A $9.25 million State Highway Administration project to widen and shift Route 24 away from the eroding Deer Creek stream bank through Rocks State Park will involve dynamite blasting the famous geologic structures which give the popular park its name.
Beginning next year, crews will shift Rocks Road, Maryland Route 24, 10 feet away from Deer Creek by blasting through the unique rock formations which parallel the winding road. But SHA engineers say the detonations and subsequent vibrations should have no impact on Harford County’s most recognizable natural feature – the 190-foot tall King and Queen Seat.
Engineering for the project, which is divided into seven sections that will eventually stretch from St. Clair Bridge Road to Sharon Road, is already underway and construction is scheduled from 2010 through 2012.
A rough scope of the project can be found on the SHA website.
Jialin Tian, a transportation engineer in the SHA’s Community Design Division, said erosion of the stream bank presents a safety issue for passing motorists.
“MD 24, from Stirrup Run Culvert to Deer Creek Bridge, has been identified with varying degrees of slope failure. Deer Creek continuously erodes the toe of the bank, which causes the bank to gradually steepen over time. Because of this earth movement, the traffic barrier in certain locations along MD 24 is learning away from the roadway, and tension cracking continuously appears on the road.”
“Periodic resurfacing has helped to mask the tension cracks but with reduced embankment stabilization, the road is continually in need of maintenance. The slope protection is to protect the roadway and ensure safety of all road users,” Tian wrote in an email.
Tian said the SHA has identified seven distinct sections of the road where various types of slope repairs will be needed in the future. The first efforts will cover the northern-most section, designated “Section A,” and the southern-most section, called “Section G,” which were determined to be most in need of action. The limits of Section A extend from Deer Creek Bridge to 1,200 feet south of the bridge, and the limits of section G extend from 2,000 feet south of Sharon Rd to 900 feet south of Sharon Road, Tian said.
Tian said roadway is proposed to be shifted “up to 10 feet further away from the stream than its current location in both sections” and that “rock blasting will be used in this project to remove the rocks along MD 24.”
However, Tian said the King and Queen Seat, a towering natural rock outcrop once believed to be a ceremonial gathering place for Susquehannock Indians, should not be impacted.
“The rock blasting in either section will not impact the King and Queen Seats. In general, the impact of rock blasting to the surrounding geographic features will be minimal. SHA will provide the contractor blasting provision as a guide to efficient blast design and vibration control. If there is a structure located close to the blasting area, a pre-construction survey may be performed to exam the condition of the structure,” Tian said.
Dynamite detonation was not the first choice for the Rocks Road improvement project, but, as strange as it may sound, it was deemed the least intrusive to the environment of the available options.
“Several alternatives have been studied for this project with an emphasis on protecting the surrounding landscape. Of all the alternatives studied, the only other prudent option would include the construction of a retaining wall along the stream both sections, which would impact the stream through loss of vegetation and flow diversion,” Tian said.
In addition to moving the road away from Deer Creek, the project will also widen Rocks Road, adding about six inches to each travel lane as well as a two-foot paved shoulder on each side of the road.
“Existing MD 24 has two 10.5’-11’ wide lanes with minimal shoulders. The proposed roadway in these two sections will be improved to be 26-feet wide including an 11-foot lane, and a 2-foot paved shoulder in each direction. The 2-foot paved shoulders are to provide a minimal lateral distance between the roadway and roadside obstacles, such as rocks or traffic barriers to reduce the likelihood of fixed object collisions and to provide lateral support of the pavement,” Tian said.
Anyone who lives near or regularly travels through Rocks State Park recognizes the curving creekside roadway can be quite dangerous. Tian said the improvement project should help reduce roadway collisions, especially since the posted speed limits are proposed to remain the same even as the road is widened.
“The 11-foot lanes and 2-foot shoulders are proposed to balance the speed of vehicles and while minimizing the opportunity for opposite direction crashes. This area of MD 24 currently experiences both fixed object and opposite direction crashes greater than the average statewide rate for similarly designed roadways,” Tian said.
During the construction period, SHA has proposed a full road closure since traffic cannot be safely maintained. Traffic will be detoured using MD 23 (East West Highway) and MD 165 (Federal Hill Road). Because the construction of Section A and Section G will not occur concurrently, these road closures and detours are expected to stretch over the course of the next few summers.
However, Tian said the main accesses to Rocks State Park and the accesses to the local residents’ homes “shall always be maintained.”
Additionally, SHA is continuing ongoing coordination with Maryland Department of Natural Resource regarding temporary access closures in Rocks State Park. Upon construction completion, “all accesses shall remain the same,” Tiad added.
SHA is planning an informational public meeting for late-2009 or early-2010 to inform citizens of the proposed improvements, solicit input, and answer any questions about this project.
Photo courtesy of Joshua Blankman
surely we need to do and invironmental study, as too what effect the explosions will have on the wild life that lives in the area. that should set the road work back Five years and another Million Dollars.
Hopefully that research was completed prior to the finalization of the plan . . .
This is stupid !
Why not erosion controll at the bank, on the road side, like many others do. These erosion controll matts can be made right in Aberdeen. Blasting the rock formations on the other side of the road is simply rediculass. This will leave a barren rock face that will not recover for 50 years…and whats the life of that improvement…less than 100 years before it needs to be done again?
These engineers have rocks in their heads.
Go Dagger ! !
Trucks should also be banned from this road…and a lower speed limit imposed…but…please leave it alone. Fix the bank, bann truck traffic, but leave this beautifull road alone.
Go Dagger !
I drive through route 24 through Rocks State Park many times during the week. I think that the road should be fixed but it should not be widened. This is a park not an interstate. If you open it up more than people will see this as a reason to go faster. To the response about lowering the speed limit, its already 25 I believe that is quite low enough. This road is still a connecting road for those of us living north of the park. There has to be some erosion prevention method for the bank but blasting the rocks shouldn’t be done.
Lorrie…I think we are saying the same thing…and yes, 25 is slow enough.
I have seen concrete pads for the exact porpose of erosion controll in flowing waters. They consist of semi trailer size matts of concrete blocks the size of large pavers tied together with a strong nylon chordage. I have delivered them to progects all over the northeast for progects just like this…and almost always in scenic areas where the banks have eroded , putting scenic or heritage based interests in danger.
Go Dagger ! !
RichieC, that would definently bean idea, my father had a project done on his farm where they used something like that for a stream crossing. There are also natural ways to help with the erosion that might be a possibility such as planting more trees so their root systems will help hold the banks together. I think the major cause of the erosion has been the large amounts of rainfall that we have had in the last few years that have put tremendous pressure on the banks in the rocks. I don’t know if there is a way to possibly slow the water down a bit before it gets into the particular area. But I really do hesitate to allow them to blast through any of the rocks. The rocks can not be put back together once they are blown apart. And also would blasting them leave some unsteady? Then you would have to worry about falling rocks. I would really hate to see this beautiful resource destroyed everytime I drive through I marvel at the beauty of nature.
Lorrie…this will be sad if done as they describe above…and yes…its not an interstate.
Go Dagger !
For those interested, the Maryland State Highway Administration is holding a public informational meeting tomorrow (Tuesday, Dec. 8th) from 5:30-7:30pm at North Harford High School regarding this MD 24 (Rocks Road) Slope Protection Project.
“The purpose of the meeting is to acquaint the public with the progress of the project to date. Displays and mapping depicting the planned improvements will be available for viewing. Citizens will be invited to present comments to the project team. Project representatives will be available throughout the meeting to explain the improvements and their associated impacts, discuss points of interest, and record public comments.”
http://www.marylandroads.com/Pages/CalendarDetails.aspx?EventId=18
Widening roads=faster driving cars. Narrowing roads=slower driving cars…traffic calming. Faster cars=more accidents, more road kill, potential life-threatening situations for hikers. Traffic engineers are trained to do one thing: move people from point A to point B faster and more efficiently, but this is NOT a good idea. Is this truly a safety issue for motorists, or an excuse to widen a road? Reroute the road, make this part of rt. 24 for hikers/cyclists/other.