Major Road Improvements Set for Morrisville
Cary Citizen, June 14, 2018
With its proximity to I-40, the airport and Research Triangle Park, traffic in Morrisville can be thick, which puts a constraint on everyone surrounding the town. But state and federal funds are coming to the area to improve both highways and local roads, with major changes coming over the next 10 years.
Importance of Highways
In a talk presented by the Morrisville Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday, June 12, 2018, several experts involved in transportation work in the Triangle spoke with gathered members at a talk moderated by Joe Milazzo, executive director of the Regional Transportation Alliance. To improve traffic and transportation in the area, Milazzo said the top priority is completing NC-540, which has recently had its bid approved.
“That project could be under construction as soon as next year,” Milazzo said.
Joey Hopkins, division five engineer with the North Carolina Department of Transportation, said NC-540 would impact Morrisville because it would give drivers another option in traveling as opposed to cutting through the town.
“If anything happens on I-40, what’s one of the parallel routes?” Hopkins said, describing the current situation of drivers moving through Morrisville.
Hopkins focused his talk on the larger highway improvements that will impact Morrisville, with more than $225 million being spent just on highways in the next five years. Speaking of I-40, Hopkins said the bridge will be replaced with one that is not only wider but includes a divergent diamond interchange with loops included. A divergent diamond interchange is a type of interchange where cars are moved onto the other side of the road to make their turn.
Bus Access to Morrisville
According to Patrick McDonough, manager of planning and transit oriented development for GoTriangle, between 110,000 and 120,000 people use the Triangle buses every day, many of whom are going to and from work or school. But in Morrisville, McDonough said most of the bus service that reaches the town is peak service only.
In Morrisville, McDonough said buses represent the most change in the shortest amount of time in the Wake Transit Plan. The expansion of Bus Rapid Transit could also impact Morrisville, as the plan is to have a dedicated BRT route from Downtown Raleigh to Cary, and then 30 minute bus service between Cary and Morrisville.
McDonough also said more buses are coming soon. Since the 2016 sales tax increase was passed, he said more buses for the region have been ordered but they take between 12 and 18 months to be built and shipped. Additionally, in the
The sales tax increase raises around $95 million a year according to McDonough and Milazzo acknowledged how different public transportation funding is currently.
“Looking back 10 years ago, it’s a night-and-day difference,” Milazzo said.