Dearborn County Transportation Assessment Complete ... - OKI

1.6 REVIEW OF RELATED STUDIESNumerous documents, including transportation planning studies, county plans and otherrelated reports have been developed to plan for, design, and implement varioustransportation-related improvements in the study area. Before proceeding with theTransportation Study, a clear understanding of these other documents was necessary inorder to fully understand the realm of problems and possible solutions that have beenpreviously identified or studied.Documents were examined for: (1) their relevance to the Transportation Assessmentand (2) their mention or description of transportation improvements that would have animpact to the transportation system in the study area. Studies or documents analyzedincluded those summarized below:Regional Rail PlanThe Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority (SORTA), the Transit Authority ofNorthern Kentucky (TANK), Hamilton County, and the Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana RegionalCouncil of Governments (OKI) collaborated on a plan for the development of a regionalpassenger rail transit system in Hamilton County and the Greater Cincinnati/ NorthernKentucky area. The Regional Rail Plan is an outgrowth of a number of separate, yetcoordinated, analyses including long range planning efforts from various agencies.Western Corridor Transit OptionsWhile several alignments were identified as part of the Regional Rail Plan, of particularinterest to the Dearborn County Transportation Study are the Western Corridor TransitOptions. Two rail transit opportunities were identified for further study as a result of theRegional Rail Plan; a light rail alignment following Central Parkway and Interstate 74,and a commuter rail alignment using RailAmerica’s existing CIND Line along River Roadto Lawrenceburg. Additional studies would be required to advance either of theproposed Western Corridor rail projects. The OKI Board of Trustees is committed to aformal study of the Western Corridor and is actively pursuing funding for such an effort.SR 101 StudyThe SR 101 Corridor Improvement Feasibility/NEPA Study was undertaken by theIndiana Department of Transportation to assess the implications of limited north-southaccess in the SR 101 study area and to identify feasible alternatives. The study area ranapproximately 17 miles from I-74 in the north to US 50 in the south. It included thecounties of Dearborn, Ohio, Switzerland, Ripley and Jefferson. The study wascompleted in December 2002.While several alternatives were evaluated, the study concluded that a new roadwaybetween Markland Dam and US 50 (via SR 56) to I-74 was the most feasible. Thealternative would not only involve the acquisition of new right of way but also a newinterchange at I-74. The recommendations of the study also concluded that subsequentevaluation of the preferred alternative proceed through three phases; Phase 1 includedan evaluation of short-term, low-cost Transportation System Management Alternatives(TSM), Phase 2 would be the design and construction of the southern portion of thepreferred alternative and finally Phase 3 would be the completion of the northern portion.Dearborn County Transportation Assessment Page 1-17