Michael Kelly | Kerr Tar COG

DURHAM – Area residents will get a chance to learn more about the North Carolina Department of Transportation’s draft 10-Year transportation plan for 2020-2029 at a week-long open house in Durham next week. The department unveiled its proposed funding and construction plan in January with more than 1,600 transportation projects across the state.

The list includes 18 new projects for Division 5, which covers Durham, Franklin, Granville, Person, Vance, Wake and Warren counties. Projects were selected based on technical data, as well as input from local officials and the public. A list of the projects in the draft plan and additional information is available on the NCDOT website.

The transportation plan is updated every two years. Projects scheduled in the first five years are considered committed, while projects in the final five years of the draft 10-year plan will be re-evaluated again as part of the development process for the 2022-2031 plan. That will start later this year.

Each of the department’s 14 highway divisions are hosting a week-long public comment opportunity on the projects in the current draft plan. In Division 5, it will be from Feb. 18-22 at the Division office at 2612 North Duke Street, Durham, during normal business hours.

The sessions will serve as opportunities for interested residents to review maps and handouts about the projects, ask questions of local NCDOT staff, and submit comments.

For interested residents who can’t attend the public comment sessions, there is an opportunity to submit comments online through April 15. The draft plan will be considered for final approval by the Board of Transportation this summer.

NCDOT will provide auxiliary aids and services under the Americans with Disabilities Act for disabled persons who want to provide input. Anyone requiring special services should contact David Keilson at 919-220-4600, or dpkeilson@ncdot.gov, as early as possible so that arrangements can be made.