Skip to content
Department of Transportation & Public Facilities Logo
Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities

CENTRAL REGION

Knik-Goose Bay Road: Vine Road to Settlers Bay Drive

 

What's New!

Phase 1 – Fairview Loop to Centaur Avenue is in winter shutdown.
For construction updates please visit Alaska Navigator or call the project hotline (907) 373-0061.


Construction of this project is being combined with the KGB: Centaur Avenue to Vine Road project and split into two phases. The segment from Centaur Avenue to Fairview Loop (Phase 1) is currently under construction. Construction on the Fairview Loop to Settlers Bay Drive segment (Phase 2) is anticipated to start in 2025. This phasing plan will provide the greatest benefit to the most users, improve the highest volume segment first, and expedite project delivery.

Project Overview

The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities’ (DOT&PF) Knik-Goose Bay (KGB) Road: Vine Road to Settlers Bay Drive project proposes to reconstruct KGB Road from Commadore Lane to Settlers Bay Drive. The objective of this project is to reconstruct the existing two-lane road as a four-lane divided roadway that includes pedestrian facilities, turn pockets, access control, traffic signals, drainage, and other related improvements.

 

Project Status

The project design is approximately 75% complete. The project team is reviewing the proposed design based on updated traffic projections to determine if any modifications to the proposed design are needed. The team is also further evaluating drainage issues in the corridor based on public comments regarding ponding in the corridor and erosion issues resulting from concentrated areas of runoff. The team will continue to coordinate with the adjacent KGB Road: Vine Road to Centaur Avenue project to develop an efficient design for the overall KGB corridor that minimizes traffic disruptions during construction. The next steps include completing the hydrology and traffic analyses, refining the engineering plans, continuing to gather public input, working with utility companies to relocate any facilities that are impacted, and appraising and acquiring additional right-of-way that is needed for the project.

Project Goals

The two primary goals of this project are to increase capacity and improve safety. The corridor currently experiences congestion, poor performance, and high collision rates, particularly during peak hours, due to limited capacity and a high density of driveway access. Congestion issues are only expected to increase, spurred by development along KGB Road, future land development in the Point MacKenzie area, and large anticipated population growth in the Matanuska-Susitna Valley.

This project will address capacity issues by:

  • Adding travel lanes;
  • Limiting access to maximize the through capacity and minimize conflicts in the corridor; and
  • Improving intersection control, such as auxiliary lanes, signal location, and signal progression.

Safety issues will be addressed in this project by considering:

  • Medians and widened shoulders;
  • Additional and redesigned pedestrian facilities; and
  • Access control by reducing the number of driveways and approaches that access KGB.

Typical Section

Click image below for larger view of the Typical Section

Project Purpose and Need

Purpose

  • Improve safety
  • Reduce congestion
  • Enhance access management
  • Increase travel efficiency

Need

  • Reduce high severity crash rates along the corridor, particularly head-on collisions, and reduce overall crash rates along the corridor for vehicles and roadway users.
  • Reduce congestion for users and reduce delay at signalized and unsignalized intersections.
  • Decrease travel time for users along the corridor. Safely and efficiently accommodate mobility for longer trips and accessibility to adjacent land and local streets.

Project Area Background

This section of roadway has a mix of industrial, commercial, and residential uses and is identified by DOT&PF as a principal arterial, which means it is intended to increase traffic flow with fewer disruptions by limiting access points and ultimately increasing safety. In 2009, this roadway was designated by DOT&PF as a Traffic Safety Corridor due to a fatal and major injury accident rate that was 3.8 times the national average. There are undeveloped sections of land along this road section; and future land development is anticipated to increase use of the road corridor.

Potential right-of-way (ROW) acquisitions, utility conflicts, and ongoing drainage issues have been identified. The project team will develop a NEPA-compliant environmental document, a Design Study Report (DSR), and bid-ready documents (known as Plans, Specifications, and Estimates [PS&E]). See the Schedule and Public Involvement pages for details on the timeline of this project.