An orange barrel is coming to a road near you. Delaware Department of Transportation Secretary Nicole Majeski said those words during the groundbreaking ceremony for the Route 1-Route 16 grade-separated intersection last summer. While said in jest, she wasn’t wrong.
DelDOT is planning to invest $250 million in the Five Points area alone over the next six years. During the same period, the state is funding $1.37 billion in transportation projects in Sussex County.
Cape Region residents have long called on county and state officials to slow development so infrastructure can catch up. While development may not be slowing, the investment in infrastructure improvements has certainly accelerated.
The best place for everyday residents to learn about the dozens of projects in the Lewes area is at quarterly Five Points Working Group meetings, which are held in person and virtually. At the Jan. 30 meeting, DelDOT Deputy Director and Chief Engineer Shante Hastings provided updates on projects within the Henlopen Transportation Improvement District. Some projects are under construction; others are in the planning process. Some are still just ideas waiting for future funding.
Many of the ideas came from the working group, which comprises more than a dozen members from all sectors – elected local, county and state officials, DelDOT engineers, business owners and residents.
The working group formed in late 2017. Its mission was to develop consensus on solutions and improvements to the Five Points area, which has long been a traffic conundrum for even the best engineers. Over the first 10 months, the working group developed 104 ideas. The list was narrowed down to 78 before the working group prioritized 24.
An update on the progress of all recommendations is given at each Five Points Working Group meeting. To date, 62 of the 78 recommended ideas are in progress or completed.
While frustration continues from some in the public that nothing has been done to the Five Points intersection, state transportation officials have demonstrated they can work collaboratively with stakeholders on projects in the area. It’s hoped that the product of all this hard work will be a smoother, safer experience for drivers in years to come.
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Editorials are considered and written by Cape Gazette Editorial Board members, including Publisher Chris Rausch, Editor Jen Ellingsworth, News Editor Nick Roth and reporters Ron MacArthur and Chris Flood.
