Shared by IRPO–April’s Safety Message
Shared by IRPO–NCDOT’s April Newsletters
Shared by IRPO– Transportation Secretary Announces Commission to Create Future Transportation Investment Strategy
RALEIGH – State Transportation Secretary Jim Trogdon announced that he has formed a commission to develop recommendations for modernizing North Carolina’s transportation investment strategy. The commission will research the impact that emerging technologies, shifting behavior patterns and changing demographics will have on North Carolina ’s transportation investment system and then develop new ways to meet the need for critical resources in the future. “The transportation industry is on the cusp of fundamental changes that The commission will hold its first meeting Friday, May 3, from 9 a.m. More information regarding the current members of the NCF1RST Commission, meeting dates and other resources can be found at http://www.ncdot.gov/ncfirst. |
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Shared by IRPO– State Giving Children in Need Record Number of Lifesaving Bike Helmets
Four organizations from our Region will receive bike helmets! They are highlighted below!
| A record number of children, 3,320 total, across the state will be receiving lifesaving bicycle helmets through The NCDOT uses funds from the sale of the “Share the Road” specialty license plate to pay for bike helmets that are distributed at bicycle safety events for underprivileged children by government and non-government agencies. A record 101 organizations applied to participate in the program this year. Helmets save lives. While less than half of all children typically wear a helmet while biking, they can reduce the risk of severe brain injuries by nearly 90 percent. This year, along with each helmet awarded, recipients will receive a The following organizations are receiving helmets: • Albemarle Parks & Recreation • Alexander County Health Department • Allenbrook Elementary • Beech Mountain Police Department • Benson Police Department • Bessemer City Police Department • Bethel Police Department • Bike Durham • Boy Scout Pack 141 • Boy Scout Troop 416 • Brevard Police Department • Buckland Elementary • Cameron Elementary • Carrboro, N.C. • Carrie on NC, Inc. • Carthage, N.C. • Chapel Hill Police Department • Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department • China Grove, N.C. • Clay County Sheriff’s Office • Currituck County Sheriff’s Office • Dare County Department of Health and Human Services • Denton Parks and Recreation Board • Duke Healthy Lifestyles & Bull City Fit • Dunn Police Department • Durham Bicycle Cooperative • Durham Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Commission • Durham Police Department • East Franklin Elementary • Forest City Police Department • Franklin County Cooperative Extension • Fuquay-Varina Police Department • Gaston County Parks and Recreation • Gastonia Parks and Recreation • Glendale Kenly Elementary • Goldsboro Parks and Recreation • Greater Glenwood Neighborhood Association • Guilford County Women, Infant and Children Program • Haliwa-Saponi Tribal School • Hendersonville Police Department • Intentional Love Baptist Church • Jackson County Department of Public Health • Jackson County Sheriff’s Office • Kill Devil Hills Police Department • Lansing, N.C. • Leland, N.C. • Love a Sea Turtle • Marbles Kids Museum • Marshall, N.C. • Mebane on the Move • Mecklenburg County Parks and Recreation • Mills River Farmers Market • Mills River, N.C. • Mt. Zion Church of Deliverance • Murphy Police Department • Nashville Parks and Recreation • N.C. State Highway Patrol • Novant Health – Presbyterian Medical Center • Oxford, N.C. • Oxford Police Department • Partners Aligned Toward Health • Pedal Factory Community Bike Center • Pine Knoll Shores Police Department • Project Enlightenment Foundation • Randleman Police Department • Ray Childers Elementary • Rowan County Sheriff’s Department • Rutherfordton Fire Department and Police Department • Safe Communities Coalition of Pitt County • Safe Kids Burke County • Safe Kids Cabarrus • Safe Kids Caldwell County – County Health Department • Safe Kids Catawba County • Safe Kids Charlotte Mecklenburg • Safe Kids Chatham County • Safe Kids Cleveland County • Safe Kids Eastern Carolina • Safe Kids Northwest Piedmont • Safe Kids Orange County • Safe Kids Pitt County • Safe Kids Randolph County • Safe Kids Surry County • Safe Kids Union County • Safe Kids Western Carolina • Safe Kids Wilkes County • Salisbury Parks and Recreation • Sampson County Schools • Sanford Police Department • Selma Tabernacle Church of God • Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority • Siler City Elementary • Smithfield Police Department • Southport, N.C. • Spindale Fire Department • Surf City Police Department • The Happy Tooth Foundation • UNC Hospitals Pediatric Trauma Program • Vass, N.C. • Winston Salem Police Department Bike Patrol • WalkBikeNC • Womack Army Medical Center Residents dedicated to bicycle safety in North Carolina have supported this initiative since it began in 2007. Since then, thousands of bicycle helmets have been distributed to children. For more information about the program, visit the NCDOT Bicycle Helmet Initiative webpage. |
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Shared by IRPO– NCDOT Announces 2018 Wildflower Award Winners
| RALEIGH – The wildflowers blooming along North Carolina’s highways are a beautiful sight for travelers; they’re also award-winning. Each year, N.C. Department of Transportation honors the state’s best-looking wildflower beds. The Wildflower Awards were presented by N.C. Board of Transportation Chairman Mike Fox and The Garden Club of North Carolina at the monthly Transportation meeting today in Raleigh. “For many years, the Wildflower Program has been one of the department’s most popular initiatives,” said David Harris, Roadside Environmental Engineer. “It not only makes North Carolina even more beautiful, but the flowers also help sustain the pollinator population which is essential to the success of the state’s agriculture community.” The Wildflower Awards were given for beds that bloomed in 2018. The winners are: Best Overall Division Wildflower Program: • First Place – Division 13, which includes Rutherford, McDowell, Burke, Mitchell, Yancey, Madison and Buncombe counties • Second Place – Division 14, which includes Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Macon, Polk, Swain and Transylvania counties William D. Johnson Daylily Award: • First Place – Division 7 – I-40/85 at N.C. 54 in Alamance County (exit 148) • Second Place – Division 4 – I-795 at N.C. 222 in Wayne County (exit 14) Best Regional Wildflower Planting, Eastern Region: • First Place – Division 2 – U.S. 264 at Mozingo Road in Pitt County (exit 71) • Second Place – Division 1 – N.C. 11 at Jack Branch Road in Bertie County Best Regional Wildflower Planting, Central Region: • First Place – Division 9 – U.S. 52 at Perch Road in Stokes County (exit 129) • Second Place – Division 10 – I-85 at Beatties Ford Road in Mecklenburg County (exit 37) Best Regional Wildflower Planting, Western Region: • First Place – Division 14 – I-40 at U.S. 19/23/74 in Haywood County (exit 27) • Second Place – Division 13 – I-26 at mile marker 10 in Madison County The awards sponsored by The Garden Club of North Carolina, recognize the efforts of NCDOT staff who carry out North Carolina’s wildflower program and enhance the overall appearance and environmental quality of the state’s highways. Awards are given to the best-looking flower beds in each region of the state, as well as the best overall highway division wildflower program. In 1985, First Lady Dottie Martin, inspired by an article she had read in The Wall Street Journal about Texas’ wildflower program, approached NCDOT about initiating a similar program to beautify the highways of North Carolina. This set the stage for the establishment of the Wildflower Program which is coordinated by the NCDOT Roadside Environmental Unit. Today, the program has more than 1,500 acres of flower beds across the state. A Flickr album with photos of the winners is available here along with a video. |
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Shared by IRPO– The Multimodal Message
Shared by IRPO–March’s Safety Message
Shared by IRPO–March’s Rail Report
Shared by IRPO–Damaged Road to Receive Significant Repairs
MILLS RIVER – N.C. Department of Transportation engineers
Howard Gap Road has been closed since Jan. 31 due to significant roadway damage. Designs for this extensive project should begin this spring, and construction may start in the fall or winter.
A team of engineers and geologists assessed the damaged road as well as the mountain below I-26 earlier this week. They determined that a combination of factors, including the 50-year-old drainage system, record rainfall during the last year and pervious soil conditions— which means water can flow through it more easily — contributed to the damage.
The plan includes repairing or replacing the entire surface and subsurface drainage system for the Saluda grade section of I-26 and Howard Gap Road, and the surface drainage for a section of I-26 near Indian Gap. In addition, a retaining wall anchored into rock would increase
“This course of action will provide a long-term solution for stabilizing both roads for drivers,” said Lonnie Watkins, the NCDOT district engineer for the area. “Now that we have a general plan we will identify the source of funding and develop designs.”
Shared by IRPO-NCDOT’s March Newsletters
NCDOT has started e-newsletters for each of its 14 Divisions. Isothermal RPO includes counties in Division 13 (McDowell and Rutherford) and Division 14 (Polk). Please find links to those Divisions’ newsletter below.
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