limits induced additional demand from nearby roadways onto the adjacent sections of US 27. This additional demand triggered sections of US 27 to operate at an LOS that is not within the acceptable range, further exasperating the capacity issues within the study area compared to the No Build. Compared to the No-Build Alternative, the Build Alternative may address some of the project capacity issues but additional study would be needed to determine if this is a truly viable option that address demand along with safety, evacuation, freight and other functional needs of the corridor.

Table 13: Improvements for Sections on US 27

FDOT

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