MANSFIELD — Work continues on a $1.2-million tunnel project beneath Trimble Road that will one day allow bicyclists and pedestrians to safely cross beneath the busy street when an accompanying planned B&O Trail connector project is complete.
The busy five-lane road was closed on Aug. 19 as Adena Corp. began the work in earnest, a 45-day closure expected to end in early October.
Mansfield Mayor Jodie Perry, who took office in January, took to social media on Sunday to answer the biggest questions about a project that was approved during the tenure of previous Mayor Tim Theaker.
Here is a look at what Perry posted Sunday afternoon:
“I can’t believe you’re building a tunnel! What are you thinking?”
Jodie Perry: “I have heard this question many times since this project went to City Council earlier this year. It’s a project that actually was started several years ago (most large ones take time), but when shovels go in the ground it undoubtedly gets more attention.”
Where does it go?
Jodie Perry: “The tunnel will connect the Trimble Road multimodal path to the B&O Bike Trail. A new connector trail is being built in 2025 from the south side of the tunnel to the Bike Trail. There is another section of the trail being built along Millsboro from Trimble to Marion in 2025. The goal is that it will one day connect down Marion to downtown.”
(Below are photos showing various stages of the tunnel project beneath Trimble Road in Mansfield. Images courtesy of the City of Mansfield. The story continues below the photos.)
Multi-modal? What does that mean?
Jodie Perry: “It’s the engineer’s term for multiple ways of transit. This is a wider path to allow bicycles and pedestrians all at the same time. The one along Trimble Road from Cook to Marion is what it will look like.”
“Why do you even have to worry about crossing Trimble?”
Jodie Perry: “Trimble Road is five lanes across and very busy. To ensure the safety of all ages of users the project partners decided a crossing of some sort was needed.”
“Why not a traffic light?”
Jodie Perry: “The length of time of a light to allow safe crossing would slow down traffic considerably for this stretch of road, inconveniencing motorists on a regular basis. Additionally, there are certain rules and metrics that are required to put a traffic light in and this intersection didn’t meet those. And finally, putting in a light is not as inexpensive as you might think.”
“Why not build a bridge? That would be way cheaper!”
Jodie Perry: “Actually, it isn’t cheaper at all. A bridge was actually considered, but the cost was far higher than the $1.2 million tunnel.”
“Who cares about this? Like, five people will use it a year!”
Jodie Perry: “Actually, the B&O Bike Trail is one of the area’s top attractions with tens of thousands of users per year. Once the trail is fully connected, it will see a lot of use, much as the current trail along Trimble does. Connecting to the bike trail from this area of town is difficult because none of the roads that go south are very wide. This will encourage more use of the trails in general. Experts have shared that communities with active trail systems see strong economic revitalization over time.”
“Why are you spending all the tax dollars that could go to a pool on this project?”
Jodie Perry: “The funding for this project comes from multiple sources (almost every big project is like this) and with the exception of the city and county ARPA dollars, none of it could be used for a pool. And a pool would not be built in time to use ARPA funds. There is a deadline on that money. There is also private money from the Richland County Foundation so the full cost is not from public funds.”
“Why water & sewer funds?”
Jodie Perry: “When you dig into the ground on public right of way, inevitably you will run into public utilities. In this case, a major water line and storm sewer line were impacted by the project. The engineers actually calculate out the exact cost of that work. That is the only reason water and sewer funds are being used. This is actually very routine on projects like this. Our water and sewer funds are not allowed to be used on other projects. We are audited on that every year. Additionally, the new water main replacement levy, which will start to be collected in 2025, is not being used for this project and could not be used for any project like this. That money will only be able to be spent on upgrading our very small water mains all over town.”
“What if it isn’t safe?”
Jodie Perry: “Just like with the B&O Bike Trail or our parks, the more something gets used, the less opportunity there is for issues. We are also installing cameras to make sure residents feel safe.”
“I wish you wouldn’t have done this project.”
Jodie Perry: “This has actually been in the works for two years. While it was in process before I took office, I absolutely support it. I believe that when it is all connected, most people will see the benefit of a trail like this. There is an unprecedented amount of public works projects happening in our community and in large part that is thanks to all of the grant money that has been coming in. We could not do projects like this, Main Street, or others solely with local funds. This is undoubtedly a time of great opportunity for Mansfield and we are trying to make our resources go as far as possible.”
