Sitting in traffic on Route 1 around the Christiana Mall is often the norm for many drivers.
But DelDOT is looking for ways to change that.
Delaware’s Department of Transportation is examining options to alleviate back-ups on Route 1 in New Castle County just south of the Christiana Mall.
“The corridor on Route 1 between Christiana Mall and Tybouts Corner continues to be the most heavily trafficked road that is not part of the interstate highway system in the State of Delaware," said DelDOT’s director of community relations C.R. McLeod. "So we continue to see significant traffic volumes there and significant congestion during peak travel times.”
McLeod says there’s a virtual workshop on the agency's website through November 26, 2021seeking feedback on several proposals to help alleviate that congestion and improve traffic flow.
One proposal would add a third lane on Route 1 south of the Route 13 merge - that would mirror a just completed project that added a third lane to north and southbound Route 1 between Routes 40 and 273.
McLeod says DelDOT is also looking at adding an exit midway between Routes 273 and 40 to help traffic get directly onto Route 7, which leads to Christiana Mall.
“We have a number of ideas that we’ve actually put into this presentation," McLeod said. "And those include the possibility of adding a new exit ramp off of the current Route 1 stretch there that would connect directly to Route 7 - just in between Route 40 and Route 273.”
McLeod says the southbound exit off of Route 273 is where much of the heavier traffic is seen.
He adds that DelDOT is also looking at reconfiguring the entire Route 273 interchange.
McLeod notes no project would start until at least 2022 at an estimated cost of $100- to $200 million.
