News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
Work is already underway to plan for road needs from future development in the northern areas of Putnam County.
The Putnam County Planning Commission got its first look Tuesday night at a proposed residential development in the Ditty Road area with some 850 units. Putnam County Mayor Randy Porter said he only expects development in that section of the county to continue growing.
“When you start to look at any major development coming in on any of those county roads, there’s probably going to have to be some changes to it,” Porter said, “Widening or different things. Turn lanes and stuff. Most of the time when that happens, that’s on the development to make those changes if they want to put that development in.”
Porter said a T-DOT traffic study recommended creating a corridor from Highway 70 to Gainesboro Grade to ease traffic on smaller county roads in the area. He said he intends to meet with the Transportation Department in the next few months to continue the prioritization process on roads.
“I think over the next few years, you’re going to see a lot of development in that area,” Porter said. “And that’s going to push more traffic down to Highway 70. Growth on Gainsboro Grade with housing in that area. People coming from other counties.”
“County Farm Road is the initial road they were looking at. It runs from Gainesboro Grade over to Highway 70 over at Jackson Street, turned, into Jackson, which is heavily traveled now. It’s a narrow road. Two-lane, no shoulder, bridge, and so forth.”
The newest development proposed is located on Ditty Road. Members of The Regional Planning Commission agreed that the road would need improvements for the increased traffic to suit such a major development.
Porter said Road Supervisor Randy Jones and his crews have been able to get most of the county roads into good shape. He said when you consider future development and the effect it has on these streets, you have to think 10 to 20 years ahead.
