Northpointe-146 turn lane to open soon

ZANESVILLE – Construction of a new right turning lane from Ohio 146 to Northpointe Drive has finished and will be open for public use at some point next week.

Establishing a turning lane at that intersection was a way to cut down on backed-up traffic, said Jay Bennett, public service director for Zanesville. During high-traffic times of day, such as about 5 p.m., when many people leave work, vehicles on 146 have long wait times before reaching the traffic light at 146 and Northpointe.

Many people are waiting to turn onto Northpointe, Bennett said. But without a turn lane, someone who doesn’t need to turn could potentially block the entire line of traffic.

“(The construction) is just helping folks who need to go on, get on,” he said. “It’s just congestion management.”

Before the turn lane is open, the traffic light needs to be correctly programmed with a right turn signal, Bennett said. The programming is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday and will be finished by the end of the week.

More than the backed-up traffic being an inconvenience to the residents trying to get home after work, Bennett said that amount of traffic not able to move through the intersection quickly affects other aspects of the community.

“Your car’s idling; it costs money,” he said. “It’s not good for the environment.”

The project took place this spring and cost about $200,000, most of that coming from a grant through the Ohio Department of Transportation. Bennett said both the city and county also partially funded the project.

The state grant was approved this past fall through the local Transportation Improvement District, which works with local communities to identify potential transportation-related improvements and apply for grants from the state on the communities’ behalf.

ksnyder2@zanesvilletimesrecorder.com

740-450-6752

Twitter: @KL_Snyder