Congestion woes at Towers Shopping Center
Empty parking spots were hard to find Tuesday afternoon near Chipotle at Towers Shopping Center. Photo by Amanda Codispoti
One of the things I love about Roanoke is that I can always find a parking space and I rarely get stuck in traffic.
I think many Roanokers appreciate that, and are spoiled because of it. So keep that in mind when I say that I’ve heard from several people who have noticed the congestion at Towers Shopping Center.
It became noticeable to me when Chipotle opened in June. The proximity of Jo Ann Fabrics nearby is probably a contributing factor, too, along with the location of several lunch spots – Firehouse Subs, CiCi’s Pizza, Hibachi Express and McAlister’s Deli.
Blog reader Rke Native said this about the heavy traffic in a comment to a recent blog post: “I love that Tower’s Mall has been ‘reborn’ and seems to be thriving (at least the Colonial Ave side) but it is a nightmare getting around in the parking lot as well as on and off of Colonial. Do you know if they have any plans to improve the parking lot flow or the congestion on Colonial? Thanks!”
I took Rke Native’s question to the shopping center’s owner, The Rappaport Cos., in McLean. Sheryl Simeck, vice president of marketing and communications for Rappaport, said this in an email: “I spoke to our Executive Vice President of Development, Larry Spott, and he says that since the opening of Chipotle, traffic has increased quite a bit in the parking lot at Colonial Avenue and that we are currently reviewing several options to modify the parking lot and the entrances.”
I asked Simeck if she would please let me know when they have a definite plan so I can keep the blog’s readers updated.
There have already been upgrades to the roads around Towers to improve traffic flow, including a the installation of a traffic light at the intersection of 23rd Street and Brandon, the creation of an extra left-turn lane at the intersection of Colonial and Brandon and blocking left turns from Colonial onto 23rd Street.
Yesterday I talked to Mark Jamison, Roanoke’s transportation division manager, about whether the city had additional plans for Colonial Avenue. He told me that because the Virginia Department of Transportation (which usually funds the majority of the cost for road projects) has seen its budget cut, plans for further improvements have been tabled.
What’s been your experience driving to and parking at Towers? Do you have any suggestions for improving the flow of traffic in the parking lot?
August 10, 2011 - 9:00 AM
They need to enforce the no-left-turn sign from Colonial onto 23rd Street.
We don’t go to Towers that often, when we do we come up Brandon from Salem and turn at the light there at 23rd St. Nine times out of ten when we go there it’s to go to Awful Arthur’s and we park at the back/side door there. However, if I do have to drive through the lot it’s a pain! I don’t have any suggestions but I’m sure that someone who designs parking lots and etc. could def make some improvements!
Colonial ave there is bad around lunch time I had someone pull out in front of me around that time one day last week, had to slam on the brakes to keep from t-boning her. too many two way entrance\exits fronting Colonial. Also, you have the BB&T & Starbucks across the street that generate a lot of traffic at that time. Also, the surface of Colonial Ave. from the city line to Electric road is one of the worst around, I’ve been going through there for over 10 years and it has never been paved, unless you count them spraying tar on it and then dumping pea gravel down on top of that about 7 years ago. What a mess that was.
I love how VDOT whines about not having any money to fix real problems but they have the money to replace all of the traffic signals on Electric road that were working fine with new pole mounted ones.
How much is that whole project costing?
All too frequently those with the best insight are the last to be asked for their input. It’s my opinion that the merchants in the area of most congestion be given the opportunity to voice their thoughts/observations.
tass, there are many directions, rules, laws that go unenforced. In lieu of this if each of us did our part, then at least we could have sound mind in doing the right thing.
Parking lot traffic flow is something I’ve spent a lot of time with over the last few years. Great patterns, effective directions, good signage are all for naught when the “me, me, me” generation sets their mind to what they’re going to do (or not do). A sad but truthful fact.
I have been driving to\through the Towers parking lot 3-4 times a day for years and its totally fine, yet I’ve heard these complaints before and honestly I’m baffled by it, I just assume its all these “new” people coming for burritos that aren’t used to the flow
PROTIP: if you are going to Chipotle, dont pull in the entrance nearest it use one of the two before it (when approaching from 581 exit)and your traffic woes are gone.
There truly is no bad traffic in Roanoke
I travel around Towers Shopping center 4 times a day for work. On my way to the office I cut up 23rd to Colonial to get onto 220S and on the way home I go around Towers onto Brandon. A couple of things:
23rd should have limited access onto Colonial by the way of a direct right turn into the farthest right lane only. Too many “almost” collisions have happened from people abruptly turning right onto Colonial and trying to cut across 3 lanes to get onto 581 towards downtown. There also needs to be better signage on what each of those 3 lanes are for because people obviously do not know that the left lane is for left turning only.
Drastic changes to Colonial going towards Brandon need to happen. I never have any traffic problems if I stay in the right lane until I need to turn left onto Brandon. People are always backed up and stuck in traffic in the left because of people turning into Towers, but that can easily be avoided by staying in the right lane. My proposal is to turn the left lane into a median for turning left into Towers and for people exiting Towers to have a lane to merge from the 581 off-ramp intersection down to Chipotle. This would keep traffic moving in the right lane and prevent people from chaotically exiting left out of Towers. Curb cuts need to be minimized to only 1 entrance/exit at the middle sign, not 2, and 1 entrance/exit on the Chipotle end.
Sorry for the long post but some problems can be easily fixed. I see the problem 4 times daily so I see the simple solution that the City obviously doesn’t.
I’m sure that the arrival of Chipotle has made things tricky around that end of the parking lot. The main problem I see is people turning off 23rd St. trying to get to the left turn lane on Colonial to WonJu. You have to cross 2 lanes of traffic to get there. Good luck at rush hour. If I’m on Brandon I usually just go around the shopping center. YAJ is right though, not much to complain about (except the Elm Ave. bridge.)
Extending Wonju to Brandon would be a major improvement. The problem with the parking lot is that there are parking spaces right on the two way road in the lot. That blocks the view of those trying to get to the road to exit the lot onto Colonial.
@tass, the cops are constantly out there enforcing the no left turn onto 23rd st; however, when they are not there people are still causing problems when they try to make that turn. I agree with Dustin that a lot of the issues also arise from cars coming up 23rd street and trying to get in the far left lane to get onto Wonju. It would solve a lot of problems if 23rd street was blocked at the top or only allowed a right onto Colonial to continue straight through the light. I would suggest any car leaving Towers from the upper level that wants to turn left onto Colonial to not use the central right exit, there are too many cars coming from 581 or oncoming traffic down Colonial trying to turn into Towers that block the way. The central left exit or the Chipotle exit are usually easier to use.
I wish there is a left turn lane to 26th Street when heading north on Colonial Ave. to keep north-bound traffic going.
2nd thing, my office on Colonial Ave. is straight across from Chiphotle, and I barely can turn left when leaving office anymore. Traffic is nonstop and I wish somebody can do something, maybe adding middle lane for easy turning during heavy traffic.
3rd thing, I have seen a handful of cars trying to turn left from 23rd Street at Colonial. The no-left turn sign is not obvious.
4th thing, how to improve traffic at Wonju & Colonial, how about run-about traffic flow like Colonial and Penn Forest Blvd?
But overall, I’m so happy to see Towers Mall being re-born!
I live in the area and am always going up to Towers for something or another. It really is not that bad and yes, Roanoke is blessed with very minimal heavy traffic.
It comes down to people not paying as much attention as they should when driving in a congested area.
But compared to larger cities, this traffic is nothing.
That said, I can agree with the statement about people pulling out of 23rd onto Colonial to get in the far left lane.
I have seen that cause many problems, near accidents and anger drivers.
Also sketchy at times is the entrance/exit at Kroger that takes you onto Brandon where The Bazaar and Henry’s BBQ are.
Pulling out of there can be hard due to limited visibility of oncoming traffic. I’ve seen many drivers on Brandon swerve around people pulling out of the parking lot, or people getting ready to pull out having to reverse it back in because a car comes around that corner faster than they see it coming.
My husband & I have lived here for the past 4 years, I have found that Roanoke has the WORST drivers so I think it’s more of a people issue than a construction issue. I live in the Towers area and never really have issues with the traffic there except when people make illegal left turns from Colonial onto 23rd Street. Yes, it’s quicker to do so but it does inconvenience everyone else when the person gets stuck mid-turn and it left blocking Colonial. People do not use common sense!
The parking lot does need to be repaved and reconfigured to allow for easier navigation once there though.
And to add to that…. I LOVE that Towers is growing and I hope it continues to do so! Now if we can only get that Kroger updated & remodeled. It’s one of the worst in the valley.
Meghan- Roanoke has the worst traffic? Where else have you driven? Obviously not Washington DC, Hampton Roads area, Greensboro NC, Philadelphia, Oklahoma City….the list could go on and on. Roanoke traffic is no big deal.
RM, re-read Meghan’s post… the worst DRIVERS! There’s a difference. I agree that the area has become congested, but more often than not, as Meghan points out, it’s a “people issue”.
@RM-
Meghan said Roanoke has the worst DRIVERS, nothing about traffic and I happen to agree with her. Too many people stopping in acceleration lanes or merge lanes to the constant running of red lights (which wouldn’t happen if the person at the light paid attention to when it turned green and actually went).
RM – I didn’t say worst traffic, I said “Roanoke has the WORST drivers”. I commuted in NJ/NY traffic so I know traffic.
I am talking about drivers. In all of those places people drive like crazy, tail gate, speed, run lights, pass illegally, and more. In Oklahoma City it is common practice to pull across on-coming lanes when making a left turn from a side street or parking lot. Many time I have driven south on 220 toward Greensboro, people in NC pass on double yellow lines all the time. Roanoke does not have bad traffic nor do we have the worst drivers. Google the question and Roanoke is not listed, Florida is top of the list on one site.
Roanoke drivers are a delight compared to those in Richmond. It’s one of many reasons why I live here and not there.
Thought not all that bad I do agree there are some improvements needed.
I agree with blocking off the top of 23rd. That would solve a lot of problems. It used as a short cut more than anything. Kill two birds with one stone. Don’t think it’s so much of a issue as signage as people just do not care. Most I have seen making that left do not signal and make the turn abrupt.
As for the entrances/exits at the sign. One either needs to go or make one an entrance and the other a exit. Too many people trying to go in different directions close together.
Last a speed bump on the road that take you between levels on the Kroger end. So many people come flying up and around that I’ve nearly been hit more than once backing out of a space (the ones along the mall)
Most problems would not be problems if people obeyed the laws and used common sense.
Passerby – People completely stopping on the 581 onramps at Orange and Franklin drive my husband & I up the wall. It is so dangerous! I have never seen people do this as much as I do here. I don’t know if it’s a lack of knowledge of driving rules/etiquette or people just don’t care. Maybe it’s the combination of rural and suburban merging together as Roanoke grows? I grew up in rural SWVA where 2 lane roads are the norm and stoplights are few & far between. When you bring people from these areas who don’t know how to handle large roads & traffic into Roanoke, things can get hairy. Luckily my time in Jersey taught me how to handle just about everything!
RM – I have seen plenty of people in Roanoke do the exact same things (and more) that you mentioned above.
The people who are complaining about the increased traffic on Colonial at Towers obviously don’t attempt to drive at Valley View which is much worse. Sure it has increased some at lunchtime, but when the “new” wears off at Chipotle the traffic will subside. Meanwhile, slip around to the side on 23rd and try Crock and Roll. They provide some of the best lunch and takeout fare in the Valley.
I shop in towers a lot and the traffic congestion is an issue in the towers parking lot – both sides. here are my suggestions:
1. re-do the traffic lanes on colonial – I would put in a designated left turn lane only in the middle of the road to allow left hand turns cross traffic and get those drivers coming from both directions out of the through traffic flow and prevent the back up on the streets. Many places have them but for some reason, Roanoke does not take advantage of them and this would make traffic so much easier on Colonial all the way to Electric.
2. re-do the traffic flow of the parking lot – much of this is the problem. redo the lines for parking – there is a lot of wasted space and it creates a false sense of a road with the middle lane which is really wide and looks like a road, but is really a walkway to the broadside of the building. also, I see many new people thinking that the lines by the lights are parking spots because they are marked only to speed through, cut someone off and they find it to be a half size space.
3. change the entrances of the lot to designate incoming and outgoing – not both in and out when they are six feet apart. (Colonial side)
4. the Brandon side – with the new clinic going in, traffic is going to be much worse – redo the lines by the roundabout there and change the flow slightly – so many people are coming out the in only and many times I have almost been hit because they don’t pay attention and they are not clearly marked.
5. Put in designated bus passanger pick up/drop off with covered shelter. Traffic often gets backed up and frustrate the drivers behind because they cant see. Many people have almost been hit outside of the pet place and drivers get frustrated because there is not an unobstructed view.
6. Create easier traffic flow around the entire shopping center. Imagine having to tell someone out of town how to get from McAlisters to Krogers.
7. Make a designated motorcycle/scooter/bike parking. it would allow a safer parking zone for those drivers and would add more parking for autos because these motorist would have their own designated area. Getting them their own spot and keeping their vehicles off the sidewalks not only looks better, but makes everyone safer.
8. Eliminate so many of the blind spots when backing out of the spaces in front of the stores. Limit them to taxi pickup/drop off, handicap, take out pick up, and compact cars only. There have been many near collisions because lower profile cars and elderly cant see the traffic. There are a large number of shoppers at towers that are handicap, elderly, without a car, disabled, and take a different form of transportation than a regular automobile.
9. Invest in some signage for traffic flow. the low profile wooden ones are really dated and hard to see. You cant even identify them when dark and many are not reflective.
10. Put in some lane markings on the far end of the parking lot by awful arthurs for designated turning lanes left and right our of that area. you often have four different people trying to enter or exit the parking lot and they all think they are next.
11. Put up a sign for the entrance to the bank and restrict the lane on chipotle to one way only going towards the bank with no curbside parking on the side of the building to allow those of us who want to get to the bank to get there.
Overall – the parking lines, passenger pickup and signage tend to be the biggest issues in towers. many of these changes are not that costly as its just a re-route of flow.