Commuters on Apison Pike will soon have permission to ease off the brakes.
The Collegedale City Commission is considering an ordinance to change the speed limit on the newly widened roadway from 35 mph to 40 mph. The commission is expected to vote on the matter later this month, as the anticipated completion date for the widening project between Old Lee Highway and Ooltewah-Ringgold Road is May 31, according to the Tennessee Department of Transportation.
When construction is complete, TDOT plans to dedicate the five-lane road to Collegedale with a new speed limit of 45 mph from Pattentown Road to Little Debbie Parkway. After conversations with Collegedale Police Chief Brian Hickman, however, Eric Sines, the city's director of Public Works, expressed concern with the proposed layout, which he said could confuse drivers.
With TDOT's plans in place, Sines explained, those driving on Apison Pike toward Collegedale would start at 40 mph, speed up to 45 mph at Pattentown Road, slow to 35 mph after Little Debbie Parkway, then return to 40 mph after Ooltewah-Ringgold Road.
Roadwork continues on Apison Pike near Collegedale on Monday, December 7, 2015. Plans include widening the roadway to five lanes, adding bike lanes, sidewalks and a link to Exit 9 on I-75.
"I hate to see a speed limit bump up and down at 5 mph," Sines told officials during the commission's April 24 workshop meeting. "It's hard to remember where it changes."
Instead, Sines recommended commissioners change the limit throughout the entire project area to 40 mph to maintain consistency along the entire corridor.
"[This] allows people to travel at a comfortable speed without going too fast, and it's not lowering the [current] speed limit," he said.
Sines added that the 40 mph speed limit would also prevent the city from having to lower it from 45 mph later as developers start building residential or commercial properties along Apison Pike.
While many at the meeting seemed to favor Sines' recommendation, citing community complaints about the slow speed on the ever-widening road, Kelly Martin, the city's director of Planning and Economic Development, said a 40 mph speed limit between Little Debbie Parkway and Ooltewah-Ringgold Road would not be conducive to developing the town center.
Commissioner Phil Garver agreed with Martin but said there was not enough activity near the road within the Four Corners area to merit concern, and added that the three traffic lights being installed would naturally slow drivers down.
Sines is awaiting further information from TDOT about whether a speed study will be necessary to lower the speed limit on the road, which was designed for 45 mph speeds. The commission is expected to vote after that information has been acquired.