CRTPA to vote on Thomasville Road Multi-Use Path

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) - A contentious project is on the table at Monday night’s CRTPA meeting.

Local leaders with the Capital Regional Transportation Planning Agency will hear an update on the Thomasville Road Multi-Use Path and decide whether to move forward.

The proposed path would run along Thomasville Road from Betton Road up to the Market District.

Almost the entire project is in Leon County Commissioner Rick Minor’s district. Ahead of Monday’s meeting, Minor emphasized that the project was not a “done deal.”

The CRTPA will look at three optiosn: accepting the feasibility study with the recommended path, accepting the study and choosing an alternate path, or deciding not to build the path at all.

Staff recommends the path run along Thomasville Road East from Betton Road to Armistead Road, and from Armistead Road to Woodgate Way.

They then recommend the path cross to Thomasville Road West and run up to Metropolitan Boulevard on that side of the street.

The crossing has many concerned.

“A lot of people have talked about their concern with crossing at Woodgate Way. The recommended path starts at Betton Road on the east side of Thomasville, goes all the way up to Woodgate Way, crosses to go on the west side of Thomasville, all the way up to Metropolitan,” Minor said.

Opponents of the project argue that it’s not safe with how busy Thomasville Road is, especially with a 45 mile per hour speed limit.

Supports say it will get more people out of their vehicles, biking and walking. They also argue it would connect the Market District with Midtown.

The agenda materials include letters of support from Capital City Cyclists and the Tallahassee Mountain Bike Association.

Minor said while he is a fan of connectivity, he has serious safety concerns.

“It’s a very busy road. And having multiple types of people using a path like that, with the 40 plus access points, having people trying to get into their neighborhood and out of their neighborhood, while trying to navigate a very busy street, it makes sense that there’s some concerns about that,” he said.

The agenda item also lays out possible funding numbers.

Segment 1 runs from Betton Road to Armistead Road. Segment 2 runs from Armistead Road to Woodgate Way. Segment 3 runs from Woodgate Way to Metropolitan Boulevard. The Market District Connector will be evaluated separately.

• Segment 1: $590,000 to $767,000
• Segment 2: $620,000 to $806,000
• Segment 3: $1,019,000 to $1,325,000
• Market District Connector: $2,601,000 TO $3,307,000

Minor said both sides are dug in on the issue, and he believes it will be difficult to find common ground at Monday’s meeting. He hopes to bring up the possibility of improving the sidewalks on the west side of Thomasville Road, regardless of the path issue.

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