Concord Road Business Park Access Study
Overview
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) initiated a study to assess connectivity improvements between the business parks on Concord Road and regional highway network (e.g., I-95, US 322, and PA 452) in Aston Township, Upper Chichester Township, Chester Township, and the City of Chester in Delaware County.
Based on feedback from the municipalities, three alternatives were selected to be studied in detail with the purpose of choosing options to carry into preliminary engineering. The three selected alternatives were examined to verify their feasibility, ensure they met the project goals and assess their cost/benefit. An evaluation of environmental and cultural resources included a review of historic resources, streams, wetlands and floodplains, hazardous waste, threatened and endangered species, parks and open space, community resources, and potential Section 4(f) resources. A detailed traffic study was completed which analyzed delay, level of service, queue lengths, travel times, and volume shifts. In addition, right-of-way impacts, utility impacts, and overall costs were established for each alternative.
The goals of the Concord Road Business Park Access Improvements Study are to:
1. Reduce congestion on the roadway network impacted by business park traffic; and to
2. Improve safety for traffic between the I-95 Industrial Park and Bridgewater Business Park traveling to/from I-95.
Alternative 2
Alternative 2 assumes a new connection from the I-95 Industrial Park to the intersection of Green Street / Highland Avenue and Bethel Road / I-95 SB Ramps. In addition, a connector road is provided between the two business parks to facilitate traffic flow from the Bridgewater Business Park to the I-95 Industrial Park. To provide these connections and accommodate the flow of traffic, several improvements were also assumed for key intersections along the traffic route.
1. Connector Road Between I-95 Industrial Park and Bridgewater Business Park, Chester Township A connection is provided between the Bridgewater Business Park and the I-95 Industrial Park. The new roadway would connect North Commerce Drive with Milton Drive and would require a bridge to span Baldwin Run.
2. Concord Road / McDonald Boulevard Intersection, Chester Township This existing intersection is burdened by safety and traffic issues, which are projected to worsen in future years. Currently there is a stop sign on McDonald Boulevard, the minor approach, serving as the only control. Three-hundred fifty feet north of McDonald Boulevard, Concord Road intersects with the driveways to the Chester Creek Business Center Complex and a parking lot for WestRock in the I-95 Industrial Park which further increases traffic congestion. Proposed improvements were developed to include roundabout and signal options. The roundabout was chosen as the preferred option.
3. Commerce Drive to Bethel Road-Highland Avenue Connection, Chester Township The new connection will provide access from Commerce Drive (I-95 Industrial Park) to Bethel Road via Green Street. Two options were investigated for crossing CSX railroad, including an at-grade crossing or a bridge overhead.
4. Highland Avenue / Green Street / Bethel Road Intersection, City of Chester With the addition of the Commerce to Bethel Connection described earlier, this intersection component is a critical part of the project improvements. The Green Street leg will change its use from a low-volume local road to a collector road with higher truck volumes, as much of the traffic from the Business and Industrial Parks will flow through this intersection. A roundabout option and a signalized option were developed for the intersection with the roundabout being chosen as the preferred option.
5. Highland Avenue / 15th Street Intersection, City of Chester Two options were developed for this intersection, including a roundabout option and a revised traffic signal option, with the roundabout being chosen as the preferred option.
6. New Relocated I-95 On-Ramp, City of Chester With the proposed closure of the existing I-95 northbound on-ramp at Highland Street/South Forwood Street, a new ramp connection to I-95 northbound would be provided adjacent to the existing northbound off-ramp from US 322 EB / I-95 NB.
Includes:
7. Township Line Road / Renshaw Road / SR 8015 Ramps Signalized Intersection, City of Chester The addition of the new I-95 On-Ramp would require a reconfiguration of this existing intersection.
Alternative 2B
This alternative includes most components of Alternative 2 but eliminates the connection between the two parks. Since the Bridgewater Business Park traffic would still need to utilize Concord Road to get to and from I-95, additional improvements are proposed at other intersections along Concord Road.
1. Concord Road / Bridgewater Road Intersection, Chester Township/Aston Township This component will improve the existing signalized intersection. Two similar options were developed, one with a channelized westbound right-turn lane and the other without.
2. Concord Road / McDonald Boulevard Intersection, Chester Township This existing intersection is burdened by safety and traffic issues, which are projected to worsen in future years. Currently there is a stop sign on McDonald Boulevard, the minor approach, serving as the only control. Three-hundred fifty feet north of McDonald Boulevard, Concord Road intersects with the driveways to the Chester Creek Business Center Complex and a parking lot for WestRock in the I-95 Industrial Park which further increases traffic congestion. Proposed improvements were developed to include roundabout and signal options. The roundabout was chosen as the preferred option.
3. Commerce Drive to Bethel Road-Highland Avenue Connection, Chester Township The new connection will provide access from Commerce Drive (I-95 Industrial Park) to Bethel Road via Green Street. Two options were investigated for crossing CSX railroad, including an at-grade crossing or a bridge overhead.
4. Highland Avenue / Green Street / Bethel Road Intersection, City of Chester With the addition of the Commerce to Bethel Connection described earlier, this intersection component is a critical part of the project improvements. The Green Street leg will change its use from a low-volume local road to a collector road with higher truck volumes, as much of the traffic from the Business and Industrial Parks will flow through this intersection. A roundabout option and a signalized option were developed for the intersection with the roundabout being chosen as the preferred option.
5. Highland Avenue / 15th Street Intersection, City of Chester Two options were developed for this intersection, including a roundabout option and a revised traffic signal option, with the roundabout being chosen as the preferred option.
6. New Relocated I-95 On-Ramp, City of Chester With the proposed closure of the existing I-95 northbound on-ramp at Highland Street/South Forwood Street, a new ramp connection to I-95 northbound would be provided adjacent to the existing northbound off-ramp from US 322 EB / I-95 NB.
Includes:
7. Township Line Road / Renshaw Road / SR 8015 Ramps Signalized Intersection, City of Chester The addition of the new I-95 On-Ramp would require a reconfiguration of this existing intersection.
8. Concord Road / Bethel Road Roundabout and Engle Street Intersection, Chester Township This component includes the installation of a roundabout at the Concord Road and Bethel Road intersection. Also included in this component are realignments of the existing T-intersections at Concord Road. and Engle Street and at Concord Road and the US 322 WB off-ramp (SR 8017 Ramp Road).
Alternative 4
This alternative is similar to Alternative 2 but instead of providing a connection between the business and industrial parks, Alternative 4 proposes improved access to the Bridgewater Business Park from SR 452. This would be accomplished by extending Bridgewater Road from the Bridgewater Business Park to Turner Industrial Way with a new intersection at SR 452. Because this configuration would shift additional traffic onto SR 452 to access I-95, improvements to the SR 452/I-95 interchange are also proposed.
1. Bridgewater Road Extension Connecting with SR 452 Chester, Township/Aston Township This new roadway will connect the Bridgewater Business Park to SR 452 by way of Turner Industrial Way and would require a bridge to span Baldwin Run. A new signalized intersection would be created at SR 452.
2. Concord Road / McDonald Boulevard Intersection, Chester Township This existing intersection is burdened by safety and traffic issues, which are projected to worsen in future years. Currently there is a stop sign on McDonald Boulevard, the minor approach, serving as the only control. Three-hundred fifty feet north of McDonald Boulevard, Concord Road intersects with the driveways to the Chester Creek Business Center Complex and a parking lot for WestRock in the I-95 Industrial Park which further increases traffic congestion. Proposed improvements were developed to include roundabout and signal options. The roundabout was chosen as the preferred option.
3. Commerce Drive to Bethel Road-Highland Avenue Connection, Chester Township The new connection will provide access from Commerce Drive (I-95 Industrial Park) to Bethel Road via Green Street. Two options were investigated for crossing CSX railroad, including an at-grade crossing or a bridge overhead.
4. Highland Avenue / Green Street / Bethel Road Intersection, City of Chester With the addition of the Commerce to Bethel Connection described earlier, this intersection component is a critical part of the project improvements. The Green Street leg will change its use from a low-volume local road to a collector road with higher truck volumes, as much of the traffic from the Business and Industrial Parks will flow through this intersection. A roundabout option and a signalized option were developed for the intersection with the roundabout being chosen as the preferred option.
5. Highland Avenue / 15th Street Intersection, City of Chester Two options were developed for this intersection, including a roundabout option and a revised traffic signal option, with the roundabout being chosen as the preferred option.
6. New Relocated I-95 On-Ramp, City of Chester With the proposed closure of the existing I-95 northbound on-ramp at Highland Street/South Forwood Street, a new ramp connection to I-95 northbound would be provided adjacent to the existing northbound off-ramp from US 322 EB / I-95 NB.
Includes:
7. Township Line Road / Renshaw Road / SR 8015 Ramps Signalized Intersection, City of Chester The addition of the new I-95 On-Ramp would require a reconfiguration of this existing intersection.
8. I-95 / SR 452 Interchange, Upper Chichester Township Providing a new connection from the Bridgewater Business Park onto SR 452 is anticipated to add traffic to the interchange of SR 452 and the I-95 ramps. Currently, the intersection of SR 452 and I-95 northbound is unsignalized and is expected to operate over capacity in the design year. Also, SR 452 southbound is expected to operate over capacity at the signalized intersection with the I-95 southbound ramps. Therefore, improvements at the I-95 / SR 452 Interchange were included with this alternative to improve traffic operations.