Induced Demand and the Highway Interchange (Part 2)
This article was originally published in Local Urbanism, and is part two of a two-part essay (read part one here). It is shared here, in slightly different format, with permission.
For those unaware, there is currently a mandate in the new Ohio budget bill that an interchange must be built at the intersection of I-71 and a residential collector road on the border of Brunswick and Strongsville, Ohio. The Ohio Representative Tom Patton, who represents the district that Strongsville is a part of (District 17), snuck the verbiage into the bill at the last minute. The goal is to relieve traffic on Strongsville's main arterial road—State Route 82—to the north. They also hope to reduce traffic on one of their residential collector roads, Howe, that runs parallel to I-71 to its west.
It is debated whether a significant portion of the congestion on this road is caused by residents from Brunswick and Southern Strongsville travelling North to reach the I-71 interchange. Governor DeWine is recorded as saying, “Let me point out the obvious that containing language like this in this bill is not the conventional way that interchanges occur in the state of Ohio or anything else in regards to transportation." He continued, "We have a procedure to be followed. This did not follow that procedure. Therefore, I think whenever we see an attempt to do this, we have to be very concerned about it. … However, people have been waiting a long time to deal with this problem, and there does not appear to be a solution in sight.”
The Effects of This Interchange
Of course, the future is uncertain. Claims made in this article are purely hypothetical based on the well-observed phenomenon of induced demand. That said, there is significant evidence to suggest the interchange may not be the traffic solution planners hope it will be. Adding lanes does not correlate to reduced congestion. In fact, it is often the opposite case.
Boston Road
According to the feasibility study by Euthenics, a Strongsville-based company, Boston Road will be widened between Howe and Benbow roads at least, further increasing induced demand as more capacity is added.
Boston road will draw huge numbers of drivers trying to avoid S.R. 82/303. It will also draw those looking for the shortest possible path.
Compared to the surrounding neighborhoods, Boston Road is actually rather underdeveloped. Large lots abound and as you head further east or west, you find forests and fields, as well. This will lead to immense development pressure as easy access to the highway will be a strong draw. Of course, those new developments will bring new drivers, as well.
It is argued by those against the interchange that Foltz Industrial Parkway in Strongsville is planned to eventually have a southern terminus at Boston Road. Currently, the only way to get to Foltz for truck traffic from I-71 is S.R. 82. This causes unwanted heavy truck traffic in an area already inundated by cars driven by shoppers. In a vacuum, Strongsville would be wise to push for a Boston Road exit so that truck traffic can be diverted from 82 to Boston. Of course, we don't live in a vacuum. This would turn Boston Road into a truck route. Strongsville has denied these claims as there are apparently protected wetlands between Foltz Industrial Park and Boston Road.
It is clear that, at the very least, thought has been put into connecting Foltz Industrial Parkway in Strongsville with Boston Road. This can be confirmed by statements made from Strongsville leadership in the past, but has been argued against as of late.
For context, here is the location of Foltz in relation to the proposed interchange.
Howe
According to Patton, Howe is one of the major reasons for this interchange. It is a two-lane residential collector between S.R. 82 and Boston and joins S.R. 82 a few hundred feet from the I-71 interchange. Patton claims it takes residents of Howe Road up to 40 minutes to get out of the driveway.
First, to clear it up (at least, anecdotally): I've lived in the area for my entire life. I have never seen the traffic on Howe get so bad as to cause residents to wait more than three minutes, let alone 40 minutes to get out of their driveway. I don't know whom Patton has talked to, but I can assure you they have a serious issue with time perception. Furthermore, Howe generally acts as a road. Residents of Brunswick and Strongsville overwhelmingly have two points of interest they are using Howe Road for, and they both exist at the northern terminus: Southpark Mall and I-71.
If an interchange is built on Boston Road, the first effect you would notice is that those who live in the north of Brunswick who are traveling between Cleveland and other cities will probably shift to using the Boston Road interchange. There is a certain line in Brunswick where those who live south of this imaginary line would save time by using the 303 interchange to head north to the S.R. 82 interchange. Doing some analysis with Google Maps, I've found that our imaginary line seems to be about 500 feet south of Grafton Road. If you live north of that line, Google Maps will route you to S.R. 82 to get on to I-71—south of that line and you're S.R. 303 bound. Some quick estimations based on the Brunswick ward map and its population numbers will show that there are between 6,000 and 8,000 people north of that line. Of those driving north at any one time, it is easy to conclude that residents living in Northern Brunswick make up less of the congestion than proponents of the interchange would have you believe. This is the only reduction of car trips down Howe Road that I see the interchange eliminating.
Since the prediction shows that the congestion on Howe will not get any better, there won't be that reduction of cost we talked about earlier—therefore little induced demand will happen.
North Carpenter
North Carpenter is in the same boat as Howe, just without the current issue of congestion. As the interchange is completed, congestion on North Carpenter will increase immensely as drivers that were pulled south to get on I-71 at 303 are now pulled northward. I see little induced demand here because there will only be an increase in cost to drive.
Grafton and Drake as Parallels
Where induced demand will start to show is the roads parallel to Boston—Grafton and Drake Roads. Because of the increase in traffic on Boston Road due to the interchange, it will become significantly less pleasant to drive on. Those looking to make a trip between the eastern and western portions of the cities will decide they would like to skip the traffic and lights on Boston and instead take Grafton and Drake.
Benbow and Chandler Commons
Benbow is a relatively rural residential road in Strongsville parallel to I-71 and intersecting with Boston Road at its southern terminus. It really is out of place in Strongsville, as there are large multi-acre lots. Assuming it doesn't get cul-de-sac'd, there will be significant development pressure introduced here as access to I-71 will be moments away. Even if Benbow does end in a cul-de-sac at the southern end, you can expect massive traffic in the Chandler Commons subdivision as people cut through to Boston Road from Benbow.
Wrap Up
The lessons learned from increased road capacity leading to increased traffic volume—demonstrated by Katy Freeway and many others—make it critical to consider the implications of induced demand in urban planning and traffic management. The proposed interchange at I-71 and Boston Road, while aimed at easing congestion, may end up increasing traffic problems across several surrounding areas, altering community dynamics and impacting the quality of life. It underscores the need for traffic engineers, urban planners, and policymakers to consider induced demand before implementing such projects and to explore more sustainable alternatives like improved public transportation, carpooling encouragement, or congestion pricing. By learning from past experiences, we can hope to make informed decisions for our evolving infrastructure, ensuring not just room for more cars, but also improved quality of life for the communities involved.
Justin Boey writes at Local Urbanism. By day, he works as a software developer; by moonlight, he’s an avid nerd of all things cities and urban spaces. Boey is the Local Conversation leader for Brunswick Strong Towns, a local group dedicated to promoting walkability, community, smart development, and financial strength in Brunswick, Ohio. If you live in the Brunswick area and would like to help, consider joining the Brunswick Strong Towns Facebook page.
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