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US 17 Economic Impact Study Begins |
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Insightful Small Group
Meetings Held |
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Marc Finlayson opens the US 17 Economic
Impact Study Stakeholder Meeting in Edenton |
During late January,
45 stakeholders met in three different small group
meetings held in Edenton, New Bern and Wilmington.
The objective of these meetings was to ascertain key
stakeholders' viewpoints regarding the opportunities
and challenges concerning the US 17 corridor and
potential benefits of continued improvements by
NCDOT to the highway. Participants represented
economic, government, military, port and
transportation interests. Their feedback will be
used to guide the development of the US 17 Economic
Impact Study.
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A Smoother Ride on 17
Highway 17 stretches
nearly 300 miles from South Carolina to Virginia
through 13 counties in North Carolina’s Coastal
Plains. The highway is critical to the economic
health of the region, providing access to the
southern beaches, key military bases, agricultural
resources, ports and industrial facilities.
Spurred by these and other issues, significant
improvements are in the immediate pipeline. The
NCDOT has scheduled multiple projects to improve the
capacity, safety and access management of Highway
17. Over 50 miles of US 17 will be widened, and
bypasses around such areas as Washington, New Bern,
Wilmington and Hampstead will be completed. In
addition to the widening (primarily slated for
Onslow, Jones, Craven, Beaufort and Martin
Counties), several new interchanges are planned.
The Benefit of Future
Investments
Beyond the
currently programmed projects, additional investment
in Highway 17 is needed. And in order to verify the
critical importance and expected benefits of
improvements, as well as achieve buy-in from State
and Federal decision-makers, the Highway 17
Association is preparing an Economic Impact
Analysis (or Study). This Study will look at the
economic benefits of tourism, military bases and
industrial access within eastern North Carolina that
should result from additional Highway 17
improvements.
Study Approach
The Study, which is being prepared by a team of
experts led by Atkins North America, has been
structured to accomplish the following five tasks: |
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- Transportation
Analysis
- Previous Studies
Review
- Economic Impact
Analysis
- Stakeholders
Outreach
- Data Synthesis
and Recommendations
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Looking Ahead
This spring
the team will be using traveler surveys to gather
insight into the willingness of drivers to reroute
their trips to US 17 as further improvements are
made. Preliminary findings will be shared with
stakeholders next fall, and a final report will be
presented to the Highway 17 Association in November.
The Study will be completed by December 2012. |
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"Highway 17 is a vital route for
Eastern North Carolina, linking our
communities and bridging our
economies. We are excited about the
US 17 Economic Impacts Study and
working with our regional partners
on furthering the vision for the
future of this roadway. The findings
of the Study will outline
opportunities for improving US 17 as
a means of encouraging economic
growth…we hope our partners will
continue to support our efforts as
we move forward.” |
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~ Marc
Finlayson, Highway 17 Association
Executive Director |
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