SYLVA — The crash rate for a 1.5-mile stretch of North Broad Street in Brevard exceeds state and countywide averages.
The city of Brevard, Transylvania County and the N.C. Department of Transportation have developed a preliminary road design that will reduce crashes, increase access to businesses along the road, and drop the rate of injuries along this stretch.
NCDOT will hold a public meeting to present the initial design of the proposed project on Thursday, May 17 from 4-7 p.m. at the Board of Elections Center Conference Room at 150 S. Gaston Street in Brevard. There, citizens can view preliminary designs, ask questions and submit their comments on the ideas.
While improving safety for drivers is a top priority for NCDOT, the proposed plan also would ease congestion and increase access to businesses along the road.
The crash rate for this stretch was about 20 percent higher than the state average and 41 percent higher than the rate in Transylvania County as of the last count in 2015. The improvements will help immediately and for decades into the future.
The initial design includes modifying the existing five-lane road into a four-lane road with a raised median in the middle, curb and getter, a bike lane and sidewalks. The improvements correspond to the N.C. Department of Transportation’s goal of promoting multimodal uses of travel and safety for pedestrians, too.
To improve safety and traffic flow, the design also includes removing stoplights at three intersections and replacing them with two-lane roundabouts.
A median will separate opposing lanes of traffic. They drastically reduce the possibility of T-bone and head-on crashes — the most serious types of crashes.
Roundabouts at the intersections with Chestnut Road, Osborne Road and Pisgah Heights — as they have proven to do across North Carolina and the United States — will reduce congestion by constantly moving vehicles through the intersection and will reduce the likelihood of crashes. Crash rates in North Carolina dropped 74 percent when intersections switched from a stop light to a roundabout.
Local government officials identified the project as a high priority in the Transylvania County Comprehensive Transportation Plan. The Land of Sky Rural Planning Organization — the regional planning organization consisting of people from local governments — submitted the project to NCDOT to be considered for funding and NCDOT agreed.
Through the process, called Prioritization, potential transportation improvement projects are submitted to NCDOT to be scored and ranked at the statewide, regional and division levels, based on criteria such as safety, congestion, benefit-cost and local priorities. This project scored well enough to be funded at the division level due to strong support from NCDOT and the RPO.
NCDOT officials invite the public to join the meeting at any time during the meeting hours. Officials will answer questions and listen to comments regarding the project.
Comments may be submitted at the meeting, over the phone, via mail or email until June 1. All comments received will be taken into consideration.
Project information and materials can be viewed as they become available online at
public meetings. Contact J. Scott Miller III, NCDOT Division 14 Design Construction Engineer at (828) 586-2141 or jsmiller3@ncdot.gov for more information.
NCDOT will provide auxiliary aids and services under the Americans with Disabilities Act for disabled persons who wish to participate in this meeting. Anyone requiring special services should contact Caitlyn Ridge, Environmental Analysis Unit, Public Involvement Officer at
ceridge1@ncdot.gov or (919) 707-6091.