B&N worked with the City of Hilliard, Ohio, and the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) to prepare a Feasibility Study following the NEPA process. The study identified and assessed potential connections through the Cemetery Road and I-270 interchange area. These connections included a separated shared-use path along the north and south sides of the corridor, including at-grade and grade-separated crossings of the existing freeway ramps and a separate bicycle/pedestrian structure over I-270.
This segment of Cemetery Road has seen increased vehicular traffic and crashes, along with mixed-use private developments that can produce additional pedestrian and bicycle traffic if adequate facilities are unavailable.
Evaluations of the proposed alternatives considered the directness of the route, safety performance, traffic operations and pedestrian comfort, in addition to right-of-way and utility impacts, cost and environmental impacts. The identified preferred alternative followed the southern side of Cemetery Road. It included a grade-separated tunnel at the eastbound Cemetery Road to the Southbound I-270 entrance ramp, keeping pedestrians and bicyclists separated from free-flow ramp traffic.
The City of Hilliard led online public engagement with assistance from B&N, collecting over 400 comments that confirmed residents were interested in bicycle and pedestrian facilities to move through the corridor for recreation, reach commercial destinations for shopping or work and visit relatives or friends in the area. B&N prepared two separate funding applications for this project: MORPC Transportation Alternatives funding and the Safe Streets for All federal grant. Both grants considered economic impacts and opportunities and equity elements such as improving connectivity for households with people of color, one- or no-car households and households with elderly individuals.
The safety and MORPC funding applications were successful, and the City was awarded the entire construction estimate in Transportation Alternatives and Safety funding.
B&N has begun the design phase of this project, which is expected to be completed in 2027.