Businesses lament North Market traffic changes

Aug. 31--Traffic changes on North Market Street have irked some business owners, but Chattanooga officials say more changes are coming that will clear up confusion and make the road safer.

Weeks ago, the city's transportation department repaved and restriped North Market Street from Frazier Avenue up to Peak Street. The city added on-street parking and bike lanes to the thoroughfare, but sacrificed one lane of traffic to do it.

Attorney John Rice and insurance broker Arch Trimble, who each have offices in the 100 block of North Market, say they are fine with adding bike lanes. They just wish they had been in the loop before the work started.

"I'd have been more pleased if I had at least had some input on it," Rice said Friday. "I applauded the fact that they were paving the road. It's a highly traveled area. But the next thing I know, they are taking it down to three lanes."

Trimble had similar complaints.

"It's just unfortunate. There needed to be a change, but it's unfortunate that they didn't reach out to the business owners or people here who are affected on a daily basis," Trimble said.

Both say unclear road markings, and the suddenness of the changes, have caused traffic backups and confusion for drivers.

But Chattanooga Transportation Director Blythe Bailey said some of the traffic bewilderment will be fixed when the final markings are in place.

He said the city had to wait for the asphalt to fully cure before final striping and decals could be put in place. And that process has been delayed due to recent rain.

Permanent markings on the turn and bike lanes should be marked within two weeks, weather permitting, Bailey said.

But as to reducing the street from four lanes to three, Bailey said that was strictly a safety measure.

"The project, first and foremost, is a safety redesign, commonly called road right-sizing or a road diet. The project type is being advocated nationally by the Federal Highway Administration as well as [the U.S. Department of Transportation]," Bailey said.

National studies show narrowing four-lane roads to three tends to reduce accidents by about 20 percent, but traffic capacity is only marginally reduced, he said.

City traffic records showed about 40 crashes on North Market between Frazier Avenue and Peak Street in 2014 alone.

Further, a typical three-lane road can safely handle about 15,000 cars a day, and Market Street historically tops out at just under 10,000 cars a day, Bailey said. He's hoping added on-street parking will be a boon to businesses, and a boost to pedestrian safety, as well.

But Bailey acknowledged Thursday the city should have been in closer contact with businesses on the front end. To make up for it, he's presented explanations of the traffic changes to the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce's North Chattanooga Council, the Northshore Merchants Collective and the Hill City Neighborhood Association.

"As a result of this project we have sort of raised the bar on who we contact in a community. We see that we could have done a better job notifying the businesses, and we have been trying to address that," Bailey said.

Contact staff writer Louie Brogdon at [email protected], @glbrogdoniv on Twitter or at 423-757-6481.

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