Mariposa/I-19 connector route study task assignment TPD 13-08

              Mariposa/ I-19 Connector Route Study Project Work Plan
PROJECT WORK PLAN
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PROJECT WORK PLAN
Introduction
Thousands of passengers, cars, trucks and buses pass into the United States each day through the Mariposa
Port of Entry (POE) at Nogales. The Mariposa POE is the main commercial processing location for
Arizona and handles nearly one half of all agricultural commodities entering the US along its southern
border. That means that around four billion pounds of imported fresh produce goes through this port
annually. Seventy four percent of the total trucks entering Arizona, or nearly 255,000 trucks per year, use the
Mariposa Port. Currently, the freight traffic that passes through the Mariposa POE is carried on SR 189/
Mariposa Road and connects with I-19 approximately 3.1 miles north of the border.
Sufficient facilities do not exist at the port to serve current volumes, and truck backups occur on the
Mexican side of the POE. Improvement is programmed and scheduled for implementation. Upon full
build-out, the port will be able to handle approximately three times the traffic volume it handles now. Once
the improvements have been made, and border crossings are expedited, traffic on SR 189 will dramatically
increase and the existing roadway facility will not be able to handle traffic at an acceptable level of service in
its current state. There already are safety concerns present, a school located along the route, air-quality
deficiencies identified, and a need for a better connection to Interstate 19. The increased traffic will
compound and exacerbate these issues.
There is a critical need for a Connector Route Study to make a preliminary assessment of the need and
feasibility for an improved route for SR189/ Mariposa Road from the Mariposa POE to I-19. This study
will look at improvements and realignment of the existing route, in addition to potential new routes for the
connector road. This study will include consideration of a truck bypass route from the port to the west of
the city of Nogales, possibly allowing trucks to access I-19 at the Ruby Road interchange. Other possible
corridors and interchange connections will be considered and evaluated. The terrain in the project study area
is rugged with numerous ridges and washes. This will present challenges to finding new corridor routes that
will be financially feasible, however, this is an opportunity to showcase the WSA Team’s collaborative brain
storming process and creative thinking to find solutions to meet the needs and goals of this project.
WSA will apply transportation planning experience and expertise to identify and provide conceptual design
information for the preferred route that offers the best solution to meet identified transportation needs at
an acceptable cost level.
Approach
Meeting expectations for this study is a major goal and WSA knows that a successful outcome lies in
implementing a sound, dynamic work plan. After careful analysis of ADOT’s request and needs, WSA has
developed an approach for successful execution of this project.
Task 1 – Project Start-Up
A. Work Plan
A detailed work plan will be refined and will document the following:
a. Refinement of the study area boundary. Study boundaries include the following:
􀂊􈩔 The Mariposa POE on the south
􀂊􈩒 Ruby Road and the I-19/ Ruby Road Interchange on the north
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􀂊􈩉 I-19 on the east
b. Refined project schedule including a schedule and plan for public involvement
c. Staffing, communication methods and frequency, and stakeholder listing
d. The WSA Team will schedule and conduct a project kick-off meeting with key ADOT
Transportation Planning Division staff and other appropriate stakeholders
At the kick-off meeting, WSA will review the study boundaries, work plan, schedule, and agree on project
goals and deliverables, so that ADOT’s expectations are met for this Connector Route Study.
B. Technical Advisory Committee
A Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) will be established to provide guidance, input and advice to the
team during the course and progress of the study. Representatives from the following organizations and
agencies are likely to be part of the TAC:
􀂊􈩁 ADOT Transportation Planning Division
􀂊􈩁 ADOT Tucson District
􀂊􈩁 ADOT Motor Vehicle Division
􀂊􈩆 Federal Highway Administration – Arizona Division
􀂊􈩇 Greater Nogales and Santa Cruz County Port Authority
􀂊􈩓 Southeastern Arizona Governments Organization (SEAGO)
􀂊􈩃 City of Nogales
􀂊􈩁 ADOT Project Manager, Rudy Perez
􀂊􈩗 WSA Project Manager, Dale Miller
Regularly scheduled meetings with the TAC will be held. These meetings will not only allow the TAC to
provide guidance to WSA during the course of the project, but also builds and maintains rapport and a close
working relationship. This is essential to achieving project goals.
Task 2 – Working Paper #1: Existing & Future Conditions
A. Existing Conditions
The first step is the representation and assessment of existing conditions for the route along SR 189/
Mariposa Road from the Mariposa POE to I-19. This effort will include the following:
a. Field review of the study area including photo documentation
b. Identify and compile a general description of relevant studies and data for the project area
including record drawings and reports, in-progress studies and projects, and proposed work
c. Inventory and evaluate the following:
􀂊􈩃 Current land use patterns
􀂊􈩐 Planned zoning and land use plans
􀂊􈩔 Travel and traffic volume data
􀂊􈩔 Traffic times, operating speeds and speed limits
􀂊􈩍 Major freight facilities and freight movements
􀂊􈩁 Access management policies
􀂊􈩒 Roadway conditions and cross-sections
􀂊􈩉 Intersection controls and configurations
􀂊􈩃 Crash history
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􀂊􈩃 Current levels of service
􀂊􈩓 Safety issues and concerns
􀂊􈩐 Physical and natural environment
􀂊􈩃 Cultural and socioeconomic characteristics
d. Evaluate data, estimates and projections from relevant existing sources
Much of this data will be obtained through research efforts and/or discussions with representatives of
ADOT, Santa Cruz County, Southeastern Arizona Governments Organization, the city of Nogales, and the
Nogales – Mariposa Port of Entry administration. The obtained data will help assess current traffic
conditions on the route. Results of the existing conditions assessment will be compiled and presented in a
draft memorandum upon completion.
B. Future Conditions
The next step is to project future traffic volumes and its impact on the existing route. WSA will determine
both the improvements needed to the existing corridor as well as the cross-section needed for any new
corridor route considered. This effort will include the following steps:
a. Develop a travel demand forecast to determine the expected level of utilization of this connector
route for the 10-year, 20-year and 30-year horizon by both commercial and passenger vehicles.
􀂊􈩗 WSA will adapt and calibrate an available travel demand model using data, estimates and
projections from relevant existing sources for this purpose
􀂊􈩔 The travel demand model will be used as the basis for the various tasks associated with both
the existing conditions assessment and the future scenario analysis testing
􀂊􈩔 The traffic model will be refined to reflect an expanded roadway network and socio-economic
data input from the City’s General Plan, Land Use Plan, Zoning Plan, proposed
development plan and POE data and projections
b. Project future conditions within the study area based on travel demand forecasts and available data
collected from various sources.
􀂊􈩔 The future traffic conditions determined will be applied to the existing route to determine
the nature and extent of improvements needed to make this corridor adequately handle the
anticipated volume and type of traffic for the study horizons
􀂊􈩔 The future traffic volume and conditions will be used to establish needed roadway cross-sectional
data for new routes under consideration
􀂊􈩅 Establish qualitative and quantitative performance measures for use in evaluating needs and
improved route performance considering level of service, environmental impacts, and
community values
Results of the future conditions assessment will be compiled and presented in a draft form of memorandum
upon completion.
Task 3 – Working Paper #2: Determination of Need and Feasibility
A. Determine Need for New Connector Road Route & Identify and Evaluate Corridor Alternatives
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The future conditions assessment and analysis will shed light on the feasibility of improving the existing SR
189/ Mariposa Road to handle projected traffic volumes effectively, safely and at an acceptable level of
service. It may not be feasible to make the needed improvements to the existing roadway, and/or it may be
more cost effective to plan, design and build a new roadway on a new alignment to handle anticipated
traffic. This task will closely examine the need for a new route and identify and evaluate feasible corridor
alternatives through the following steps:
Develop criteria for determining the need for a new connector route corridor considering the following:
􀂊􈩔 Terrain and physical constraints
􀂊􈩐 Possible environmental impacts and considerations
􀂊􈩌 Length of route
􀂊􈩈 Horizontal and vertical alignments
􀂊􈩉 Impacts on existing facilities and infrastructure
􀂊􈩓 Socio-economic implications
􀂊􈩒 Right of way considerations
􀂊􈩂 Budgetary level “order of magnitude” project costs
Review and analyze existing, planned or previously identified possible and proposed corridors
􀂊􈩉 Identify and compile possible corridors/routes that have been identified in past or current
studies and reports
􀂊􈩇 Glean available data on any previously proposed and considered route corridors
􀂊􈩁 Analyze the routes to assess whether the corridors can be refined to generally improve the
routing in some aspect and manner
Evaluate possible corridors and compile a list of potential alternative corridors
􀂊􈩓 Select 3 to 4 alternate route corridors that hold the most potential for a new roadway facility
􀂊􈩁 A corridor is to be considered a broad general location in which a future roadway facility can
be planned, designed and constructed
􀂊􈩄 Document and justify the list of corridors to be analyzed
Analyze each alternative corridor and identify advantages, disadvantages and costs
􀂊􈩗 WSA will use accepted transportation planning criteria to analyze the advantages of selected
corridor alternatives
􀂊􈩄 Detailed information and results will be given for each of the analyzed corridors
􀂊􈩁 A matrix will be compiled and presented for side-by-side comparison of studied corridors
B. Fatal Flaw Analysis
It is prudent to step back and look at the big picture when analyzing and comparing route corridors to
detect if there are any fatal flaws. WSA will conduct a planning level scan of each corridor to identify
potential fatal flaws in addition to engineering challenges, environmental impacts, and community concerns.
Task 4 – Working Paper #3: Preferred Corridor Alternative
Analyze and Select the Preferred Corridor for the Mariposa/ I-19 Connector Road Route
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The preferred corridor alternative will be identified based on the determined need, feasibility and cost
effectiveness. The following steps will be taken:
􀂊􈩁 A conceptual design will be completed for the preferred corridor
􀂊􈩔 The nature and type of roadway facility will be established
􀂊􈩔 The location of anticipated intersections will be identified
􀂊􈩁 Access control/ management will be set forth
􀂊􈩁 An appropriate cross-section for the roadway will be analyzed and recommended
􀂊􈩔 The ultimate configuration and cross-section along with any potential phasing concepts will
be set forth
􀂊􈩔 The roadway recommendations will be developed based on the defined planning objectives,
ADOT policies, and 10-year, 20-year and 30-year travel demand data
A general “budgetary level” cost estimate will be developed for the preferred corridor alternative in addition
the following:
􀂊􈩁 Available public funding mechanisms will be identified
􀂊􈩁 Alternative methods of funding will be determined
􀂊􈩐 Possible combinations of funding will be set forth
􀂊􈩔 The cost estimate can also be presented in phases if phasing of the ultimate improvement is
feasible and desirable
Task 5 – Final Report and Executive Summary
Prepare and Submit a Draft Final Report & Executive Summary
The culmination of this corridor route study will be the Final Report. Out of this document, an Executive
Summary will be compiled. The following process will be used by WSA:
Compilation of Working Papers 1 through 3
􀂊􈩁 A draft Final Report and Executive Summary will be submitted for review purposes
􀂊􈩁 A meeting with ADOT and other invited stakeholders will be scheduled and held to discuss
the draft Final Report and its Executive Summary and to receive input on suggested and
recommended changes and revisions
􀂊􈩗 WSA will make all the needed changes to the Final Report
􀂊􈩆 Final copies will be printed and distributed
Conceptual Design for the Preferred Alternative
􀂊􈩔 The Final Report will include a conceptual design for the preferred alternative including
horizontal and vertical alignments, type or roadway, intersection locations, recommended
cross-section and related information
􀂊􈩁 A detailed preliminary “budgetary level” cost estimate will be set forth
Summary Reports that document the public involvement process
􀂊􈩉 Input and direction received from the public involvement process will be addressed
􀂊􈩁 Appropriate documentation of the public involvement process will be included as Appendix
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On-Going Task – Public Involvement
Tasks and Responsibilities
Another consultant under contract with ADOT’s Communication and Community Partnerships Division
will have primary responsibility for public involvement tasks associated with this project, however WSA will
participate in the Public Involvement task(s) as follows:
a. Participate in the development of the public involvement program
b. Participate as a member of the Public Involvement Study Team that includes:
􀂊􈩗 WSA Project Manager, Dale Miller
􀂊􈩁 ADOT Project Manager, Rudy Perez
􀂊􈩁 Assigned CCP staff member
􀂊􈩓 Selected consultant representative from the CCP public involvement consortium
Getting the public involved in the transportation planning process can be challenging yet highly effective
and rewarding. The public engagement efforts will use all assets available to transmit information to project
stakeholders and the public. Public engagement goals and constituencies will be determined early on and
consider planning efforts underway in the community and the region.
Organization
An organizational chart is included to identify the team members and their roles.