Central Ohio Matters
Central Ohio Matters is a podcast where host Michelle Gatchell discusses the issues shaping Central Ohio's future. Each episode features in-depth conversations with local leaders, visionaries, and changemakers driving progress in Central Ohio. These conversations provide insights into the challenges facing our communities and the solutions being developed to move them forward.
Central Ohio Matters covers government policies, healthcare challenges, housing and business developments, transportation solutions, education, and innovation. It is your guide to understanding and engaging with the pulse of Central Ohio.
You can listen to Central Ohio Matters on WVXG 95.1 FM (Marion and Morrow Counties) and WDLR 96.7 FM, 1270 AM (Delaware, Franklin, Marion, and Union Counties).
Also, find it on your favorite podcast streaming sites.
Central Ohio Matters
Navigating Ohio's Highways: A Conversation with ODOT Press Secretary Matt Bruning
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Every day, millions of Ohioans travel across thousands of miles of roadway without giving much thought to the complex systems keeping them safe. That changes the moment we see those dreaded orange barrels or "Road Work Ahead" signs. What happens behind those barriers? How are decisions made about which roads get fixed and when?
Matt Bruning, Press Secretary for the Ohio Department of Transportation, pulls back the curtain on the state's transportation infrastructure in this revealing conversation. From the strategic redesign of Columbus's notorious I-70/71 split (home to several of Ohio's most dangerous crash locations) to the science behind winter road treatments, Bruning offers fascinating insights into how ODOT works to keep traffic flowing safely across the Buckeye State.
Topics Include:
• The Downtown Columbus I-70/71 split project aims to reduce crashes by eliminating dangerous lane crossings
• Worker safety remains critical, with 58 ODOT crews hit so far this year compared to 84 in all of last year. The Move Over law requires drivers to change lanes or slow down when approaching vehicles with flashing lights. Bruning reminds us - "When you see road workers, remember they're real people with families waiting for them at home. Move over, slow down, and give them room to work safely."
• Infrastructure funding faces long-term challenges as fuel-efficient vehicles reduce gas tax revenue despite increased traffic. The federal gas tax hasn't increased since 1993, creating funding challenges as costs rise.
• Roundabouts significantly improve intersection safety despite public resistance. Center landscaping in roundabouts strategically forces drivers to look left at yielding traffic.
• Projects across Ohio include US 33 upgrades in Athens County and studying a potential Route 23 bypass in Delaware County.
Whether you're curious about major projects transforming Ohio's transportation landscape or simply want to understand why that pothole on your commute hasn't been fixed yet, this episode delivers valuable insights about the roads connecting our communities. Follow ODOT at transportationohio.gov for project updates, construction guides, and to report road issues in your area.
Introduction to Central Ohio Matters
Speaker 1Welcome to Central Ohio Matters, the podcast where we delve into the issues that shape Central Ohio's future. Each episode features in-depth conversations with local leaders, visionaries and changemakers driving progress in our region. These conversations offer insights into the challenges our communities face and the solutions being crafted to move them forward. Here are your hosts, michelle Gatchel and Ryan Rivers.
Speaker 2Welcome everybody. I am here with my co-host, Ryan Rivers, and we have a great episode. We're going to be talking about roads in Ohio and you know we all use them every day, those of us that drive and you know you really don't even think about it until there's one of those orange signs that says roadwork ahead and you're like, ah, now where am I going to go? So, ryan, our guest today is Matt Bruning. He is the press secretary for the Ohio Department of Transportation. Matt, thanks for joining us.
Speaker 3Thank you for the invite. Appreciate the time.
Speaker 2You know it used to be. You saw orange barrels everywhere, but I've noticed a lot more of these signs that say road work ahead and not so many orange barrels, those little orange pylons. Have you guys done away with the orange barrels?
Speaker 3Oh no, there are plenty of orange barrels in Ohio, don't you worry. There's no shortage of those, that's for sure. The smaller cones we call them grabber cones that you probably are referring to, are more for short term maintenance projects, where we may be filling potholes or doing, you know, ditching or cleaning out storm drains, things like that. The barrels are more for the longer term construction projects that take multiple weeks and months sometimes.
Speaker 2So let's kind of start with. You know Central Ohio based right. What are part of that project.
Speaker 3And really the basis of that project is one to make that corridor safer. When you look at that section of I-70, 71 between the splits downtown, that had a lot of high crash locations. In fact several of the top 10 crash locations in Ohio were located just in that little stretch of roadway. And a lot of that was because if you were driving from, say, cincinnati to Cleveland, you would come in from the right side of the highway, entering from I-71, and you'd have to work your way all the way across the left side to exit to go north towards Cleveland, for example.
Speaker 3We've now been able to separate out the highway so that you enter from the right side of the highway and you exit from the right side of the highway to continue on that movement. And if you're going I-70, you're on the left side and you continue on the left side. So keeping people from having to, you know, conflict and try to cross paths is certainly a big safety aspect of that project. Aesthetically that's going to be so much nicer for downtown, trying to connect downtown to those neighborhoods to the south of the interstate, and so that project will continue on through this year. We've also got a big project out on the east side, the Far East Freeway, redoing that interchange at 270 and I-70. So those are a couple of the biggies here in the Columbus area in central Ohio that I can think of right off the top of my head.
Speaker 2So I kind of want to back up, just because we're coming out of winter. And did you guys use new solutions on the roads this year, or was it all about the same?
Speaker 3All about the same, or is it all about the same? All about the same. We have over the years switched to using more liquid de-icers, which is that salt brine that we make in-house. It's actually 77% water and 23% salt and it's just a mixture we make it right in our own facilities. A lot of times people will refer to it.
Speaker 3You see the white lines before a snow event on the highway where we pre-treat. That's what we're talking about. So basically it allows us to be more precise with where we put that, the icing material, the salt. It doesn't scatter as much as if we were dropping just rock salt in those conditions and then once the water evaporates from the solution, you've got a salt, you know, a coating of salt then on the road that helps kind of give us a head start when the snow and ice starts to hit. So we've been using that for the last several years, or more of it over the last several years. We still use a lot of rock salt, obviously as well, but that may be one thing that you see. That may be a little different.
Speaker 2And is it supposed to be better for the environment, the runoff from the roads?
Speaker 3It is it is because we're using less salt than the you know, just the rock salt that you see. So it is less corrosive, less of an impact to the environment and still gets the job done, which is obviously what we want. We want to make sure the roads are safe for everybody to use, and trying to balance that with any environmental impact certainly is part of the equation as well did you guys get more snow for snow piles this year than normal, or was it about what you expect?
Speaker 3it was about. Well, it was an above average year because the last couple of years, uh, certainly we have had, uh, a little more mild winters, I think, than in years past, but it was still very busy. I was actually trying to pull up some statistics here for you, but it was a very busy winter for us, you know a lot of miles put out there, a lot of hours on the road and a lot of material that we used. We also, unfortunately, saw a huge increase in the number of snowplows that were struck. We ended up with more than 50 of our snowplows that were hit. I think 54 is the final number compared to 22 the year before, so a pretty big increase. I think a lot of that is because obviously, we're out more this winter than we were the last couple of winters, but also just people are more distracted, more in a hurry, and we really need to change that.
Speaker 2Yeah, that kind of takes me to there. I saw that there's legislation going on right now and I'm not sure if they've passed it yet or where it is, but about making some fines. So when you see road workers, you know this is an alarming thing, that these road workers are out there fixing our roads and they're getting hit. You know, doing their job on the roads.
Speaker 3It is quite concerning. We're now at 58 crews that have been hit on the ODOT. You know ODOT crews and when I say crews I'm talking people, equipment, vehicles. So it could be an arrow board in a work zone, it could be one of our vehicles that gets sideswiped like a snowplow or, unfortunately, it could be one of our employees that gets hit. So 58 times ODOT crews have been hit so far this year. That compares to 84 all of last year. So quite concerning to us to see that number that high.
Speaker 2And so the legislation. Do you know what they're asking for with the legislation?
Speaker 3then I've seen a little bit of it.
Speaker 3Odot usually does not, you know, opine on legislation.
Speaker 3We'll certainly let the legislative process work its way through, and then it would be obviously up to the governor to decide if it gets to their you know it gets to his desk whether or not he would sign that, and I certainly will not speak for the governor on that.
Speaker 3But certainly anytime we can remind people to give our crews the room they need, remind people about the law already on the book, which is the move over law, and Ohio is one of 50 states where there is a law on the books that says, if you see a vehicle with flashing lights on the shoulder or working out on the road, you need to move over for that vehicle. If you can't safely move over for that vehicle, you need to slow down. Above all, though, we need people to pay attention, because you're never going to see those flashing lights and the signs and all the things that are out there if you're driving down the road looking at your cell phone and uh, or your attention is is somewhere else. So it's always a good time to remind people to to pay attention on the road, especially in those work zones. It's so, so, stinking important to to people. Do the people do that?
Speaker 4uh well matt, we've uh seen here lately as we get a lot of press North Columbus and Delaware County in regards to the 23 potential bypass. Could you kind of give us some insight on some of the developments there and what is pending?
Worker Safety and Move Over Law
Speaker 3Yeah, I mean that's something that the legislature directed us to study in the latest transportation budget, so we'll do that. We'll work with the Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission to do that. Know, odot obviously has some plans to address that issue there, hopefully be able to significantly reduce the number of traffic signals in that corridor, which we think will have a value all the way to the extension of the corridor, all the way from Columbus to the North, to Michigan, through Toledo and those communities up there. So that is real. Really, where we are at this point is we will comply with what the legislature has directed us to do and we'll do that, that study with the Ohio turnpike.
Speaker 4What are your thoughts on? You know, it's development and kind of the chicken and the egg which comes first. Right, we obviously have some mega projects and things pending, but in a perfect world, how do you, how do you, offset these developments with the needed infrastructure so that nothing you know gets gets behind?
Speaker 3Yeah, I mean we did a statewide transportation needs analysis that we released back in February that really looked at the entire state and looked at some key corridors, you know, because we don't want transportation to be a roadblock to any developments, we want opportunity to be there all across Ohio, not just in one section of the state. What potential needs could we have out there? Things that needed to be addressed, things where we can invest and try to make sure that the infrastructure is keeping pace with the needs not only of today. Obviously kind of a triangle Columbus, dayton, cincinnati, that area in between. There I mean you've got the LG Honda plant, the battery plant down in Fayette County. You've got a lot of investments going into the Dayton area with Joby and other companies that have selected the Dayton area to grow their business Cincinnati obviously doing well economically along with Columbus. So there are a lot of opportunities out there. Certainly we want to make sure that the transportation infrastructure is there to handle those opportunities.
Speaker 2So is there like a yearly? You talk about how you're planning ahead, right, repaving. You know I see a lot of stuff going on out towards New Albany, of course, because there's a lot more traffic coming through there than has ever been. But is there a plan that people can kind of look at if they're curious? You know Southern Ohio, they're getting their roads repaved. Where do people go to find stuff like that?
Speaker 3So on the on the short term, we have all of our construction guides for all of our different 12, 12 different districts in the state of Ohio. Uh, those are all available on our website. You can go to transportationohiogov, click on projects. You'll find construction guides and that will give you all of the projects that are happening this year, so this construction season. There are also longer term planning. Access 2045 is our longer term plan. That will give you an idea of what we're looking at, you know, 10, 20, 30 years out into the future. And then, of course, you've got our STIP, which is our Statewide Transportation Improvement Program. So it's kind of looking at the next four years or so and that is actually on the website right now, maybe short term and then maybe a longer term. There are a lot of resources out there on our website, transportationohiogov, that people can go to kind of see where the roadmap to the future is, if you will.
Speaker 2Yeah, so you mentioned the 7071 down south. Anything coming up north?
Delaware Bypass and Infrastructure Planning
Speaker 3Yeah, there's a. I mean you know we're still doing some projects in the Cleveland area. Akron's got a lot of investment that's been going on. We've invested heavily in the Toledo area over the last several of years. I think that I-75 corridor from basically Toledo down through Lima has had more than a billion dollars in investments over the last decade or so. So a lot of work there that has been done and will continue to do. I mean, obviously we don't want to forget about our rural areas, and we're not. We're going to upgrade US 33 in Athens and Meigs County to four-lane highway. That's the last section of highway that is still two lane between Columbus and the Ohio River. So that will now be a four lane highway all the way from the Ohio River to Columbus. The Chesapeake Bypass down in Lawrence County that is getting underway this year. So a lot of investment in not just our urban cores but also in our rural parts of the state again to make sure that that opportunity for development is there in all 88 counties.
Speaker 4Who are some of the key partners of ODOT?
Speaker 3So we deal with the Ohio Contractors Association. You know they obviously represent the contractors that we use for the heavy highway construction projects. Odot does a lot of the maintenance projects but we rely on contractors to do the big projects that you see around the state of Ohio. Another partner of ours would be the Ohio State Highway Patrol. Safety is obviously paramount to everything we do, especially when you look at work zones. Especially when you look at work zones, we partner very heavily with the Ohio State Highway Patrol to make sure that those work zones are as safe as possible and they've done an amazing job. Just last year, a big blitz that was pushed by Governor Mike DeWine to make those work zones safer, and the Highway Patrol teamed with us and we saw a reduction in work zone crashes, which has been a tremendous asset to all of us here in Ohio. But at the same time we have a lot of work to do. So I expect that we'll see that again this year. And so those are kind of our main partners, and of course I would also.
Speaker 3I know it may seem cliche, but one of our biggest partners is you, the public, the men and women who are in Ohio and drive in Ohio, because you live here, you visit here, you work here, and so I consider those folks, everybody who uses our road, a partner, because they're the ones funding all of this. You know transportation in Ohio is not funded by anything more than the gas tax for the most part. The vast majority of ODOT's revenue comes from motor fuel tax and so when you pump a gallon of gas into your vehicle or a gallon of diesel into your truck, that is all. You know. There's a portion of that that goes to funding roads and highways here in the state of Ohio. So very important revenue source for us is the motor fuel tax. So I would consider all road users a big partner for ODOT.
Speaker 2I'm curious with pavement Seems like for years we've had the same kind of pavements. But I do know, as I drive up to Wyandotte County because I have in-laws up there, that there is a stretch at least one stretch in Ohio where you guys are testing various kinds of pavements. Are we getting more sustainable? What kind of are we? I feel like pavement hasn't really upgraded in years.
Speaker 3Yeah, no, I mean, you know, certainly we do work with contractors to make sure that the pavement lasts for the duration of the time period we expect it to last, and we test that. We have a very rigorous testing process here at our test lab, which is actually just down the hill from where I'm sitting here today here in Columbus. It's a huge facility where they test everything from asphalt to aggregate, the rocks that we put at the base of the roadways, concrete rebar that's in bridges. I mean, all of that is tested at our test facility, our test lab, to ensure that when we put that spec out to the contractor, that the people of Ohio are getting what they're paying for. And so I think that is certainly a. You know, I think most states have a test lab, but I, of course, we'll give ours, uh, you know, a little bias, but I'm I think ours is the best in the country out of all 50. Um, you know, and again, those men and women down there working in that test lab are the ones that are trying to make sure that, uh, when, when the specs are put out, that that's what the people of Ohio are getting for their money, to try to make our roads last as long as they do.
ODOT Partnerships and Funding
Speaker 3But you know, one of the big challenges we have here is the weather. It's no, you know. I mean, you hear people say, if you don't like the weather, wait five minutes, it'll change, and that is true. That also takes a huge toll on our roadway surfaces. So the freeze-thaw cycle is probably the most intense thing we deal with when it comes to road condition. You get a little water down in a roadway, it freezes and expands, then it contracts when it thaws and it freezes back and forth, back and forth over time. That's how we get potholes, that's how we get some degradation in our roadway surfaces. So certainly something we have to keep up with, but I think we do a fairly good job here in the state of Ohio doing that.
Speaker 2You mentioned potholes. Let's just say, if someone hits a pothole and they want to report it, how do they do that?
Speaker 3Transportationohiogov slash damage report is the best place to go that will allow you to fill out a form. Once you fill out that form, it goes to the nearest garage and lets them know that there's an issue that needs to be addressed and they can go out and do that. Important to remember ODOT takes care of all the state and US routes outside municipalities and all interstates, except for the Ohio Turnpike. The Turnpike is a separate facility that has their own crews, obviously to deal with that, and local jurisdictions like cities, townships and counties deal with their own roads.
Speaker 3So important to know what type of road you were on when you hit a pothole so that you know which entity to reach out to. The last thing you'd want to do is waste time and reach out to the wrong folks. And then, of course, if you have damage to your vehicle, there's information at transportationohiogov slash damage report that will also walk you through that process of filing a claim, potentially with the Ohio Court of Claims, to where you could potentially get reimbursed for the damage if ODOT was aware of that pothole and had ample time to repair it. But that is a decision that's made outside of ODOT, that's with the Ohio Court of Claims.
Speaker 2So back to asphalt. You knowyan, and I interviewed someone from delaware actually that was working on a a new type of road, um, it's called necotech, um, and I'm just curious. So I know the air. He's working with the air force and they're trying it out on runways for the planes landing, but it's supposed to be a much better what's the word, ryan, conservative, sustainable product than asphalt. Have you guys looked into other kinds of things besides asphalt?
Speaker 3I mean I know, like I said, our test labs are always looking at different materials and certainly working with contractors to find the best mixes that work for the best type of situations. Obviously, every scenario is going to be different. You know the mix of asphalt you get on a small township road is going to be different than the mix of asphalt you get on a interstate highway. Same with you know concrete and rebar and all the different things that they use. You know interstates are going to have different standards than they are on a small two lane road in a rural section of the state. So yeah, I mean always looking for different products, different materials, you know, working with other states and the federal governments. Materials you know, working with other states and the federal governments, there are certainly, you know, products that are on an approved list, that undergo testing to make sure that they are safe to use and will hold up. So I think, as a whole, dots around the country certainly are always looking for a better way to a better mousetrap, if you will if you will.
Speaker 4And Matt, what about? Obviously, these projects all carry a pretty large price tag.
Speaker 3What right now in the outlook as far as funding goes for Ohio yeah, I mean right now for this two-year budget we're certainly in okay shape.
Speaker 3As we look further out into the future, there are going to be some challenges. We saw that back in 2019, when the legislature and the governor were gracious enough to give us more resources, because, as I mentioned earlier, transportation is funded almost exclusively by the motor fuel tax. We don't get property taxes or income taxes or, you know, a tax on something else. It's the tax on motor fuel, and so, as cars and trucks become more fuel efficient, we're driving more, but we're using about the same amount, or maybe even slightly less, motor fuel than we were 10, 20 years ago, and so that, coupled with the cost of everything continuing to go up, the buying power of that dollar has been eroded over time and will continue to be eroded over time. So that is certainly something that we are hopeful that the legislature will start having a conversation about. What do we do for this next budget coming up? This one just got approved, but here we are already thinking about and talking about the budget in two more years.
Speaker 4And there are situations where there is federal assistance correct.
Speaker 3Yeah, so the federal revenue that we get here in Ohio, it makes up about half. Yeah, so the federal revenue that we get here in Ohio, it makes up about half. So and I'm using just rough round numbers here About half of our funding comes from state sources and about half of our funding comes from federal sources. So that is sort of where our funding picture is in the state of Ohio. And the federal motor fuel tax hasn't been raised since 1993. Motor fuel tax hasn't been raised since 1993. So you know, imagine trying to do everything you're doing now on what you made in 1993.
Roundabouts and Transportation Technologies
Speaker 3It certainly makes it challenging um any new uh technology for on and off ramps in ohio that we should be looking forward to no, I mean, I know we have used over the years um, you've probably seen the what looked like a traffic signal at the end of a ramp. That's called a ramp meter. Uh, that technology has been there to try to, um, you know, make the flow of traffic entering a highway during high congestion hours more consistent. Unfortunately, I think a lot of people don't tend to use those the right way and so I don't think we get to see the maximum potential of their use. But it is very important to remember when you see those ramp meters and you get that red light you are supposed to stop, it is a traffic signal you can be cited for running a red light just like any other traffic signal. Um, and that's there again for the reason of trying to help homogenize that flow, make it a more harmonious. Harmonious as, uh, it moves forward down the roadway, um, but again, it takes all of us to to play our part in that, and so unfortunately, that doesn't happen very often.
Speaker 3There are a number of things that are out on the roads that maybe not even technology but just procedures the zipper merge, for example. We know how to make traffic flow better in high congestion situations, and that's when you've got a merge point, every other vehicle taking turns, that's, you know, when you've got a merge point, every other vehicle taking turns. The biggest barrier to that is humans and our want to be first and don't you dare get in my way. And so you know that, unfortunately, is a barrier to that working to its maximum potential as well. But you know these little things will change over time. I hope We'll continue to educate folks. Another example would be roundabouts. You know you see a lot more of those at intersections. No, not any more roundabouts. People, apparently like you, michelle, have very strong opinions about them, but the data does not lie. These make roads, intersections so much safer and they increase the traffic flow. It is just amazing to me in some cases why people are so opposed to roundabouts when we know that they work so well. But it's an education thing, it's something different and I think over time you know we'll get there.
Speaker 3I liken it back to and I've joked with a couple of people when we put up a roundabout post. I'm like you know, if Facebook or social media were around in the early part of the 20th century when the traffic signal was first put up, I can only imagine the comments. No one knows how to use these things. What is this red, green, yellow light Like? I don't understand what this? No one's crashes are going to go up. People aren't going to know what to do. They need this newfangled technology somewhere else, not here. Imagine if we would say that Now we look back and traffic signal seems like the most basic thing in the world and how to operate a motor vehicle. I have a feeling that in the not so distant future, people will say the same about roundabouts.
Speaker 2Yeah, I wish we would tell the jurisdictions don't put bushes in the middle or anything that blocks views.
Speaker 3Well, so I will address that for you. So the reason they do that is because when you approach a roundabout, you are to yield the traffic in the roundabout to your left. The only direction you were supposed to look is to your left. The stuff in the middle forces you to look to the left, where the traffic is you're supposed to yield to, as opposed to looking straight across at traffic entering the other side of the roundabout, which you are not supposed to yield to. So there's a method to that madness.
Speaker 2It is to change. There is a method.
Speaker 3Yeah, yeah, there you go.
Speaker 2I like roundabouts more already.
Speaker 3One person at a time. Michelle, that's my mission.
Speaker 2Well, matt, I want to thank you so much for joining us and filling us in on the roads in Ohio, because we all use them and we all love them, until something goes wrong, unfortunately for you, that I'm sure that's when you hear about it, but you know they're great when they're great absolutely everybody uh, hates road construction, uh, until they get the final product and they're like that wasn't so bad.
Speaker 3And then the last thing I would say is just, you know, in that same vein, remember, when you're out there cursing those orange barrels, please make sure you're watching for the people who are working behind those orange barrels. Those are men and women, fathers, mothers, sons and daughters. They all have families and friends that they want to go home to at the end of the day, safely, just like you do when you leave your job. And so all of us paying attention, moving over, slowing down, giving them that safe room to work is certainly paramount to them being able to get home, and so we just hope that everybody will do that for us.
Speaker 2All right. So, matt, where should people go to find more information about ODOT?
Speaker 3So they can go to our website, transportationohiogov. That's where they'll find all information about ODOT. You can also follow us on social media. We have statewide accounts on Facebook, X, instagram. We also have district accounts on X and Facebook so you can get the statewide picture. If you want a little more of a local picture, you can follow any of our ODOT districts on social media there, and you can even sign up for emails to get updates on construction projects and road maintenance projects that are going on near you. So all of that is available at transportationohiogov.
Speaker 2Great. Thank you again.
Speaker 1No problem, Thanks guys, thank you for listening to this episode of Central Ohio Matters. Be sure to like, share and download. We cover government policies, healthcare challenges, housing and business developments, transportation solutions, education and innovation. If you know of a good story we should be talking about, go to the radio station website and fill out a contact form Directed to Michelle Gatchel, host of Central Ohio Matters. Thank you.