SPONSOR:	Rep. Hocker & Sen. Bunting;
	Reps. Smith, Lee, Atkins, Ewing, Schwartzkopf; Sen. Venables

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

142nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 30

CALLING UPON THE DELAWARE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION TO UNDERTAKE THE PLANNING PROCESS FOR A NEW EAST-WEST LIMITED ACCESS HIGHWAY AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO THE PRESENT ROUTE THROUGH SUSSEX COUNTY.

WHEREAS, the volume of vehicular traffic moving east and west through Sussex County has been increasing steadily for many years; and

WHEREAS, the rate of increase in this traffic on Routes 9, 16, 20, 24, 26 and 54 shows no signs of abating and is likely to continue accelerating for the foreseeable future; and

WHEREAS, the present east-west routes through Sussex County are becoming congested as southern Delaware experiences increased development and greater traffic volume; and

WHEREAS, development patterns in the communities along the present east-west route have naturally tended to position a substantial portion of new commercial and industrial development along these transportation corridors; and

WHEREAS, it is unrealistic to expect these development patterns to change in the near future of their own accord because of the demonstrable business advantage that a location along these corridors offers; and

WHEREAS, efforts by the Department of Transportation to control access to the east-west transportation corridors through its “access management” and “corridor preservation” policies, as a mechanism for avoiding the need to build new highways, have proven to be both highly controversial and not extremely effective; and

WHEREAS, the use of strict access management guidelines by DelDOT has led to charges by some property owners that the Department’s actions have the effect of taking a substantial part of their real estate value without just compensation; and

WHEREAS, DelDOT’s long-range planning goals include only limited resources to alleviate the impact of development even in those areas which the Sussex County government’s various comprehensive plans have identified as areas where development is to be encouraged; and

WHEREAS, despite the rapid development which southern Delaware has experienced in recent decades, there remain feasible each-west alternate routes which can be utilized for a new limited access transportation corridor without major disruptions to current residential and commercial activities; and

WHEREAS, while it might be possible to enhance the faster movement of through traffic through the area with the use of new service roads in congested areas running parallel to our existing corridors, such a solution may well prove to be considerably more expensive than construction of an entirely new limited-access east-west highway; and

WHEREAS, the separation of through traffic from local traffic is essential for reasons of public safety, particularly in areas such as Clarksville, Millville, Georgetown, Ocean View, Bethany Beach, and Ellendale as well as Lewes and Rehoboth Beach, where there is a substantial amount of pedestrian traffic and large shopping centers on both sides of the highway.

NOW, THEREFORE:

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives and the Senate of the 142^nd General Assembly of the State of Delaware, with the approval of the Governor, that the members do hereby strongly urge the Delaware Department of Transportation to immediately undertake a study to determine the feasibility of, and provide cost estimates for, a new limited-access highway, utilizing a substantially new transportation corridor beginning at the western boundary line of Delaware and moving eastward to a point along Delaware Route One.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Delaware Department of Transportation is hereby requested to provide a preliminary report as to their progress to members of the Delaware General Assembly on or before the second Tuesday of January, 2006 and a final report as soon thereafter as practicable.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a suitably prepared copy of this Resolution be directed to the Secretary of the Department of Transportation upon its passage.