CHAPTER VII - TRANSPORTATION

F. TRANSPORTATION ISSUES
 

From an assessment of the existing transportation system, the following transportation issues have been identified as critical in previous studies:

• There appears to be a lack of a transverse thoroughfare to provide much-needed east-west continuity on the west side of the City. Between Stadium Drive and West Main Street, there is no street running from Drake Road to downtown Kalamazoo. Howard Street provides north-south access between Main Street and Stadium Drive to the area west of Western Michigan University. The discontinuity of West Michigan Avenue, due to the University location further emphasizes this point. A proposed Arboretum Connector between Drake Road and Howard Street would alleviate this problem to some extent.
• Extending Pitcher Street from Portage Street to Kalamazoo Avenue will result in better access to existing industrial land use west of Portage Creek, with possible links north to Gull Road.
• Trucks through downtown and north of downtown residential neighborhoods are a major concern. Truck loading/unloading in the downtown area is also of concern because they can cause temporary street blockages and hamper traffic movement. Many complaints have been received from the Northside near Business US 131 (the Westnedge Avenue/Park Street one-way pair) which carries heavy truck traffic. One proposed solution to this problem is the construction of a northern bypass connecting Business US-131 at Westnedge Avenue to either the East Michigan Avenue and Riverview Drive intersection or Mt. Oliviet Road and Riverview Drive intersection.
• The restoration of two-way operation to streets in downtown Kalamazoo with related impacts on one-way streets outside downtown.
   

Appendix B Leisure and Cultural Programs

[ Home ] [ Search ] [ Table of Contents ] [ Next Page ] [ Previous Page ]

Webspace provided by the Vision Council from an Internet Connection Services grant.
Maintained by Odyssey Web Design Inc. Email: odyssey@groovenet.com.