Construction has begun to eliminate the last traffic light on Route 1 between Dover and Nassau. (Ken Mammarella photo)
An overpass now under construction near Milton will eliminate the last traffic light on Route 1 between Dover and Nassau.
When the interchange with Route 16 (also called Broadkill Road) is expected to be completed in late 2025, Route 1 should be able to more safely handle more traffic.
The work is part of the Corridor Capacity Preservation Program, piloted in 1991 on that 31-mile stretch from the southern end of the toll portion of Route 1 (also called the Relief Route) to the bridge at Nassau that thematically defines the northern end of Delaware’s beaches.
The $40 million project is also part of the Delaware Department of Transportation Hazard Elimination Program.
This is DelDOT’s plan for a new interchange between Routes 1 and 16. (DelDOT photo)
It includes elevating Route 1 over Route 16 with new dual bridges, entrance/exit ramps to and from Route 16, turn lanes on Route 16 at the ramp intersections, realignment of the intersection at Route 1 and Deep Branch Road, construction of stormwater management facilities and roadside swales and installation of lighting.
“Since 2009, we have completed seven grade-separated interchanges along Route 1 south of Dover,” Secretary of Transportation Nicole Majeski said, “and this project is another step in our work to limit the number of access points where vehicles enter and exit the highway to improve safety and reduce congestion.”
Congestion, though, is still a much-discussed issue on Route 1 from Nassau down to Rehoboth Beach. A sign just south of Nassau notes there are 13 traffic lights in the next five miles, heading south.
DelDOT this fall will rework the turning lanes for Old Landing Road. (DelDOT photo)
One of those lights is at Old Landing Road. DelDOT’s Coastal Highway Intersection Improvements page calls for extending the southbound Route 1 U-turn at Old Landing by converting the existing double left-turn lanes at Rehoboth Mall Boulevard into one left turn lane. Construction is expected to start in September, with completion at the end of November.
The portal has a broader name because two other locations were previously included: a new U-turn lane at Route 1/Route 9 and a modified island to reduce speeds on Route 1 northbound at Kings Highway, the page says. “Those other projects will now be pursued separately.”
DelDOT also lists multiple intersections it’s watching in its Delaware Strategic Highway Safety Plan. Designs are underwayfor three Route 1 intersections in South Bethany – at Layton Drive, Evergreen Road and York Road/Logan Street – to get signal rebuilds and flashing red arrows.
Some DelDOT projects to improve Route 1 involve intersections that don’t have traffic lights.
DelDOT plans to rework the Route 1 intersection with Minos Conaway Road. (DelDOT photo)
For instance, there’s a plan for a bridge at the intersection with Minos Conaway Road, just north of the Nassau bridge.
The DelDOT page calls for a grade-separated intersection to separate through movements along Route 1 and turning movements to and from Minos Conaway Road, Nassau Road and Old Mill Road. A shared-use path would also be constructed for pedestrians and bicyclists. DelDOT is now designing the project and acquiring right of way, with work expected to start in 2024 and finish in 2026.
The Route 1 corridor has its own portal, and all the current projects are on the limited-access part.
The most noticeable improvements on Route 1 between Dover and Nassau have been overpasses replacing traffic signals, but DelDOT has also improved safety and flow by removing nearby crossovers, which sends traffic to the safer overpasses.
