SYCAMORE TOWNSHIP, Ohio — Shopping at the Kenwood Towne Center is as simple as swiping a credit card. Navigating the traffic backups to do so isn’t always as easy.
For years, local leaders have been searching for solutions to congestion around the region’s biggest shopping destination.
The thinking is simple: Kenwood is one of the largest economic drivers in Hamilton County. Not all malls survive in today’s online marketplace. Thus, make the experience as easy and seamless as possible.
Sycamore Township and Hamilton County joined together in late 2023 to implement a Kenwood Area Transportation Planning Study.
In the past few weeks, the study’s steering committee has had public listening sessions:
“The success of the Kenwood area strains the current transportation systems and calls for improvements throughout Kenwood Road and Montgomery Road area. There is no single fix that can address these unique transportation issues, so multiple solutions are needed to help ensure the continued success of the Kenwood area,” the introduction handout states.
To be clear, the study is the beginning of a very long process. Sycamore Township trustees will need to figure out which ideas will be the most effective at their various price points.
A final draft is expected to be presented to the Regional Planning Commission in March 2025. Some of the proposed ideas could take 10-15 years to implement.
The study lists four key objectives:
- Alleviate Traffic Pressure at Kenwood and Montgomery Road.
- Improve Traffic Flow by simplifying driver decision points.
- Improve Pedestrian Access throughout the area.
- Relocate Bus Stops to improve traffic flow in the area.
Watch some of the highlights of the study’s ideas:
20 different improvement ideas were generated among the four key objectives.
- Alleviate Traffic Pressure
- A: Study an additional turn lane from southbound Kenwood Road onto Montgomery Road.
- B: Study future connection upon redevelopment of Kenwood and Montgomery Road intersection.
- C: Study future connection upon future redevelopment.
- D: Evaluate traffic at Starbucks/McDonald’s area. E: Study future connection to American Way.
- F: Study the feasibility of a southbound I-71 exit onto Kenwood Road.
- Improve Traffic Flow
- A: Improve traffic flow from Kenwood Road into the Kenwood Towne Centre near parking garage.
- B: Work with wayfinding apps to direct traffic to the rear of the Kenwood Towne Centre.
- C: Improve signage to indicate parking availability. D: Improve gateway feature and area identification. E: Analyze South I-71 exit onto Montgomery Road. F: Roundabout at Kenwood Road and I-71.
- Improve Pedestrian Access
- A: Improve existing crosswalks to ensure safety.
- B: Improve existing access and opportunities to walk in the area.
- C: Improve existing connection from Aspire to Kenwood Towne Centre.
- D: Improve existing access from hospital to employee parking.
- E: Add sidewalks to Orchard Lane.
- F: Add pedestrian connection from Frolic Dr. to Kenwood Rd. on the south side of Galbraith.
- Relocate Bus Stops
- A: Relocate the Kenwood Road bus stop north to the Towne Centre entrance.
- B: Relocate the Montgomery Road bus stop east past the Kenwood Square entrance.
View the public documents for each idea in the embed below:
Each idea was plotted on a cost-impact matrix.
Hamilton County Assistant Director of Planning and Development Steve Johns said determining what ideas are actually implemented is going to take future study and additional funds.
“There was definitely some good low-hanging fruit, just simple things like moving a bus stop away from a busy intersection, adding a sidewalk where there wasn’t a sidewalk connection,” Johns said.
Some of the more complex ideas, such as an additional interchange from I-71, are good to have on paper, Johns said. That’s in case the federal government offers funding for infrastructure projects that qualify.
“The wheels of government are turning,” Johns said. “The township is going to consider this plan. We’ve gotten good feedback from the community. We start to identify funding sources to actually make it happen.”
Some of the ideas don’t require many funding sources to implement.
For example, the study found most navigation apps bring users to the front side of the mall on the southern side. It’s usually the side that has less parking and more traffic.
“My recommendation would be until we get some of these things in motion, head for the back of the mall,” Johns said.
Other technological fixes could include electronic indicators that show available parking spaces.
“You want some traffic. You want to be in a growing place, but you need to figure out ways to make that not horrible, right?”
To view study documents and submit comments in an online form, click here.
This story was initially reported by a journalist and has been, in part, converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
