I have two proposals for improvements to Ten-Ten Road, a local arterial stroad in Apex, North Carolina and its surrounding communities.

Sidewalks

The first thing, and maybe the simplest, is to add a connected sidewalk down one side of the entire road, from Salem St in Apex, where SR 1010 takes on the name Center St, to Benson Rd, aka NC 50.

For this to work, each traffic light controlled intersection along Ten-Ten would need to gain controlled pedestrian crossings and "beg buttons." Also, at the entrance to a neighborhood on the opposite side, painted crosswalks should be added.

If only one side of the road has these sidewalks, then later down the line, if demand is shown, we can add a multi-use path or separated two-way bike road to the other side.

This would better connect southern Wake County, and make those who already walk and bike down this road much safer.

Ten-Ten, Bells Lake, and Graham Newton

The intersection of Ten-Ten Road, Bells Lake Road, and Graham Newton Road is prone to collisions (and near-misses) due to its narrow angle. Now, with NC 540 Exit 47 coming off of Bells Lake, there's an even higher risk of collisions, including people unfamiliar with this intersection and its not-so-obvious danger.

While there are numerous possible enhancements to this, including adding turn lanes or converting the intersection into a roundabout, I propose converting the intersection into two: Ten-Ten and Graham Newton, and Ten-Ten and Bells Lake.

They should both intersect close to 90 degrees with Ten-Ten. They should not connect directly to each other, so going from either Graham Newton or Bells Lake onto the other would require making a left turn, then a right turn. This is done to reduce the risk of collisions in this area.

From the perspective of someone arriving at the intersection from either Graham Newton and Bells Lake, they would be offered a left and right turn lane, maybe with a flashing yellow light controlling the right turn.

Someone arriving at the intersection on Ten-Ten westbound (from the Citgo gas station or 401) would first arrive at the intersection with Bells Lake. They would have a left-or-forward lane and a forward lane which splits from the left-or-forward lane near the intersection. They would be controlled by a "doghouse" light, which sometimes protects the left turn. If they do not turn left here, they will be offered a forward lane and a right-only lane at the intersection with Graham Newton, where they will not have a traffic light. Someone arriving on Ten-Ten eastbound (from West Lake and Middle Creek schools or Fairview Baptist Church) would have a similar experience.

A rough visual example of this intersection:

• This illustration was not based on measurements, so things like lane sizes are inaccurate.
• The traffic lights are placed on the cable directly opposite each stop line. The cables are illustrated to remind you that there is not a second stop when taking the intersection down Ten-Ten.
• I think I probably should have marked the Ten-Ten yellow line as solid but I'm not going back to fix it now.

The light phases might include:

• Ten-Ten eastbound and westbound have green lights.
  • This is the "default" phase.
• Bells Lake and Graham Newton have green lights.
  • If there is light traffic on either road, this phase should activate.
• All red.
  • This phase should happen between the previous two phases, and after the "Protected turn phase".
  • After the "Ten-Ten" phase, this should last a little while longer to allow vehicles to fully clear the intersection.
  • There should not be an "All red" phase between the "Only" phases and the "Bells Lake and Graham Newton" phase.
• Only Bells Lake has a green light.
  • The "flashing yellow" right turn signal should also be green.
  • The next phase should be "Bells Lake and Graham Newton", unless there is no more traffic on either road.
  • This phase is used when there is medium or heavy traffic waiting on Bells Lake Road. It should be placed after the "Ten-Ten" phase, and only when Graham Newton does not have medium or heavy traffic.
• Only Graham Newton has a green light.
  • The "flashing yellow" right turn signal should also be green.
  • The next phase should be "Bells Lake and Graham Newton", unless there is no more traffic on either road.
  • This phase is used when there is medium or heavy traffic waiting on Graham Newton Road. It should be placed after the "Ten-Ten" phase, and only when Bells Lake does not have medium or heavy traffic.
• Protected turn phase:
  • Ten-Ten eastbound and westbound have red lights but green left turn lights (protected left turn).
  • Graham Newton and Bells Lake should have a green right turn light (protected right turn).
  • This phase should only be triggered if there is traffic waiting in the a left turn lane on Ten-Ten. In that case, it should happen after "Bells Lake and Graham Newton" before it cycles back to "Ten-Ten".

This solution is superior to simpler solutions because:

• Roundabouts are intended as a traffic calming device, and one is not needed here.
• A roundabout would take up more space.
• Adding lanes is not enough to reduce the risk of collisions at this intersection. The angle of the intersection must be increased, and other means of increasing the angle take up too much space.
• A second light at a double intersection like this confuses drivers and serves no real purpose.