Downtown Sylva group joins opposition to Southern Loop

Downtown Sylva group joins opposition to Southern Loop

The Sylva Herald

December 20, 2007

By Stephanie Salmons and Carey Phillips

The Downtown Sylva Association went on record in opposing the proposed Southern Loop and supporting an alternative supported by the Smart Roads Coalition. That action came during the group’s Dec. 12 meeting.

Smart Roads members Roger Turner and Harold Messer, along with Susan Leveille, the group’s representative on the Jackson County Transportation Task Force – all of whom are against the proposed road – spoke to the DSA board asking the organization to oppose the road based on the effect it could have on downtown.

Initial plans indicate the Southern Loop would run from U.S. 23/441 south of Dillsboro, cross N.C. 107 near Locust Creek and intersect with U.S. 23/74 near Blanton Branch.

The Smart Roads Coalition contends that such a bypass would be detrimental to downtown Sylva.

“You’re surrounded by black top,” Messer said. “What’s going to bring people into Sylva, Dillsboro and Webster when they can drive on around you and go to Asheville, Atlanta or anywhere?”

Messer said the thing that troubles him about the merchants and the economy in Sylva is that “it’s a known fact that people will drive around rather than come into the town.”

Turner said even if people still drive into Sylva, “you still have that terrible intersection.” Turner was referring to the intersection located where N.C. 107 and U.S. 23 Business meet.

“This thing is a glorified nightmare of all the problems it’s going to create trying to save 15 seconds at a red light at Bogart’s,” Messer said.

According to Messer, a two-lane roundabout would help relieve traffic at that intersection.

“They say the roundabout will not work and we cannot afford to disturb the businesses that are there,” Messer said. “The Southern Loop affects 43 business, numerous homes and it doesn’t impact that intersection.

Turner pointed out that roundabouts in Waynesville and Cullowhee work well.

Smart Roads supports a plan developed by Sylva Planning Director Jim Aust that would include a series of two-lane roads connecting with existing roads.

“Aust told me he fixed the roads in his plan where they would have the lowest impact on homes and property,” Messer said. “The DOT doesn’t care about our heritage; they’re interested in building roads.”

Turner encouraged DSA board members to address their concerns to Sylva’s town board and ask Sylva board members to re-examine the issue.

DOT 14th Division Engineer Joel Setzer told the Herald last Thursday that plans are in the works for a feasibility study on N.C. 107.

“People want to know what it would take to fix 107,” Setzer said. “We want people to know what fixing 107 would mean, and right now I don’t know.”

The section of the Southern Loop from 107 to 23/74 is on the current DOT Transportation Improvement Plan with right of way acquisition to start in 2013.

Setzer said he and 14th Division DOT board member Conrad Burrell had always considered that segment of the road the most important. Setzer said he envisions a two-lane road on a four-lane right-of-way with full access control with no driveways.

“The Jackson County Smart Roads group says there would be sprawl,” Setzer said. “When I met with them I told them there would be full access control.”

Unlike the Smart Roads Coalition, Setzer is not sold on the plan proposed by Aust.

“That wouldn’t do anything for the (107-Business 23) intersection,” he said. “It also would dump quite a bit of traffic on Fairview Road in an area that is already congested.”

Setzer said a roundabout at the intersection, which he said is one of the busiest west of Asheville, would not work.

“The biggest problem is the crossover traffic coming down the hill (on Asheville Highway) and traffic trying to get into town (from 107),” he said. “If you didn’t have that, a roundabout might work.”

Setzer said Reuben Moore, DOT division operations engineer, had looked at the intersection and determined that the only option would be a “flyover bridge” carrying traffic from Asheville Highway onto 107.

“That would cause the road to be shut down for about a year,” Setzer said. “I don’t think that would work well.”

The latest available DOT traffic count at the intersection is from 2005 and shows an average of 40,000 vehicles a day. That compares to 4,000 for the roundabout at the main entrance to Western Carolina University and 11,000 for the roundabout at Ratcliffe Cove Road and Business 23 in Waynesville.

Ron Watson, Setzer’s predecessor as division engineer, told the Herald in 2003 that DOT guidelines showed a two-lane roundabout could handle 25,000-30,000 vehicles per day.

Moore said last Thursday that DOT was now “more sophisticated” in how it determines the traffic a roundabout can handle, and considers the count on a case-by-case basis depending on how much traffic uses each round entering an intersection. He said a roundabout has not been totally ruled out.

Moore said since there are two left turns, those vehicles would have to travel three-fourths of the way around the circle, which would reduce the capacity of a roundabout at that location. He said at best the traffic count would likely be at or near the upper limit for what a two-lane roundabout could handle.

Moore said the only two-lane roundabout he is aware of in North Carolina is near Salem College in Winston-Salem. Even it does not have two lanes all the way through the roundabout, he said.

When asked about the possibility of adding another lane coming into town from 107 to relieve congestion, Setzer said that might work now, but it would not be able to handle the projected increase in traffic.