Section 4: Transportation Plan
This section reviews the existing transportation system, issues and concerns related to traffic, pedestrian and bicycle circulation and safety, and presents recommendations for the future.
The Comprehensive Plan’s goal for transportation is to:
Develop and maintain a balanced transportation system that provides for the safe and efficient movement of vehicles, pedestrians and bicyclists and complements the City’s traditional image and character.
Existing Conditions
Oakwood is served by 55 miles of state and municipally maintained streets as well as 46 miles of sidewalks and other pedestrian/bicycle facilities. Far Hills Avenue (SR-48), an urban arterial of regional importance, carries as many as 28,000 vehicles daily according to recent counts. Far Hills Avenue bisects the community.
The portion of Oakwood east of Far Hills is generally served by a rectilinear grid system of streets, with most streets aligned east-west and north-south. The portion of Oakwood west of Far Hills is characterized by larger lots and lower densities, and is served by a curvilinear street system, which is affected by the area’s rolling topography. There are few streets within Oakwood with east-west continuity across Far Hills Avenue. However, just south of Oakwood, Dorothy Lane intersects with Far Hills Avenue and provides access to Interstate 75 at Dryden Road to the west and Interstate 675 to the east.
Other arterial streets include Shroyer Road on the eastern municipal boundary, Patterson Road, Schantz Avenue, and Oakwood Avenue. The Greater Dayton Regional Transit Authority provides public transportation services to the community.
Oakwood has an extensive sidewalk and pedestrian path network which serves the community. Residents have identified Oakwood’s pedestrian scale and pedestrian orientation as one of the City’s most valuable assets.
The City has undertaken several initiatives to meet the goals and objectives of the 1989 Comprehensive Plan, including an annual capital/operational improvement program, engineering studies of selected areas, and enhanced enforcement of existing parking and traffic regulations.
Oakwood does not have any active railroads, airports or navigable waterways within its municipal boundaries. However, regional and national railroad and air passenger and freight services are available to residents and businesses in the Dayton metropolitan region.
Relationship to Other Transportation Studies in the Dayton Area
The Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission (MVRPC) has recently completed a major investment study of the I-75 Corridor in the Dayton region. This study evaluated mainline capacity and access point modifications for I-75 throughout Montgomery County and points north and south. The study has recommended widening and reconstruction of I-75 throughout Montgomery County.
Major changes to the existing Dryden Road/Dorothy Lane Interchange were not recommended in the near term, but the MVRPC long-range plan proposes to conduct an Interchange Justification Study (IJS) for the area in 2011-2015. Oakwood should actively participate in this study, since this interchange provides primary access to the community and will affect regional traffic patterns in the Dorothy Lane corridor.
MVRPC is also updating its Long-Range Transportation Plan (LRTP) to address regional transportation needs for the next 30 years with completion estimated in the summer of 2004. There are two significant improvements proposed to the regional transportation network that