By Rick Palsgrove
Southeast Editor
The improvements to a busy Winchester Pike intersection are now complete.
According to Carla Marable, director of communications for Franklin County Engineer Cornell Robertson, the completed upgrades to the intersection of Winchester Pike and Ebright/Shannon roads improves the efficiency of the intersection by adding left turn lanes on each leg, adding a new traffic signal, and widening the bridge over Blacklick Creek. Work on the project began last March and ended in November.
Marable said approximately 18,000 vehicles enter the intersection per day.
“Good roadway infrastructure is critical for Ohio, Madison Township, the city of Columbus, and all of Franklin County to remain economically viable and to provide safe travel and efficiency of the intersection,” said Marable.
She said the total cost of the project was $2.7 million and included the bridge and roadway widening for turn lanes at the intersection, traffic signal upgrade, and storm sewer improvements.
Funding for the project was provided by: the County Engineers Association of Ohio, $2 million; Ohio Public Works Commission, $378,000; and the Franklin County Engineer’s Office $310,000. The Franklin County Engineer’s Office also spent $539,000 on engineering design, $125,000 on right-of-way acquisition, and staff time for construction inspection, according to Marable.
The Winchester Pike and Ebright/Shannon roads intersection project, as well as the already completed improvements to the Winchester Pike and Bixby/Brice roads intersection, which was done earlier, have helped ease traffic flow in the area.
There is another improvement planned for the Winchester Pike corridor, according to Marable, who added, “The Winchester Pike bridge over Georges Creek, between Bixby Road and Gender Road, is planned to be rebuilt. This project is tentatively scheduled for fiscal year 2023.”
The city of Columbus is currently planning to update its Greater South East Area Plan, which includes the Winchester Pike corridor. When asked how the Winchester Pike improvements tie into Columbus’ Greater South East Area Plan regarding development in that area, Marable said, “The development of this plan only began this past summer and it looks like it is still in the community outreach phase. It will not be adopted and passed by Columbus City Council until summer 2018.”
For information on the Greater South East Area Plan, visit www.columbus.gov/planning/SouthEast/.
