2 INTRODUCTION

At the request of the City of Harrisonburg Department of Public Works, a corridor study was performed for the Chicago Avenue and Waterman Drive project area in the City of Harrisonburg, VA. The project area is bounded by Mt Clinton Pike, the Harrisonburg City limit, Westover Park, and Dogwood Drive.

2.1 PROJECT SCOPE

Per the scope of services, the following steps were taken to determine the existing conditions of the roadway segments, to identify where safety and operational improvements may occur, and to assess possible alignments for the Northend Greenway/Friendly City Trail multimodal connector:

  • Data Collection – 7-day volume/class/speed tube counts were completed at four (4) locations the week of April 14, 2024. Peak hour (7-9 AM, 11-1 PM, and 4-6 PM) weekday directional turning movement counts performed at four (4) locations. 7-day bicycle and pedestrian counts and observations (5 AM-9 PM) were collected at seven (7) locations.
  • Existing Conditions Assessment – Timmons Group evaluated the existing roadway infrastructure to understand the constraints for future improvements.
  • Crash Analysis – Using publicly available crash data from VDOT, Timmons Group reviewed and compiled the relevant data within the study area for the period of 2019-2023.
  • Operational Analysis – Timmons Group evaluated Chicago Avenue at three (3) intersections and W Market Street at one (1) intersection during the morning (7-9 AM), midday (11-1 PM), and evening (4-6 PM) peak periods under existing conditions (with existing geometry) and 2034 background conditions (with existing geometry and with a roundabout at the Chicago Avenue/Waterman Drive intersection).

Background Traffic Growth – Per Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) Pathways for Planning Route Analysis Network, the volume on Chicago Avenue and Waterman Drive have experienced a growth rate of approximately 0.5% from 2021-2023. For conservative estimates, an annual growth rate of 2% was applied to analyze future conditions. 2034 traffic volumes were determined using the adjusted existing traffic counts as well as a 2% background growth rate on all existing intersection movements.

  • Conceptual Design – Timmons Group prepared four alternatives for corridor improvements, five alternatives for intersection improvements, and three alignments for the Northend Greenway/Friendly City Trail Connector. The alternatives were narrowed down to the final recommendations following community engagement and ongoing discussion with City Staff.

○ Alternative Corridor Improvements

  • Improving SB Chicago Avenue only with a shared-use path
  • Improving SB Chicago Avenue only with a sidewalk
  • I'm proving both sides of Chicago Avenue with a shared-use path and a sidewalk

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