PANAMA CITY — Bay County staff is requesting two changes to a roadwork priority list being considered by a transportation board on Wednesday.
One would add a major intersection improvement project at Back Beach Road and State 79 on Panama City Beach to the list; another advocates speeding up funding to widen County 390.
The Bay County Transportation Planning Organization on Wednesday is scheduled to hold a public hearing and vote on the priority list that will dictate which road, bike, airport and port projects will be funded in the coming years.
The hearing is part of the TPO’s monthly meeting, which is scheduled at 3:30 p.m. at 840 W. 11th St.
The TPO, which is made up of elected officials from throughout Bay County, will be asked to approve the fiscal year 2016-2020 “Project Priorities List,” which includes major transportation projects.
Keith Bryant, traffic engineering manager for Bay County, said staff is asking the TPO to add a $200,000 to $300,000 intersection improvement project to the plan that could improve traffic flow at the intersection of Back Beach Road and State 79.
“We saw quite a bit of congestion (there) this summer,” he said. “We’re recommending a lengthy left turn lane, making it possible for three lanes of traffic to flow through the intersection. Currently, during the summer, the east and northbound left turn lane stacks out and shuts down the inside through lane, and we made recommendation to improve that.”
The project would include widening to six lanes a section of Back Beach Road from State 79 to Pier Park Drive.
County staff also is recommending that the proposed list be modified to rank widening projects along County 390 higher than they are now. One segment is from State 77 to County 389, which should be ranked seventh on the list, and another, from County 389 to U.S. 231, should be ranked eighth on the list, county staff is advocating. Staff also is recommending that County 390 be declared a Strategic Intermodal Systems project, which could help it secure state funding.
“SIS is the largest pool of funding for roadway projects,” Bryant said. “That road qualifies because it’s a path to the inland port.”
Four projects on the list identified as having committed funding in the next few years have made it on the “Non-Strategic Intermodal System” priorities list.
They include:
-A four-lane widening of Baldwin Road from St. Andrews Boulevard to Minnesota Avenue.
-Transit lanes on Segment Two of the Front Beach Road improvement project from Richard Jackson Boulevard to South Thomas Drive. Construction funding is slated for this in the coming fiscal year.
-A four-lane widening of a small segment of the proposed Gulf Coast Parkway, which is a new roadway project slated to connect U.S. 98 in Gulf County with U.S. 231 north of Panama City. Construction of the segment from Star Avenue to U.S. 98 is slated for fiscal year 2016-2017.
A four-lane widening of Jenks Avenue from 23rd Street to Baldwin Road. Construction has been funded for fiscal year 2015-2016.
TPO Chairman Rodney Friend said Monday he is impressed with the list, whose projects have been vetted by the TPO in past meetings.
He said he doesn’t expect too many major changes to be made to the list on Wednesday.
Annually, the TPO reviews and adopts the priority list in September for submittal to the Florida Department of Transportation by Oct. 1. Its purpose is to ensure that projects programmed by FDOT in the Five-Year Work Program are consistent with local needs.
Projects that could take many years before being fully funded on the “Non Strategic Intermodal Systems” list include:
-A four-lane widening project on State 22 from Business U.S. 98 to Star Avenue. Planning is underway and design work is funded in fiscal year 2014-2015. Right-of-way acquisition and construction funding from state and federal funds are not yet in the Five-Year Work Program.
-A six-lane widening project along Back Beach Road from Mandy Lane to Thomas Drive. This project could be a long way off, as there are not yet enough state or federal funds for right-of-way acquisition and construction through 2035.
-A four-lane widening of East Avenue from Baldwin Road to Sherman Avenue. None of the planning or construction work is funded in the five-year work program.
-A new interchange at U.S. 98/Thomas Drive. Design work is complete and so is right-of-way acquisition, but construction funds are not currently in the Five-Year Work Program.
-A six-lane widening project of St. Andrews Boulevard from Jenks Avenue to State 77. Planning is complete, design is underway, right-of-way acquisition is slated for fiscal year 2015-2016 and construction is slated for fiscal year 2017-2018.
Several Front Beach Road projects made the bicycle and pedestrian project list.
The list also outlines improvements at the airport. In 2017, $1.6 million in state and local funds is proposed to rehabilitate the vehicular access roads. In 2018, $2.6 million in state and local funds would pay for an expansion of the terminal apron, and $3.9 million would be spent on expanding the general aviation apron and extending the terminal parking area.
The plan also calls for spending $1.8 million in 2016 at the Port Panama City on a bulk transfer facility, $4.5 million to expand the distribution warehouse and $2 million to expand the container terminal capacity.