State Route 48 and U.S. 22/U.S. 3 Widening and Intersection Safety Improvements

Woolpert worked with the Warren County Transportation Improvement District to engineer improvements for widening 1.5 miles of State Route 48 from three to five lanes, including the intersection with U.S. 22/U.S. 3 to improve congestion and safety. Woolpert used their mobile mapping system to collect lidar data, supplementing with traditional field survey for utilities and right of way. The project included three intersections on the top 100 Statewide Safety list, and Woolpert worked with the Ohio Department of Transportation to obtain $1 million in safety funding for the project.

The project included widening on U.S. 22/U.S. 3 to add through lanes to receive dual-left-turn lanes and adjust the horizontal alignment to avoid impacts to a cemetery. The project generally remained on the same horizontal and vertical alignments, except one sag curve that did not meet stopping sight distance. Future widening of U.S. 22/U.S. 3 was taken into consideration. The project added sidewalks along both sides of the road, including connections to adjacent subdivisions and businesses, incorporated Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant curb ramps, and improved intersection lighting.

Woolpert worked to salvage existing pavement and minimize impacts to adjacent utilities where possible, particularly Duke transmission lines and sanitary sewers. Woolpert also worked with the Warren County Water and Sewer Department to design a new 16-inch water main.

The project involved improved traffic signals at four intersections, and the team performed extensive modeling in OpenRoads Designer to avoid impacts to adjacent development and three electric transmission lines. Signals implemented were a mix between mast-arm and span-wire options to minimize utility conflicts. The signals utilize radar detection and include pan-tilt-zoom cameras for traffic monitoring. Existing traffic lanes were maintained throughout construction, partly by locating water and storm lines outside the existing pavement.