Planning Studio Recommends Improvements for Redding Road Project

A major road in Upper Arlington may be improved through the work of Knowlton School planning faculty and students.

Planning Studio Recommends Improvements for Redding Road Project

Improvements to Redding Road, a major “through-road” that connects north and south Upper Arlington, may include ideas generated by Knowlton School planning students. On September 21, Knowlton planning faculty Chad Gibson and students in his CRP 4900 Studio presented recommendations to the Upper Arlington City Council.

This studio project was organized in late 2019 after the Upper Arlington Ten-Year Capital Improvements Plan was unanimously approved by City Council. Redding Road, a four-lane residential collector street, was included in this plan for resurfacing in 2024. With its unnecessary width and chronic speeding, an opportunity was identified to perform stakeholder outreach that could inform the road’s redesign.

Redding Road Crosswalk

Gibson organized his 2020 spring semester studio around the Redding Road project. Students completed research and identified case studies on successful road reconfigurations. Students gathered input from experts in related fields, conducted site visits, distributed parking surveys, and performed outreach through studies and an open house in February.

As the studio completed its research, preliminary findings were presented to Public Service Director and City Engineer Jackie Thiel, P.E., and then summarized in a final presentation to Upper Arlington City Staff via Zoom on April 28. At the conclusion of the studio, students produced a summary document, “Redding Road Redesign” with guidance from Thiel and transportation professionals John Gallagher, P.T.O.E. of CHA Consulting and Assistant City Engineer Kyle Hoyng, P.E.

The studio recommended that the city

  • add pedestrian-activated crosswalks with enhanced safety features at both the Redding Road/Edington Road and Redding Road/Northam Road intersections;
  • reduce the number of lanes from four to three, with a center turn lane, one “through” lane in each direction, as well as on-street parking and a dedicated bike lane on the west side of the street only (no on-street parking on the east side);
  • add five-foot sidewalks along both sides of Redding Road between Dorset and Northam Roads (where there currently are none);
  • add a five-foot sidewalk along the east side of Redding Road between Northam and Canterbury Roads (across from Fountain Park where there currently is none); and
  • repair or replace existing narrow sidewalks that are damaged or do not meet current ADA accessibility guidelines.
Redding Road alternative plan for improvement