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Olde Towne Gaithersburg South Summit Avenue Streetscape, Gaithersburg, Maryland

AMT provided design services for improvements to an urban, arterial road that runs through the City of Gaithersburg. Design tasks included planning and geometrics for on street parking, utility coordination to underground duct banks, streetscape features, improved sidewalks to meet ADA compliance and facilitate pedestrian movements, adequate signing and striping and a maintenance of traffic plan that would not hinder traffic during construction.

Design standards included the following:

Traffic Engineering/Intersection Design: The intersection of Summit Avenue with MD 355 required coordination with SHA for access and modifications to the intersection. Careful consideration in design was required for the turning movements of large vehicles onto MD 355. This involved using Autoturn to test truck turning patterns to determine the proper placement of the curb radius and the channelizing island.

Street Design/Geometrics: The horizontal alignments stayed within the existing centerline of road. Elevations were based on overlaying and wedge and level of pavement to produce a smooth pavement with adequate slope for drainage. Thru lanes were narrowed to accommodate on street parking and to slow down vehicle speeds.

Drainage Design: This project followed Maryland SHA Design standards for drainage calculations. Inlets were relocated or reconstructed. Inlet top slabs were redesigned to match proposed brick paver sidewalks.

Utility Coordination: The relocation of existing utilities was a major consideration in this project. Part of the streetscape included placing all electric and telephone and cable lines underground and removing existing utility poles. This also included the consideration of underground vaults and, because of the limited right of way, these vaults were placed under center islands that were placed to channelize traffic. Existing underground gas mains and valves were carefully surveyed and plotted and reviewed with the local Gas company to assure no impacts would occur during construction.

Right-of-Way: The project was designed within the existing right-of-way lines. Temporary construction easements were obtained from property owners where needed. Sidewalk grading was designed to tie into existing elevations at the back edge so as not to extend beyond the right-of-way limits.

Maintenance of Traffic: The Maintenance of Traffic plan was complicated by the narrow lane widths; the undergrounding of utilities that crossed several lanes of traffic; and the location of a private school that needed sidewalk access at all times and a drop off and pick up location for the students. This was partly accomplished by separating the project into two construction components. One component being the utility relocations and the other component the streetscape and road work.

Landscape Design and Features: Part of the streetscape design included features for traffic calming and improved and safe pedestrian movement. The roadway was landscaped with street trees bordering the curb line and each island was landscaped for easy maintenance and aesthetics.

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