Chadds Ford Township has provided a Highway Occupancy Permit comment letter regarding traffic changes suggested for the proposed shopping center at Route 202 and Ridge Road. The letter is to propose changes to the plan submitted by Retail Sites.
As has been reported, the proposed shopping center, The Shoppes at Concord, is controversial since the property itself is in Concord Township, but it abuts Chadds Ford Township. Retail Sites, the applicant, has been involved in zoning hearings in Concord, but there have been continuances since the last zoning hearing in January. Its next scheduled session is in July.
The letter Chadds Ford submitted is for comment only at this point and will not have any bearing on what happens unless the applicant agrees or unless PennDOT imposes the changes on the developer. Route 202 and Ridge Road are both state roadways and come under PennDOT purview.
Chadds Ford went to the firm of HRG, Herbert, Rowland & Grubic for its own traffic assessment. In a letter to PennDOT, Eric M. Kaufman, of HRG, wrote:
“Chadds Ford Township seeks to preserve Ridge Road’s function as a local roadway and is concerned that the extent and scale of the proposed improvements may encourage increased through‑traffic, fundamentally altering the roadway’s classification and operating character in a manner that is inconsistent with the roadway’s functional classification and accepted access management principles.”
Kaufman made a presentation to Chadds Ford supervisors during the board’s May 13 meeting. His remarks covered two areas: a proposed access point on Route 202 and an access point on Ridge Road, along with a change in the traffic pattern on that street.
The developer has proposed a partially signalized intersection on Route 202 just a few hundred feet south of Ridge Road, where the split on 202 ends. Retail Site’s plan also calls for Ridge Road to be widened with four eastbound lanes — one being a dedicated right turn lane, a straight through lane into Glen Eagle Square, and two left turn lanes.
Kaufman said the half signal toward the end of the split south of Ridge “would stop southbound to allow left turns to come into the site from 202. What we are requesting in our letter is that we make this a full signal to allow left turns to come out.”
He explained that the proposed half signal would only allow for a right turn out onto southbound Route 202.
“What we believe that [full signal] will do is negate the need to have one of these left turns coming out of Ridge…because half of the left turn movement would be coming out here [onto 202]. We feel that this will reduce the widening [on Ridge] by about 12 feet.”
That is one thing they want PennDOT to consider, instead of a right-in, right-out driveway.
During PennDOT talks with a previous developer that wanted to build a shopping center on the site, PennDOT rejected a left turn into the property from 202 because a traffic signal there would be too close to the signalized intersection at Ridge Road.
Another part of the proposal is to move the Ridge Road access driveway farther west, close to the end of the proposed center, but with no left turn allowed at that driveway intersection, it would be right-in, right-out only. In doing that, shoppers who want to head west on Ridge from the center would have to exit onto 202, make a left onto northbound 202, then make another left onto Ridge.
However, in doing so, the remaining left turn lane of eastbound Ridge could be lengthened.
Kaufman continued, saying, “The third thing we’re asking PennDOT to do is restrict the trucks from onto Ridge from 202…We’d like them to come from here [the Route 202 access point].”
Ridge already has signs for no trucks, but Kaufman said he’d like to see more signage “just to emphasize the point.”
Following Kaufman’s presentation, he fielded questions.
Township manager Lacey Faber asked Kaufman about the likelihood that PennDOT is going to say no to any type of access on Ridge Road.
Kaufman replied, saying, “I don’t think it’s possible that there will be no access on Ridge. I think there’s definitely going to be some access. I think our job is to limit that access as best we can.”
Karen Jiohnson, who lives in the Ridings, questioned the removal of one of the left turn lanes since traffic can back up heavily on a Sunday when St. Cornelius lets out from Mass.
Kaufman said they could have a special timing for the traffic light at Ridge and 202 that would extend the green time for that eastbound traffic on Ridge.
The conversation about having some access on Ridge, including questions from resident Hank Somer, made Supervisors’ Chairman Timotha Trigg comment, “I think the understanding is that PennDOT is going to require access from Ridge Road to some extent. Just saying no isn’t gonna work. They’ll just ignore that. We tried that. And that was a non-starter…If we just say no, then we just took our voice out of the conversation. [PennDOT] will ignore what we say.”
Toward the end of the presentation, Kaufman reiterated, “We’re just trying to offer up an alternative improvement plan that does not widen Ridge as much as is currently being shown.”
He added, “We are only able to write a letter to PennDOT requesting that they consider these things, because the fact of the matter is, Ridge and 202 are both state roads, so they own them.”
That said, another suggestion brought up by residents and township solicitor Mike Maddren is for a more robust traffic study to be done.
About Rich Schwartzman
Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.
