Nine Mile Road To Be Four-Laned From Highway 29 To Beulah Road
September 17, 2014
A long awaited project has been funded that will widen Nine Mile Road to four lanes from Beulah Road all the way back to Highway 29.
The Florida Department of Transportation’s Five-Year Work Plan includes $42 million for the project that, coupled with funds from Escambia County, will complete the entire project, including a a previously unfunded section of the roadway between Pine Forest Road and Highway 29.
The inclusion of the new phase for the widening project is the result of a partnership between Escambia County and the FDOT, with the county funding $1.2 million for project development and environmental studies, as well as a design update using Local Option Sales Tax Funds.
Over the next year, the FDOT plans to spend $1.2 million to acquire rights of way to widen the road and to complete environmental work.
Last summer, the FDOT held a public meeting to discuss the widening of Nine Mile Road from two to four lanes along the section of road between at U.S. 90/Mobile Highway and Pine Forest Road – a length of about 5.8 miles – including access management, changes or the design and construction of medians and median openings and storm water treatment ponds. The continuation of the project to Highway 29 will effectively ease congestion and improve traffic flow along the crowded commercial corridor.
Increasing traffic counts and congestion as the area continues to develop caused the reclassification of the road from “rural” to “suburban” and necessitated the redesign of a project originally slated for construction almost a decade ago.
Construction could begin as early as 2015 and, once complete, will support the continued growth of Navy Federal Credit Union, proposed development at the site currently known as Outlying Landing Field 8 and ease access for Nature’s Trail and other residential neighborhoods.
Comments
10 Responses to “Nine Mile Road To Be Four-Laned From Highway 29 To Beulah Road”
I live right there, and drive it daily…I drive it morning, noon, night…I dont see any reason why it needs more than some improvements at NFCU, and better light timing/management. 95% of the day…the road between beulah road and I10 is lightly traveled. Its only when NFCU lets out that for a bit, it becomes crowded. Money needs to be spent on repairing Beulah road, and muskogee road, no more cold patches, they do not work ,they have never worked. 9 mile only really gets busy when you get right up on pine forest road, and between pine forest and 29…that mess is crazy most all day long, but lets face it..west bound traffic, most of it gets on the interstate..or goes to pine forest..very little trickles through past pine forest.
I would also like to see Beulah Rd (from Mobile Hwy to 9 mile Rd widened). This is a heavily traveled road to Navy Federal, Beulah Academy and to the landfill.
I just hope they don’t use the same company that has been widening Avalon Blvd between I-10 & Hwy 90, this has taken years and they are still not done!!
FDOT needs to address the dangerous south bound on-ramp of hwy 29 & I-10 east bound. What idiot designed that dead mans curve?
The rest of 9 mile road should have been improved with limited access and service roads years ago. It seems that the DOT’s answer to every problem is to hang another traffic signal, which works to slow down traffic more. I hope they have the foresight to do this project right instead of just putting a bandaid on the problems that are already in place. Look at the nightmare they have created on Hwy 90 thru pace. States that experienced rapid growth years ago learned that the only way to keep traffic moving is to; limit crossovers, synchronize traffic signals, limit the number of signals, and put in service roads. Even our neighbors in Mobile have implemented some of these measures. Maybe we should consider recruiting and hiring a planner from a major metro area rather than getting one from Chipley.
Traveling west on olive from ninth…reminds me of driving in Louisiana…I know there are roads worse…but are they as heavily traveled as this stretch? Good thing we have Groooooover Robinson on our side! LOOOOLLLLLLLLLLLLL
Installing on/off ramps at Beulah Rd and I-10 would also do a great deal to relieve traffic congestion especially for vehicles going to and from the Perdido Landfill
Does anyone know why they taking so long to get back to work on Jack’s Branch Rd.?
It’s been so long that some of the driveways and other work will have to be redone due to washout and it’s really looking bad with the trash and overgrowth.
Again!!! How about olive road from palafox to 9th ave.
Finally! My only hope is that they start at 29, not Beulah Road. We don’t all work or live at Navy Federal; the congestion is mainly between 29 and Pine Forest! Please do it right.