From staff reports
The City of Franklin has been awarded $1 million for safety improvements at the intersection of 12th and Liberty streets.
The upgrades will improve pedestrian bump-outs, visibility improvements, and the addition of a bike lane.
The project will be completed in conjunction with the upcoming PennDOT Highway Restoration Betterment Project that will make roadway improvements to Liberty from 15th to 8th streets.
Power added that “PennDOT and the Venango County Regional Planning Commission, as well as staff from the Northwest Pennsylvania Regional Planning Commission, have been involved since the very beginning. A number of planning activities and actions have prepared the city for this phase of work.”
The proposal reflects the results of the Liberty Street and 12th Street intersection improvements study, which was conducted in 2019 and 2020 with the purpose of evaluating possible geometric alternatives to improve safety and traffic flow.
Two public meetings were held, during which several options were presented to attendees. The input gathered at these meetings, as well as meetings with stakeholders, was used to refine the alternatives.
About 85 businesses participated in the meetings.
“For the grant application, safety was an important area of emphasis for both the city and PennDOT,” Power said.
She added that based on the field measurements, the pedestrian crossing at the southern leg of 12th Street is 56 feet and the crossing at the northern leg of 12th Street is 85 feet.
“This results in a very vulnerable pedestrian,” Power said.
The project reduces the crossing distance by about 30 feet.
The Liberty Street project is one of 64 projects across Pennsylvania designed to improve transportation alternatives and enhance mobility and public access. The projects are funded in part by the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
Franklin’s proposal was the only one in Venango County to receive funding.
