The Old Townie: Traffic woes and a new arena

Traffic headaches? Just wait!

I commuted to Cincinnati for over 20 years of my Oxford residency via US 27 south to Northgate, to the Interstate.

I recall the accidents that earned that stretch of highway the nickname Highway to Heaven. Eventually, speed limits were reduced to 45 mph, and parts of the road were widened and straightened to make them safer.

Most of us are aware that the Ohio 732 and Stillwell-Beckett intersection will become a roundabout in 2027 for the same reason.

And then, we have the creatively engineered bottleneck of the Patterson/Spring/Ohio 73 intersection, a major entrance to the City for trucking, travel, students and visitors.

Coming home from Cincy in late May was a real challenge with families by the dozens coming into Oxford for high school graduations. I recall the traffic beginning to slow at Ross, where the four-lane stretch narrowed to two lanes. A traffic light at 27 and New London brought the line to a complete stop for its cycle, as did the light where 27 makes a left turn north in downtown Millville toward McGonigle and Oxford.

Later, the light at 27 and Stillwell-Beckett made all vehicles stop, as did the light at the top of the hill at Chestnut Street. Bumper-to-bumper lines were possibly the norm from Ross into the city. At least widening 27 south to the new Talawanda High School and some turn lanes helped congestion in both directions of travel.

On the best of days, I could count on 10 to 15 minutes tops from I 275 to Millville, then another five to McGonigle, five to Chestnut Street and five more to my home. Rainy days and Fridays always slowed me down (apologies to the Carpenters). Winter snow, and especially ice, occasionally limited my speed to 10 to 15 miles per hour, leading to a very late dinner on those nights.

During Miami University’s graduation earlier this month, Miami’s Board of Trustees met, as summarized in last week’s Oxford Free Press. I had to chuckle at the part about the Trustees having to re-create a major in educational inclusion so that the major would meet Ohio law to produce a valid diploma.

I am sure there was chatter about the proposed new arena, but I assume it was casual and informal.

I have some cynical opinions about what might be ahead for the stretch of road from the Pulley Bells to the City Water Treatment plant on 73 east. Imagine along with me … Spring Street could become a right turn only to Patterson. Northbound Patterson south of 73 could widen considerably to spill two lanes into the widened 73 east, plowing through the Bachelor Hall large flower bed, and along the relatively new walkway to the Miami Police student parking lot, eating up some of the wooded area that the sidewalk now borders.

The new parking garage might replace the maintenance buildings (where or where to relocate?) and have a ramp to enter it from 73 West, plus an overpass ramp from eastbound 73.  The garage might well sacrifice the grassy space and the tennis/basketball courts to the north of the maintenance units.

The university has said Pulley Bell Tower will remain, but it will be outsized by the arena behind it. Here’s a true nightmare scenario: Patterson could curve multiple lanes across the current Pulley space, through the demolished gate to Bishop Woods, bifurcate the woods and squeeze back into a widened High Street between downsized Hughes and Laws.

Along with my unlikely nightmares, please recall Miami’s motto, in English: “To accomplish without being conspicuous.”

Steve Schnabl moved to Oxford in 1985. He retired in 2023 from Oxford Seniors after a 40-year career directing nonprofits.