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Transportation
Issues
The City of Lakeland is actively
pursuing several transportation
projects in the coming months
and years that involve, or are
administered by, city, state
and/or county agencies. City,
Shelby County, and the Shelby
County Metropolitan Planning
Organizations, as well as state
and federal governments, are
involved in the major projects
such as the Interstate 40
Interchange Project and the New
Canada Road Realignment Project.
Therefore, the project process
can be complicated and
time-consuming due to the many
levels of approvals required for
each milestone. To help keep
Lakeland residents and
businesses informed, the status
of several projects is outlined
below.
Local Streets
Beverle Rivera Drive
The portion of Beverle Rivera in
front of the fire station will
be extended to Huff and Puff
Road. This will provide a better
connection for residents along
the Seed Tick and Beverle Rivera
roads while substantially
improving safety.
The City is working with a local
property owner to finalize a
preferred alignment as well as
secure the necessary rights of
way in order to build the
roadway. In anticipation of
securing rights of way through
private property, the City is
working to find funding for
construction of the roadway. We
anticipate that these funds will
be used to offset that portion
of the construction costs that
will remain the responsibility
of the City. The remaining costs
will be allocated to the
adjacent property owner. The
estimated construction date for
this project is prior to 2013.
The extension of Beverle Rivera
will necessitate changing the
intersection of Huff and Puff
and Canada Road. Traffic coming
from Seed Tick will no longer
access Canada Road through Huff
and Puff but will be relocated
to Beverle Rivera. The City is
also working with the Shelby
County Metropolitan Planning
Organization to acquire federal
funding for the design and
construction of a traffic signal
at Beverle Rivera and Canada
Road. This project will
significantly improve
fire/ambulance response to the
Lakeland Elementary School area
and improve the current bottle
neck at Canada Road and Huff and
Puff. Eventually, Beverle Rivera
Drive will extend from Canada
Road to Chambers Chapel Road.
Interstate 40 Interchange
Improvements at Exit 20
The City of Lakeland and
Tennessee Department of
Transportation (TDOT) are
working cooperatively in order
to engineer and construct a new
interchange at Exit 20 on
Interstate 40. The project was
recently held up by the Federal
Highway Administration in order
to address the alignment of the
eastbound off ramp in regards to
the Lakeland Mall entrance. This
issue has been addressed and the
pace of design has picked up
through the development of
preliminary elevation grades for
the bridges and ramps on the
interchange. Additional design
will continue through calendar
year 2011. Since property will
have to be acquired for this
project, right of way
acquisition will take place in
2012. Construction of the
project is anticipated to begin
in 2013 with completion by 2016.
For further information, contact
Philip Stuckert, 867-2717.
New Canada Road
See the City's
newcanadaroad.com site for more information.
Traffic
Signal Projects
Two traffic signal projects are
starting in Lakeland.
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The first signal is located at
the Exit 20 on Interstate 40 and
second signal is located at U.S
Highway 70 and Canada Road.
Canada Road/I-40 Interchange:
These improvements are underway
and will be completed by the end
of this fall (2010). The
improvements will consist of new
signal lights on north and south
side of the Interstate 40. These
signals will provide for orderly
and timely movement of vehicles
using the off and on ramps of
Interstate 40. Both signals will
be coordinated to prevent
premature stopping of vehicles
between the north and south ends
of the bridge. The delays for
north and south bound traffic
will be reduced and traffic
flows should improve
dramatically. The improvements
are funded from federal monies
granted to the County each
calendar year. These signals
will be removed once
construction starts on the new
interchange which is anticipated
in a couple of years.
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The improvements at the
intersection of
Canada Road and Highway 70
consist of installing overhead
traffic signals with protected
left turn signals for east and
west bound traffic. The highway
will be widened to provide for a
new traffic lane to accommodate
left turning movement. Funding
for this project is from TDOT
safety funds. The project has
been delayed due to underground
utility issues and a private
land owner. Once this issue is
settled, the project should be
completed in less than 6 months.
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