Possible routes for Corridor K have been identified by computer software, although consultants stress that’s a long way from an actual alignment.

Representatives of URS, the company working on the Transportation Planning Report for the Hwy 64 bypass, met last week with elected officials from Polk and Bradley counties, as well as representatives of state and federal government and the Appalachian Regional Commission, which has committed the bulk of the funds. The TPR, which is expected to be completed in April 2010, is the first step in the highway project, to be followed by the Environmental Impact Statement on specific alignments.

For now, the emphasis is on involvement as well as identifying possible routes. URS officials are also meeting with a citizens group, representatives of agencies that will be involved in the final approval process, and economic and environmental leaders. The first public meetings will be open houses planned for 5-8 p.m. July 20 at Copper Basin High School and July 21 at Polk County High School.

This is all part of a new process at the Tennessee Department of Transportation -- Context Sensitive Solutions – in which citizens, elected officials, and agencies are asked to provide input before any alignments are drawn. Creating a Transportation Planning Report before specific alignments are considered is part of the new process.

The goal is to build consensus by using creativity and flexibility to find solutions to issues raised. Wes Hughes, Project Manager for Corridor K, stressed that there is no predetermined solution. “We’re not saying a four-lane divided highway is the only answer,” he said. “We want feedback and tough questions,” he said, noting that early involvement by all concerned could avoid roadblocks later. At the agency meeting, consultants were told that it would be important to make needed mitigation commitments early on, such as providing routes for bear migration.

A Corridor K study area was established that was big enough to allow for a variety of options. With an early environmental screening process, consultants identified areas where a road would not be feasible (such as Wilderness, which would take an act of Congress to change), might be possible, and could be done. The study map includes the location of threatened/endangered species, churches, environmentally sensitive areas, and the like. All this information, plus topography, was fed into a computer software  program, along with general roadway parameters for a two-lane and four-lane road.

The computer created 2,000-foot-wide generalized corridors on both sides of the Ocoee River that could be considered. Consultants explained that the wide corridors would allow for several different alignments within each, and would allow them to avoid specific areas or provide mitigation. Each of the corridors will be evaluated to see how it meets the purpose and need of the proposed roadway. The TPR will not make a recommendation or rank the corridors, although they could change between now and the end of the input process. Consultants are still getting information from the various agencies to add to the database of protected resources. At this point, they said, they are looking for trend lines, not specific alignments. There will be a wide range of costs within each corridor.

In phase 2, more detailed specifications can be added to help fine-tune the corridor selection process. Consultants stressed this is a good tool in the early stages but was not meant to replace the ground survey that takes place in phase 2.

With the TPR effort to get more people involved early in the process, that could provide a good foundation for the NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act) process in the second stage. Hopefully, consultants said, the NEPA process will proceed more quickly if agency comments have already been addressed and the community has been kept informed all along.

The big question in the future would be what happens to the existing roadway, which is often turned over to the local community. That decision is made by the TDOT commissioner. County Executive Mike Stinnett and Road Superintendent Harold Hood indicated that turning the existing highway over to Polk County would be a potential problem. Hood asked if the Cherokee National Forest would be able to take it.