US 12 at Fort Atkinson study

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Needs Assessment Study

Environmental Impact Statement

US 12 corridor study at Fort Atkinson

As part of the National Highway System, US 12 extends from Detroit, Michigan, to Aberdeen, Washington, and passes through eleven states. It is classified as a Corridors 2020 Connector Highway, which means it has been designated as a highly important roadway to the state of Wisconsin and has been selected to receive funding for improvements.

Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) planners have been considering options for the US 12 corridor for many years. WisDOT began study of a 10-mile stretch of US 12 in the Fort Atkinson area to establish whether improvements are needed for this section of roadway.

As US 12 travels through Fort Atkinson, it needs to efficiently satisfy the needs of two distinct user groups. US 12 is expected to carry regionally oriented traffic (i.e. motorists with no purpose other than to pass through Fort Atkinson) and also act as a local street for city residents and others. Currently, motorists passing through are subjected to a host of local traffic conditions and vice versa.

As a first step, WisDOT officials initiated the US 12 Needs Assessment Study in March 2001 to identify what long-term transportation problems exist along the corridor in Fort Atkinson and to determine if a sufficient level of need was present.

From the needs assessment study, three primary reasons to begin looking at improvement options for the US 12 corridor surfaced:

Regional mobility demands
Safety and congestion problems
Public support for improvements

WisDOT is now preparing an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), which will outline the purpose and need for improvement, possible construction alternatives and their respective environmental consequences, and comments collected from residents and agency officials.

The final EIS is scheduled for publication in 2008.

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Photo of traffic congestion on US 12 at Lexington Boulevard.

New urban growth has led to higher traffic volumes at the Lexington Boulevard intersection on US 12.