Project Overview & History

Midtown Transportation Overview and History

The Seward Highway divides the Midtown area and is challenging for vehicles and non-motorized traffic to cross from the residential/business area on the east, to the commercial area on the west. The Seward Highway intersections in Midtown are high-volume, wide intersections that have some of the longest delays and highest crash rates in the State. Recent traffic studies anticipate that Seward Highway volumes will roughly double in the next 20 to 30 years. Without significant improvements, increased safety and congestion issues on Seward Highway will make Midtown mobility even more problematic and will potentially impact the quality of life for local residents and businesses.

DOT&PF has undertaken two prior efforts (e.g. Highway to Highway and 36th Avenue Interchange) to solve these issues. Ultimately, both projects were unsuccessful due to a variety of environmental, funding, and community concerns. Neither project advanced to construction, but the safety and congestion issues in Midtown persist.

MCR is a new initiative to collaborate with the community to:

• Determine the vision for mobility in Midtown Anchorage.
• Identify the projects that are needed to achieve that vision.
• Implement the highest priority projects.

What Are The Issues?

We want to make it easier to get across or through the busy Seward Highway intersections between Tudor Road and 20th Ave. Whether you're walking, biking, driving, or in a wheelchair; it can be difficult to navigate Midtown, especially for those who desire to get between the neighborhood on the east side of the Highway and the businesses on the west side of the Highway. This project will evaluate multi-modal mobility in the Midtown area and improve the connections, accessibility, and convenience for all users. We're also evaluating congestion on the Seward Highway and at the intersections with major cross-streets between Tudor Road and 20th Avenue. We anticipate that most (if not all) of these intersections will be reconstructed as part of the overall improvements.

Focus intersections include:

• Tudor Road
• 36th Avenue
• Benson Boulevard
• Northern Lights Boulevard
• Fireweed Lane

Key questions:

• What do these improvements look like?
• Which improvements are the highest priority?

We want to hear from you about your experiences and observations in Midtown.