Mitchell Hammock Road Intersection Improvement Project

Construction of the Mitchell Hammock Road Improvement Project (Bid No. 10-10) has been completed by Barracuda Building Corporation.  Funding for the project was provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), better know as "stimulus funds".   Below is a brief description of the safety issues involved with the intersections and a summary of the improvements to each intersection.

Mitchell Hammock Road is a 4-lane divided collector roadway that serves as a major east/west corridor for the City of Oviedo and is used by approximately 30,000 vehicles per day.

Safety has become a major concern along this stretch of Mitchell Hammock Road where a number of reported crashes have occurred at each of the three intersections. Safety studies and/or signal warrant analysis were conducted for all three intersections and solutions were developed to help solve the indentified problems with each intersection. The intersections are identified as follows:

1) Albertson’s Shopping Center drive by Wendy’s
The intersection is located on Mitchell Hammock Road between Vicki Court and the driveway located approximately 300 feet west of SR 434, near the Wendy’s by the Albertson’s Shopping Center. Safety has become a major concern on this 0.15 mile stretch of Mitchell Hammock Road. The shopping center has two driveways on Mitchell Hammock Road which are approximately 280 feet apart. A majority of the crashes which have occurred involve vehicles turning left out of the Albertson’s Shopping Center (near Wendy’s) and vehicles traveling eastbound on Mitchell Hammock.
 
The improvement project involves limiting the intersection to a right-in, right-out only at Mitchell Hammock and Wendy’s by adding a grassed median with some additional striping. The median will eliminate left turns onto Mitchell Hammock Road.
 
2) Manigan Avenue/Katie Jean Street
Katie Jean Street is located on the north approach of the Mitchell Hammock Road and Lockwood Boulevard intersection and serves commercial traffic for the adjacent business and a multi-family residential development. Manigan Avenue is a residential roadway located on the south approach of the intersection. Currently, the median opening between the eastbound and westbound travel lanes is 75 feet wide by 56 feet across. The large open median creates a safety issue and the undefined space allows for uncontrolled traffic operations and leads to unexpected driver behavior and unsafe maneuvers, especially during peak conditions.
 
The improvement project consists of reconfiguring the existing intersection to accommodate new left turn lanes in both directions on Mitchell Hammock Road. The project includes a directional median and limiting access from Manigan Avenue and Katie Jean Street onto Mitchell Hammock Road to a right-in and right-out. The project includes modifications to the existing stormwater ponds within the median area to accommodate the additional stormwater runoff.
 
3) Eastbridge Drive/Henson Court
The intersection of Mitchell Hammock Road at Eastbridge Drive/Henson Court is located approximately 1,600 feet west of Lockwood Boulevard. Eastbridge Drive/Henson Court is a two-lane undivided roadway. The intersection area is mostly residential with a bank with drive-thru windows and a Day Care Center located in the northeast corner of Mitchell Hammock Road at Eastbridge Drive. Due to the intersection’s close proximity to Lockwood Boulevard, this intersection gets very congested especially during peak travel hours. And, with the safety improvements at the intersection of Katie Jean Street/Manigan Avenue, this intersection may become even more congested due to the rerouted traffic.   The existing median is 49 feet wide and currently vehicles turning left from Mitchell Hammock Road “stack up” in the large median creating a potential safety issue.
 
The improvement project consists of reconfiguring the existing intersection to accommodate a westbound left turn lane at the intersection of Eastbridge Drive and Mitchell Hammock Road and minimizing the area between the two medians to control access. The project includes re-striping, additional signage and sidewalk improvements located in the west side median.