Pine Grove Mills Mobility Study Draft Report Presentation

At the Board of Supervisors Regular Meeting hosted on June 7, 2022, a draft version of the Pine Grove Mills Mobility Study was presented to the Board of Supervisors by the working group representatives from Ferguson Township and McCormick Taylor Inc. The objective of the Pine Grove Mills Mobility Study was, "to evaluate the transportation issues, concerns, and opportunities identified in the Pine Grove Mills Small Area Plan and identify concepts and recommendations to address those items and improve overall safety and mobility." 

The Pine Grove Mills Mobility Study concluded the second open house relating to the project on April 18, 2022, with the first open house being hosted in October of 2021. Ferguson Township, in coordination with McCormick Taylor Inc., hosted the second open house at the Ferguson Township Municipal Building, and also virtually by Zoom. Materials relating to the project were hosted on the dedicated page on the Ferguson Township website, along with a community survey created by McCormick Taylor, and responses were provided based on reviewing the materials relating to the project.

Ron Seybert, Township Engineer, stated that, The Pine Grove Mills Mobility Study community survey received, "over 140 individual comments on the (Pine Grove Mills Mobility Study) materials," which was a well-received turnout by the working group on the project.

Rob Watts P.E., PTOE, AICP, Transportation Engineer at McCormick Taylor Inc., noted that the project was rooted in the original Pine Grove Mills Small Area Plan, and the mobility study started with the transportation outputs from that plan, and worked to move those outputs forward. 

As part of the study, an extensive amount of traffic data was collected. Roadway and bicycle safety audits were conducted in Pine Grove Mills, along with a traffic signal warrant study, crash location & trends study, parking utilization study, illumination and lighting study, and a transit ridership study. All modes of travel, such as by motor vehicle, bicycle, or walking, were evaluated in these studies to fully encompass the wide range of the project. 

Governor Tom Wolf announced that $700,000 was awarded to Ferguson Township through TASA (Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside) funding on April 20, 2022, specifically for improving pedestrian access in Pine Grove Mills. This funding was considered when producing concepts and plans for this project, and are noted in various concepts.

Thirteen major concepts were produced as a result of this data collection. Concepts labeled as "1" and "3", according to Mr. Watts, did not receive decisive feedback from the community survey, and the Board of Supervisors are asked to weigh in on these specific projects at a future meeting after further review. In turn, "1A" and "1B" along with "3A" and "3B" concepts were created, and kept in the draft presentation to provide the options that were not clear favorites among those who completed the survey.

Concept 1 pertains to the crossroads intersection of Pine Grove Road - Water Street - S. Nixon. "1A" is the "Stop Control Option", which retains the current structure of the roads as they currently are, but includes new crosswalks, rapid flashing beacons, and adds curvature to the road to improve sight distance issues from Water St. and S. Nixon St. onto Pine Grove Road. "1B" includes "Mini Roundabouts", in which the center island is traversable and allows larger vehicles to travel on top of the roundabout if they are not able to fit in the regular lanes, avoiding destruction to the center of the roundabout. Pedestrian crosses would be improved similarly to the concept provided in "1A". Cost estimates for the two varying concepts are:

• 1A: Cost Estimate: $834,500
• 1B: Cost Estimate: $1,269,100 + Right of Way/remediation costs due to underground gas station pumps at nearby gas station

Concepts "1A", "Stop Control Option" and "1B", "Large Mini-Roundabout Option"

Concept 3 was also split into "A" and "B" options due to similar considerations. "3A" is the "Full-Size Roundabout Option", which includes a full roundabout that is curbed, and not traversable by vehicles if they are too large without inflicting damage on the roundabout.  The center could be landscaped as well. leading to slowed speeds in the area. "3B" was a more "stripped down idea" per Mr. Watts, who noted that this idea stemmed from the Small Area Plan for an enhanced crossing, which includes rapid flashing beacons, overhead lighting, and crosswalks. 61% of survey participants preferred the "3B" option versus the "3A" option, and is the significantly less costly option. The roundabout, however, does provide a vehicle slow-point, and according the Mr. Watts, a major challenge would be upon "3B", as the speed limit would need to be lowered due to a PennDOT regulation, and "in order to install the enhanced crossing, speeds must be 40mph or lower." Currently, the speed limit for the area is 45mph, but real speeds trend closer to 50mph.

• 3A: Cost Estimate: $1,071,800
• 3B: Cost Estimate: $105,000 + (Gateway) $270,000

Concepts "3A", "Full Size Roundabout Option" and "3B", "Enhanced Crossing Option"

All concepts were broken down into "Tiers", with Tier 1 Projects being the highest priority projects, including the crossroads intersections, complete street treatments, parking improvements, and others. Tier 2/3 Projects were seen as less urgent, such as W. Pine Grove Road gateway, Kepler Road Parking Area and Trail Access Improvements, and more.

To see the full project, click the PDF link below for the full presentation.

To watch Mr. Seybert and Mr. Watts provide their presentation to the Board on June 7, 2022, click the link here to C-NET's video coverage of the meeting.