Maryland, Monroe & MLK Safety Improvement Study

Anyone who has tried to get into the City of Wilmington from I-95 north during their morning commute knows that the intersection of Maryland Avenue and Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard can be a difficult to navigate. Frequent congestion of the intersection during the morning commute often causes traffic backups onto the exit ramp and extending onto the highway.

Nearly ten years ago, the Wilmington Initiatives Partners (WILMAPCO, DelDOT, City of Wilmington) began developing concepts to improve the intersection, which is a conversion of 5 road segments and a key gateway into and out of Wilmington’s Riverfront. This study will pick up where other’s left off and designed to create a comprehensive plan that will alleviate congestion at the 5 point intersection of MLK Blvd, Maryland Ave and S Madison St. It will also improve the safety of the area for all modes of transportation, while not having a negative impact on the operations of DTC, Delmarva Power, and other stakeholders in the area.

Whats New

The Final Report (11 MB) is now available. The report was endorsed by the WILMAPCO Council on January 14, 2021.

If you would like to view the elements of the report separately, or require a smaller file size, please use the links below:

• Final Report without Appendices (2.5 MB)
• Appendix A PEL Checklist (87 KB)
• Appendix B DTC Tech Memo (1.7 MB)
• Appendix C Public Outreach (4.1 MB)
• Appendix D Alternatives (8.7 MB)
• Appendix E Cost Estimates (119 KB)

Stakeholders Meeting, November 5, 2020
The Project team brought the stakeholders together to review the options created for the Phase II DTC Monroe Street Feasibility Study/Master Plan and discuss ideas, impacts and concerns.

• 11/5/20  Stakeholder Meeting Presentation (PDF)
• Planning and Environmental Linkages (PEL) Summary

Wilmington Initiatives (Project Management Committee) Meeting, March 25, 2020

• 3/25 Meeting Notes

Wilmington Initiatives (Project Management Committee) Meeting, January 15, 2020
The project team presented the Alternatives to the PMC:, none of these Alternatives score high enough on all criteria to be a final preferred option without additional considerations. An option to build structured parking for the major area tenants that can also house DTC’s bus parking and maintenance has been developed (See attachment).

The project team completed the first phase of the study at this WI meeting, with the PMC selecting Alternative A as the preferred option, with the caveat that the garage feasibility study must be completed to confirm the final solution. WILMAPCO has funded this feasibility study ($36,000) to explore options for the necessary garage/Operations center. The first meeting for this phase will be a site visit at DTC’s Operations Center on Feb 26, 2020.

• Garage Concept
• Selection Criteria Matrix
• Alternative “A” (Preferred)
• Alternative “A” with Parking
• Alternative “B”
• Alternative “C”
• Alternative “D”

Stakeholder Kickoff Meeting , May 20, 2019

• Kickoff Meeting Summary
• Kickoff Meeting Presentation

Project Goals

The goal of the project is to evaluate and recommend roadway and infrastructure improvements to address safety issues in the vicinity of Maryland Avenue, S. Madison Street, Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and West Street to improve the efficiency of the transportation grid which serves downtown Wilmington, the Christina Riverfront, local neighborhoods and regional interests. The study will address necessary safety and capacity improvements, optimize circulation and access, and provide walking and biking connectivity at and around the 5-Point Intersection. The study limits also include Beech and Monroe Streets, Delmarva Power parking lots, the DTC Bus Operations Center, and I-95 access points.