Rock City releases independent traffic study amid the Gondola controversy

Road work | MGN

Rock City has released their independent traffic assessment as the gondola system sparked debate across the city.

The 190-page report covers the impact of redirecting traffic currently arriving at Rock City on top of Lookout Mountain, to a 20-acre site located from Chattanooga Valley Road in Walker County, Georgia.

Their assessment showed that Ochs Highway will experience a reduction as traffic will no longer travel to the top of the mountain.

They say the traffic count will be reduced by 2800 trips on peak days.

At the base of the mountain, trips will be redistributed to St. Elmo Avenue growing by 1680 trips on an average weekday. The increased number of trips will primarily occur between the midday hours of 11 a.m. to 4 p.m, the report says.

They say it is estimated that St. Elmo Avenue will operate at a similar level of service compared to existing conditions. Based on guidelines prepared by the Florida Department of Transportation, it is estimated that approximately 25% of available capacity will still exist on St. Elmo Ave, south of Ochs Ave, after the relocation of the parking facility.

The report says traffic is also anticipated to be redistributed onto Battlefield Parkway as trips from North Georgia and East Tennessee reroute to avoid congestion on I-24 and local roads.  Growing by 842 trips on an average weekday, most of the trips will occur during mid-day hours.

“As we plan for the future, we want to carefully consider the best options not only for our business but also for our community. We relied heavily on the expertise of one of the best traffic engineering firms in the country to provide us with detailed factual information regarding traffic impacts from the project.”

– Doug Chapin, President and CEO of Rock City Enterprises said.

The traffic assessment study may be found here and is also posted to the Rock City Enterprises website.