CLEVELAND, Tenn. – Area planners and residents are trying to figure out what local transportation needs will be in 2035.
The current long-range transportation plan was adopted in 2006 and extends to 2030. It looks at all forms of transportation including bicycles/pedestrians, bus service, rail, freight, air and water.
Residents and local government officials filled the Cleveland-Bradley County Public Library’s community room Tuesday to share ideas with the Cleveland Urban Area Metropolitan Planning Organization.
Doug Delaney, supervising planner with consulting firm Parsons Brinckerhoff, pointed to a chart showing local population, household numbers and employment.
“They are not only trending up, but are expected to continue to go up – quickly,” he said.
One audience member said now is the time for Chattanooga and Cleveland to acquire land along U.S. 11-64 between the two cities, anticipating the time when industrial growth creates traffic demand but prices are higher. Another said that, along with new roads, local government needs to look at current roads that don’t meet needs or even legal codes.
Lindsay R. Smart, a planner for the Cleveland Urban Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, said all the ideas shared this week will become part of the draft long-range plan. That draft, she said, will be ready for another public forum in December.
“We will come back then and ask, ‘What do you think? Did we miss anything?'” she said.
Coming up with a long-range plan is part of being officially recognized as one of Tennessee’s 10 metropolitan areas. Each metro area has a Metropolitan Planning Organization, which has the job of planning local transportation needs. The long-range plan is updated every four years.
The complete long-range transportation plan is expected to be adopted by the Metropolitan Planning Organization in May 2011.