The town of Signal Mountain is teaming up with CTI Engineers Inc. to determine the best route to take when it comes to resurfacing and rejuvenating James Boulevard.
The 100-plus-year-old rotting rail ties beneath the surface of portions of the roadway have contributed to the deterioration of the heavily used route.
Residents have in the past expressed a desire to preserve the historic rails.
"We looked at several different options and decided to study several specifics," CTI engineer Greg Wilson said during a presentation to Town Council members at their most recent work session.
Some of those options include removing the rails with no replacement of any kind, replacing the existing rails after construction, installing a public display of steel "simulator" strips that would represent the historical rails, building a planted median down the center of the road, or even narrowing the roadway to match current town street criteria standards, which require new roads to be 22 feet wide.
Council members said residents have complained about speeding drivers, and narrowing the road may calm traffic through the high-trafficked area. Mayor Bill Lusk noted that narrowing the road may cause complaints from residents who like to park on the currently 38-foot-wide boulevard.
"You'd have to eliminate on-street parking. They'd get an extra 8 feet of yard, though," said Wilson, adding that another 8 feet of driveway space might help with the parking issue. "The existing sidewalks wouldn't be bothered."
Council members discussed the possibility of narrowing the road to 26 or 24 feet, instead of the new town standard of 22 feet, and installing rollover curbs that would allow drivers to continue to park on the street.
The cost of concrete vs. asphalt was also a topic of discussion at the work session. Wilson said the initial cost to use concrete would be much higher than using asphalt, though concrete usually holds up better over time.
The planted median could potentially turn into a traffic hazard, according to Wilson. All Council members said they disliked the idea of a median, except Bill Wallace, who was absent from the meeting. Most also spoke against replacing the existing rails, but said they were interested in finding out more about installing "simulator" rails, strips of steel that would represent the historic rails after they are removed.
"I'm not for anything that retains the rails in place," said Councilman Dick Gee. "I'm not opposed to the [simulator] strips unless it became a big [amount of money]. I'm not opposed to looking at it ... but I frankly think that's an unjustified expense.
"There's got to be some artist or someone in town that could create something [out of the historical rails]," he added.
The Council asked Wilson to find out how much each project might cost and report back at the end of May.
A public meeting will be held at a yet-undecided date in the beginning of June to go over what each option might bring to the boulevard. Town Manager Honna Rogers said actual construction on the project likely won't begin until late 2014 or early 2015.