Welcome to the Airport Connector Road Online Public Information Meeting
Based on data gathered from traffic studies, the project team developed 4 alternatives for the new interchange at West Montague Avenue and I-526 called the “Preliminary Range of Alternatives."
The preliminary alternatives for the interchange include a partial cloverleaf, two diverging diamond interchange (DDI) options, and a single point urban interchange.
You can view each alternative in more detail by clicking the images to the right.
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More information on the interchange alternatives analysis can be found below.
These alternatives were subjected to a 2-tiered screening process to evaluate and identify the reasonable alternatives.
The screening process helps determine the alternatives that best satisfy the project's purpose and need while minimizing impacts to the human and natural environments.
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Alternatives 1 and 4 were eliminated in Tier 1 because they do not meet the project's purpose and need of separating airport and commuter traffic from Boeing traffic, improving mobility and operations of local roadways, accommodating travel demands for CHS, and addressing traffic congestion.
The project team compared Alternative 2 and Alternative 3 according to the Tier 2 screening criteria and Alternative 3 was identified as the reasonable alternative due to:
Better traffic operations
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Less business displacements
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Provides direct access to CHS
Alternative 3 would consist of a DDI with West Montague Avenue realigned. West Montague Avenue would curve to the northwest before intersecting with ACR to provide free-flow movement to ACR from the I-526 interchange.
This alternative would require widening the existing I-526 bridges over West Montague Avenue and International Boulevard and adding new traffic signals at the I-526 at West Montague Avenue intersections.
A DDI allows two directions of traffic to temporarily cross to the left side of the road. It moves high volumes of traffic through an intersection without increasing the number of lanes and traffic signals. This movement provides easier access to an interstate.
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A DDI allows free-flowing turns when entering and exiting an interstate, eliminating the left turn against oncoming traffic and limiting the number of traffic signal phases. It is easy to navigate, eliminates last-minute lane changes, and provides better sight distance at turns, resulting in fewer crashes.
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The design reduces congestion and better moves high volumes of traffic without the need to increase the number of lanes in an interchange.
