What will traffic look like around the Intel plant?
Right now, traffic flow on the two-lane Green Chapel Road in Licking County is little more than 300 vehicles a day. Or about 12 cars or trucks an hour around the clock and a whole lot of quiet. It’s a good bet that unless you live nearby, you’ve never been on Green Chapel, let alone heard of it.
That’s all about to change. A whole lot of people are going to get more familiar with this sleepy country lane since it is the northern border of Intel’s $20 billion chip manufacturing development.
Here’s how familiar: The stretch of Green Chapel between Clover Valley Road and Mink Street (which both border Intel) is projected to see 8,400 vehicles per day when the two computer chip plants open in 2025. That’s 350 an hour. And by 2050, when the area has built out to include up to eight Intel manufacturing sites, the estimate hits 15,000.
These figures are courtesy of a study completed in February by MS Consultants for the Licking County Transportation Improvement District. (PowerPoint Presentation (lickingcounty.gov))
Green Chapel is not alone in getting more popular. Here are the results of the study on the traffic impact for roadways near the development.
U.S. 62, northeast of Duncan Plains near Johnstown
Now: 16,455
2025: 21,000
2050: 42,600
U.S. 62, northeast of Fancher
Now: 12,342
2025: 14,300
2050: 36,600
Duncan Plains between U.S. 62 and Mink
Now: 3,200
2025: 4,300
2050: 16,500
Clover Valley between U.S. 62 and Green Chapel
Now: 450
2025: 7,500
2050: 18,900
Clover Valley between U.S. 62 and Edwards
Now: 1,600
2025: 4,800
2050: 28,100
Green Chapel between Mink and Clover Valley
Now: 327
2025: 8,400
2050: 15,000
Mink between Miller and Jug
Now: 7,120
2025: 16,100
2050: 23,900
Beech, north of Ohio 161
Now: 8,600
2025: 10,500
2050: 13,300