Boone County thoroughfare plan update heard by council

Feeding that growth will be the construction of the Ronald Reagan Parkway, and the completion of the Whitestown Bypass tying I-65 with 146th Street (CR 300 S).

The county’s northern third and much of its western half will for the foreseeable future remain “a very dynamic rural component” of Boone’s economy, said Chris Hamm, an engineer with HWC Engineering, as he briefed the Boone County Council Tuesday on the thoroughfare plan.

But Boone is a demographic dichotomy, he said.

More than four in 10 of Boone’s residents in 2015 lived in Zionsville, while 25 percent lived in Lebanon and 8 percent in Whitestown.

Simultaneously, agriculture dominates the “significant portion” of Boone County that is undeveloped, Hamm said.

Boone has now become one of the fastest-growing counties in Indiana, he said. Boone County’s population increased by nearly 14 percent from July 2, 2010, to July 1, 2016, according to Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business.

The county’s thoroughfare plan was last updated in 1999. The new plan is not a road-building program, Hamm said. It is instead, “a long-term vision,” “a guiding tool that helps (you) work with developers and individuals as they are making planning decisions.”

HWC is also updating thoroughfare plans for Lebanon and Whitestown, Hamm said.

“While the county’s plan will likely be the first to be approved, it’s important there is continuity between them,” he said.

“The key is to make sure short term issues are managed accordingly and long term issues are managed accordingly,” Hamm said.

An analysis of the county’s highway grid identified eight problem intersections, six of them involving state highways.

The county-controlled intersections of Middle Jamestown Road and CR 500 West, and of 96th Street and Ford Road, both have a high rate of accidents, HWC’s report found.

Because of its “unusual geometry,” the Middle Jamestown-CR 500 West intersection should either be converted to an all-way stop, or have stop signs placed on Middle Jamestown Road. When traffic volume increases, a roundabout should be considered, HWC said.

A flashing warning light and warning sign for southbound Ford Road traffic could reduce the number of crashes there, the study said.

Consultation with the Indiana Department of Transportation will be needed to solve issues at the intersections of U.S. 136 and state Route 75 in Jamestown; SR 75 and SR 32 at Dover; SR 47 and CR 900 W; SR 38 and CR 750 N; CR 500 W and U.S. 52; and SR 47 and SR 39.

At Jamestown, there is more traffic on SR 75, although drivers must stop at the U.S. 136 intersection. The study suggests changing the intersection to an all-way stop or installing stoplights.

At Dover, stoplights, auxiliary lanes or a roundabout could alleviate traffic flow that increases during arrival and dismissal times at Western Boone Jr.-Sr. High School, the study said. Another option is to ask school officials to consider changing in-and-out patterns.

Improving signage at SR 47 and 900 W, and at SR 38 and 750 N, could reduce the number of accidents, the study suggested.

A roundabout, or traffic signals, are suggested for SR 47 and SR 39.

Options for the CR 500 W and U.S. 52 intersection include closing the county road’s southbound lane, closing the median to permit only right turns to and from CR 500 W, building a J-intersection, or a combination of those options.