The widened and relocated Licking County State Route 37/161, a $160 million dollar investment, nearly 13 miles long, was opened to traffic June 17, 2010. This project was constructed in two phases. Phase 1 began in June 15, 2006 and was opened to traffic with a ribbon cutting October 21, 2008. Construction began on Phase Two on May 24, 2007 and was opened to traffic with a ribbon cutting June 17, 2010. This project opened up economic development opportunities and serves as an alternate route for I-70 travelers. It connects the village of New Albany in Franklin County east into Licking County with a new four-lane highway. This improvement has improved safety, reduced congestion and serves as a link major metropolitan area to business centers.
KEY FACTS
GENERAL INTEREST
§ Along with SR 37/16 and US 26, the SR 161 corridor can serve as an alternative to I-70 between Eastern Ohio and Columbus
§ This new highway will increase safety and decrease congestion by adding lanes, eliminating dangerous curves and limiting access points.
§ The expansion project includes three interchanges at Beech Road, State Route 310 and State Route 37.
KEY FIGURES
§ The cost for construction of Phase One was $55.3 million. The cost for phase two is $ 55.2 million.
§ The total cost of the project is $160 million.
§ The average daily traffic count on the SR 161/37 corridor is about 22,000 vehicles.
§ By 2030, the daily traffic count on this corridor is expected to reach 65,000 vehicles.
§ Before this new highway, there were an estimated 170 accidents on the SR 161/37 corridor, which is 70% higher than the statewide average for similar roadways.
Summary of SR 161 Project Information
June 14, 2007
Purpose and Need
• Between 1996 & 2000 traffic volumes roughly increased by 80%
• Current LOS is E
• Projected traffic volumes are expected to increase dramatic depending on location. In some cases, traffic is expected to increase up to 96% by 2030
Existing and Projected Average Daily Traffic
West of Mink Mink to SR 310 SR 310 to SR 37 East of SR 37
2000 24,600 21,900 17,400 22,400
2030 48,130 37,090 28,350 23,460
Safety
• The accident rate is higher than the statewide average for similar facilities
• The average accident rate for this corridor was 1.92 accidents per million vehicle miles traveled. The average statewide rate is 1.07 for rural-two lane principal arterial highways
System Linkage
• One of two last remaining unimproved segments between Columbus and I-77. The macro-corridor is composed of 161/37/16/36
• Project is included as part of Access Ohio (Ohio’s long-range multi-modal transportation plan)
• Part of LCAT’s adopted long range transportation plan
Study History
• Study began January 2000 and an Environmental Impact Statement was approved March 2004
Cost
Preliminary Engineering $2 million
Design $3 million (American Consulting)
Right-of-Way $45 million
Phase 1 $55.2 million (Shelly & Sands)
Phase 2 $50.3 million (Kokosing)
Wetland Mitigation $0.5 million (Dawes Arboretum)
Tower $0.7 million
Phase 3 $3 million (Repaving of Old SR 161)
Total $160 million
Project Details
• Interchange at Beech Road, SR 310 and SR 37
• Beech Road Interchange with Beech Road under new SR 161
• Harrison Road Closure
• Mink Road under new SR 161
• Jersey Mill Closure
• SR 310 Interchange with SR 310 over new SR 161
• Watkins Road Closure
• SR 37 Interchange with SR 37 over new SR 161
• Outville Road over new SR 161
• Morse Road connects to service road which extends to Outville Road
• CR 539A realigned to new interchange at SR 37