Railroad Short Line includes a shared use path on both sides of the roadway, physically separated from the travel lanes by a barrier.
North of the bridge over the CSX Railroad Short Line, the proposed express lanes transition back to an elevated structure in the roadway median, spanning over 17th St East to 25th St East. North of 25th St East, the proposed express lanes transition from an elevated structure to the same elevation as the general-use lanes, where they merge just south of the existing bridge over the CSX Railroad. The number of general-use lanes is expanded from four to six between US 301 and 25th St East, and shared use paths are provided along both sides of US 41 between US 301 and 17th Street East, as conceptually shown in Figure 5-4.
Right-of-Way 176 Feet
Figure 5-4 – Proposed Express Lanes and Travel Lanes North of Manatee River
The Build Alternative addresses context-sensitive issues related to the surrounding urban and suburban environments covering the transportation needs of pedestrians and bicyclists, motorists, transit riders, emergency responders, and freight handlers. Improvements include sidewalk enhancements and connectivity south of the DeSoto Bridge, a shared use path on the DeSoto Bridge itself, and a continued shared use path north of the DeSoto Bridge.
In addition to the bicycle/pedestrian facilities, the Build Alternative accomplishes the complete streets goals by improving north-south traffic flow throughout the project limits, providing connectivity to adjacent paths and trails for bicyclists and pedestrians, and accommodating pedestrians by providing appropriate crosswalks at intersections and closing sidewalk gaps where they exist. Existing bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure is shown in Figure 5-5. All the proposed improvements will enhance safety by separating pedestrians and bicyclists from vehicular traffic.
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