Puts U.S. 231 and 41-A at center focus
By MARK MCGEE
mmcgee@bedfordcountypost.com
The City of Shelbyville is growing at a rapid pace and the need for government officials to make plans for the continued expansion is more urgent with each passing day.
One step in the planning stage is the need for a new corridor study. Waleed Albakry, director of planning and community development, asked the City Council to apply for a Transportation Planning Grant from the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) to fund a corridor study. The last one was completed in 2022. With the increase in request in both business and residential development an updated version is already needed.
“We want to study how we can make Highway 231 and Highway 41-A more functional as our main corridors,” Albakry said. “They are vital for people coming in and out of the city.
“Do we need service lanes? Do we need more access points? This grant, if approved, will help us determine any possible problems. We want to be proactive.”
A maximum amount of $200,000 is available for the grant.
A corridor study provides the following:
- Examines the relationship between a roadway and its adjacent land.
- Defines levels of access and mobility
- Determine appropriate land use
- Consolidate and control access points
- Identify operational breakdowns
- Promoting of efficiency
- Encouraging redevelopment of an underperforming corridor
- Provides a summary of existing conditions
- Engages the community and stakeholders
- Proposes detailed recommendations based on data analysis and community outreach
- Prioritizes recommended projects
- Identifies implementation steps and potential funding sources
If the City of Shelbyville is approved for the grant, TDOT will also provide a Long Range Planning Division consultant on an on-call basis.
The City of Shelbyville would be expected to create a steering committee and ensure local support for the study recommendations.
