Improved Interchange at I-71 and U.S. 36/SR 37 and Proposed Sunbury Parkway
Improved Interchange at I-71 and U.S. 36/SR 37 and Proposed Sunbury Parkway
THANK YOU FOR VISITING!
The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) is engaging Delaware County, Berkshire and Berlin townships, and the City of Sunbury to update studies of improvements for the United States Route (U.S.) 36 and State Route (SR) 37 interchange with Interstate 71 (I-71). Public involvement is an important part of project development and input received will help guide the decisions we make. ODOT has created this website to serve as a resource to share information about the project and gather public feedback regarding the revised Feasibility Study and the re-evaluation of the Environmental Assessment.
HOW THIS WEBSITE WORKS
This site is a self-guided tour through a series of tabs highlighting key information about this project and alternatives being considered. Begin by reviewing the OVERVIEW discussion in the section below. To advance between tabs, click on the green CONTINUE button located at the bottom of the page - or - use the scroll bar beneath each tab. If you would like to view larger versions of any of the graphics, simply click on the image. Copies of project materials are posted under the DOCUMENTS section, located on the right-hand side of the screen.
Please go to the "Comment Here!" tab to submit your comments on this project.
Project Overview
The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) is engaging Delaware County, Berkshire and Berlin townships, and the City of Sunbury to update studies for improvements of the United States Route (U.S.) 36 and State Route (SR) 37 interchange with Interstate 71 (I-71). The studies consider alignments for the following key improvements.
- Construct a combined interchange that meets the capacity needs of I-71 and U.S. 36/SR 37. A second I-71 connection to the south would provide access to a new east-west roadway, Sunbury Parkway.
- Construct a new 4.3 mile east-west roadway, to be named Sunbury Parkway, from Africa Road at U.S. 36/SR 37 east to W. Cherry Street in the city of Sunbury.
- Extend Wilson Road south to the proposed Sunbury Parkway.
You may recall that ODOT held public meetings on this project in 2016. At that time, private funds were committed to construct the eastern section of Sunbury Parkway, from Wilson Road to W. Cherry Street. Wilson Road was also to be extended using private funds. However, these committed improvements were not constructed as anticipated. ODOT now intends to advance the entire project and is evaluating the best alignment for Sunbury Parkway – which requires the previous studies to be revisited and additional public involvement.
Public Involvement: In June 2023 ODOT hosted multiple public meetings for this project. See the Public Meeting tab for more information, including ODOT’s responses to frequently asked questions. You can also download the ODOT Summary of all Comments and Responses from the Documents Section. General public feedback supported the Recommended Preferred Alternative that was presented during the public meetings (see Preferred Alternative map, below). This is the Green Alternative to the west and the Southern (yellow) Alternative to the east.
Re-evaluation of the Environmental Assessment: A re-evaluation of the Environmental Assessment (EA) has been prepared for the Improved Interchange at I-71 and U.S. 36/SR 37 and Proposed Sunbury Parkway project. The EA Re-evaluation can be downloaded from the Documents Section. The draft EA Re-evaluation was made available for public comments during the month of October, 2024. A Summary of Comments and Responses from the EA public outreach is available for download in the Documents Section.
The EA Reevaluation summarizes the following:
- Purpose and need for the proposed improvements
- Alternative designs that were considered and comparisons of potential impacts to the natural and human environments
- Records of coordination with the public and with tribes and other government agencies
- Commitments related to the Preferred Alternative to mitigate anticipated impacts to the natural and human environments
Preferred Alternative Map (click the image to enlarge)
PID 90200