T.F. Green Airport Improvement Program - FEIS Chapters - PVD

T.F. Green Airport Improvement ProgramEnvironmental Impact Statement and Final Section 4(f) Evaluationin both 2020 and 2025. The intersection of Post Road at Relocated Delivery Drive did not exist under the No-Action Alternative but is projected to operate at LOS E or LOS F under Alternative B4. The signalizedintersection of Post Road at Donald Avenue is projected to degrade from LOS D or better under the No-ActionAlternative. Under Alternative B4, the signal would be removed and the intersection would degrade to LOS Eor LOS F.5.6.7.3 Parking ImpactsAlternatives B2 and B4 would equally increase the parking supply on the Airport. Both Alternatives B2 and B4would require acquiring property owned by Airport Valet (at 717 Airport Road) that is currently used for valetparking and holds approximately 180 vehicles. This property would have to be acquired by 2015 to constructthe Runway 16 End RSA. Both Alternatives B2 and B4 also include constructing a new 2,000-space long-termcommercial parking Garage G on part of the existing long-term parking lot, adjacent to Strawberry Field Roadby 2020. The three-story garage would result in a net increase of approximately 1,300 long-term commercialparking spaces, as 700 spaces from the existing Long-Term Parking Lot would be lost to this construction.Employee parking would be consolidated in long-term Parking E.5.6.7.4 Public Transportation ImpactsBoth Alternatives B2 and B4 would result in minor changes to some of the RIPTA bus routes in the Study Area.The routes that serve the Airport directly (Routes 14, 20, and 66) would see minor changes in circulationpatterns on the Airport. The routes that currently use Post Road to access the Airport (Routes 14 and 20) woulduse the new Post Road “Gateway Entrance.” Routes 1 and 20, which operate on Post Road north of the Airport,could also see minor changes, such as relocated bus stop locations along that section of Post Road. Route 3,which operates on Warwick Avenue, would only be affected by Alternative B2, while Route 8, which operateson Main Avenue, would only be affected by Alternative B4. In both cases, only the location of bus stops (not theroute of travel itself) would be affected. The RIDOT Park-and-Ride lot on the north side of Airport Road atEvergreen Avenue would also be relocated under Alternatives B2 and B4.5.6.7.5 Pedestrian and Bicycle Transportation ImpactsNone of the designated Statewide Bicycle Routes or Neighborhood Bicycle Routes in the Study Area would bedirectly impacted by Alternatives B2 and B4. Roadway widening along Warwick Avenue under Alternative B2,and the increased traffic demand could impact the designation of the roadway segment as a “Suitable Road” forbicycle travel by RIDOT. Squantum Drive is classified as a “Most Suitable Road” by RIDOT. This designationcould be altered due to the proposed alignment of Squantum Drive with Fully Relocated Airport Road underAlternative B2. Alternative B4 would not affect the designated Statewide Bicycle Routes or NeighborhoodBicycle Routes in the Study Area. Appropriate pedestrian and bicycle accommodations would be included inthe final design of Fully and Partially Relocated Airport Road, and Realigned Main Avenue.5.6.8 Avoidance and MinimizationOff-airport roadway improvements to the Airport Connector, Post Road, Airport Road, Warwick Avenue(under Alternative B2), and Main Avenue (under Alternative B4) have been proposed to ensure that the impactsof additional traffic demands are avoided or minimized. These roadway improvements would incorporatesidewalks, shoulders, and bus stops where practicable so that pedestrians, bicyclists, and RIPTA buses would bebetter accommodated. Specifically, the Main Avenue Realignment under Alternative B4 was modified toChapter 5 - Environmental Consequences 5-147 July 2011\\mawatr\ev\09228.00\reports\FEIS_Final_July_2011\PVD_CH05_Environmental_Cons_JUL_2011.doc