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Funding in place for 3 Howland intersection upgrades
By Ed Runyan
HOWLAND
It’s official: The diverging diamond interchange for state Routes 82 and 46 near Eastwood Mall is coming in 2023. There is currently only one other one in the state.
Officials have said the diverging diamond will “simplify everything” for drivers heading to and from the Eastwood Mall complex and reduce the number of situations that can lead to crashes.
The Eastgate Regional Council of Governments made the announcement Tuesday in a news release, saying the projects got approved for the final $7.5 million from the Ohio Department of Transportation Safety Program. It was the last of the $25 million needed for the diverging diamond and two nearby intersection upgrades.
Brent Kovacs, public information officer for ODOT District 4, said the announcement means the plans presented to the public at a Sept. 5 hearing at Howland High School for the diverging diamond and two other improved intersections will take place.
The two other intersections are at Howland Wilson Road/state Route 82 and at Route 46/Warren Sharon Road.
ODOT discussed two other possible projects – widening Route 46 between Route 82 and East Market Street and aligning Howland Springs Road with Kenyon Drive, but those ideas are not part of this project, Kovacs said.
They will be considered for future construction, Kovacs said.
“I am excited we were able to piece together a funding package for this much-needed highway safety improvement project,” said Jim Kinnick, Eastgate’s executive director. “I certainly appreciate the collaboration of the agencies involved and the support of the public.”
In addition to ODOT, the other partners are the Trumbull County Engineer’s Office and Howland Township.
Securing the funding for the project allows it to proceed to the design phase, Kinnick said. Construction of the diverging diamond is expected to begin in late 2022 or early 2023, Kinnick said.
ODOT studied a “cluster” of intersections along Routes 82 and 46 that have a high number of crashes and provide access to the increasingly busy Eastwood Mall complex.
The public seemed to be generally receptive to the diverging diamond at the public hearing, but people expressed more reservations about eliminating traffic crossing Route 82 at a traffic light at Howland Wilson as occurs now.
Only right turns will be possible at the intersection after the changes are made about 2025. The traffic light will be eliminated.
The change is being made because of the number of serious crashes there, officials said. It is especially prone to rear-end collisions because drivers don’t realize quickly enough that they have to stop at the traffic light.