| This is the place on Carbonville Road where water always gathers after a storm. Officials are looking at ways to solve the problem when they reconstruct the road in the next couple of years. |
As Carbon County and Utah Department of Transportation officials prepare to begin improvements on Carbonville Road, there are still barriers to overcome before work can begin.
County commissioners, county road workers, state highway engineers and other interested parties sat down last Friday, April 22, to discuss some of these.
Prior to the construction of U.S. Highway 6 between Helper and Price, Utah Highway 6 ran along Carbonville Road. After the highway was moved, the designation for Carbonville Road changed from a federal to a county road.
But when county officials looked at the improvements that needed to be made to the road, they discovered that many of the property boundaries extended into the roadway. The commissioners also discovered that UDOT had never obtained more than a provisional right of way.
Throughout the planning stages of the project, officials have sought full rights of way from property owners.
Now, county officials gained over 95 percent of the needed right-of-way along the roadway.
However, there are still a handful of property owners that either refuse to negotiate or don’t respond to attempts to contact.
As the county prepares to start construction along the project, the commissioners are moving forward with necessary actions to secure rights of way on the remaining projects.
With the road already in existence and only a small percentage of right of ways remaining, Carbon officials believe that they can use the county’s power of eminent domain to secure the outstanding portions along the local road.
But county officials hope property owners will negotiate with the county first.
“We’re very good to negotiate with,” said Commissioner Bill Krompel.
The commissioner cited the negotiations that have already taken place with other property owners along the highway.
Krompel explained that the county has agreed to rectify some problems left from previous projects that have been identified by these owners.
The commissioner also pointed out that, as construction on the road improves the highway in front of the residences, the access to private property could also be improved.
Officials discussed the proposed improvements to drainage along a 1,200 feet portion of the road near Country Lanes nd Grogg’s.
Road engineers have proposed a drainage improvement that may help alleviate problems with water flowing over the roadway.
The portion under consideration would have curb and gutter run along either side of the road between two high points at either end of the quarter-mile stretch. A catch basin at the low point would divert water to Price River in an oversize pipe designed to handle both the water drained from the road and any debris that may get into the drainage system.
Officials also discussed a supplemental portion of the project along portions of the road within Price City. The southern end of Carbonville Road joins with the west end of Main Street and terminates at 100 North.
Business owners want to see changes to signs directing traffic into town. The signs at the intersection just east of Highway 6 on 100 North currently mark the intersection as 600 West.
Business owners pointed out that the road south of that intersection is not 600 West, but is Price River Drive, and that 600 West is the road between the BLM offices and Kmart. They want the sign to read Main Street, so that visitors will be directed to Main Street more easily.
Krompel explained that such a change would make sense, but that it would need to be taken up with Price City, as that portion of the road is within city limits.
Other planned improvements to that section of road include installing curb, gutter and sidewalk on either side of the road. Highway engineers said they would tie into the existing sections and continue to the north.
Business owners suggested adding a cross walk near the intersection of Main Street and Carbonville Road, but the placement of that sidewalk would need to be studied because of the layout of the road. Both Carbonville Road and Main Street curve as they approach the intersection and Main Street climbs up a hill, so factors such as visibility need to be taken into consideration.
Also, drivers usually expect pedestrian crossings near intersections, so the crossing would need to be near the intersection. The fact that the sidewalk on Main Street only runs along the north side of the street also complicates matters.
Another change that would occur at that intersection is how traffic is handled as it flows from Main Street to Carbonville Road.
A painted island would separate traffic as they approached the intersection. Traffic turning left onto Carbonville Road would be controlled by a stop sign. Traffic turning right would be controlled by a yield sign. The junction would be similar to the current off-ramp from westbound Highway 6 at 100 North in Price.
The project is slated to begin this July and will take three years to complete.
Phase one of the project will begin at the south end of Carbonville Road and extend north as funding permits. Engineers project phase one to take in about 1.4 miles of the road.
Phase two, beginning in 2006, will take in the remaining 2.4 miles of the 3.8 mile road. Planners anticipate that phase two will be much easier since there are fewer properties along the road, which means utilities and driveways will be farther apart.
The project includes changes in the running of utilities, both on poles above the roadway and buried under or next to the roadway. Since many of the poles along the roadway will need to be moved, Utah Power is waiting for a final go-ahead from the county. The county will need to finish securing the right of way before the utility lines can be moved.