Location: Emmitsburg, Maryland
Project Description:
Fox & Associates, Inc. developed improvement plans for the total reconstruction of Route 140 (Main Street) in the corporate limits of Emmitsburg, Maryland. These plans also accommodated designs for burial of all overhead utilities and the reconstruction of storm drainage facilities as well as a new ten-inch water main. The project limits extended from Flat Run on the east end of Town to Frailey Road at the town’s west end which is a distance of almost one mile. The water main design services were done under contract with the Town of Emmitsburg while all other design services were performed under our open ended contract with District 7 of the Maryland State Highway Administration (MSHA).
Site Considerations:
The desire of the Town and MSHA to reconstruct Route 140 from back of sidewalk to back of sidewalk created some unique design challenges. More than one hundred years of previous surface improvements and overlays had left the main street pavement grades higher than the sidewalks and first floor elevations along the south side of Main Street. These pavement elevations were significantly lower than sidewalk and first floor elevation in some areas along the north side of Main Street. A parallel “stepped” sidewalk was utilized to make up grade wherever needed on both sides of Main Street. Special design features were utilized to maintain positive drainage where sidewalks were lower than pavement grades. The existing storm drain system was inadequate and in desperate need of repair and upsizing.
Total reconstruction required a very complicated traffic control plan with continuous flagging and one-way only traffic pattern. The project construction took about one year for completion.