As you know noise walls are one of the tools that ODOT uses to mitigate the sound that comes off of highways. Most people know noise walls as the concrete or brick walls that we put along the highways. And that’s really the only option we have right now. This fall ODOT wants to try an experiment, a research project in which we will construct a “green” wall that is made more of dirt and plants.

Q: And you say it’s like a Chia Pet?

A: How this wall will be constructed, you’ll have an inside base that’s made up of sand and gravel. On the outside of that will be biodegradable bags that are filled with soil and other material; on top of that will be sprayed seeds and fertilizer, that’s where the plants will grow from then.

Q: What kind of plants?

A: There will actually be a variety of seeds used across the 400 foot wall giving us a better sense of what types of plants grow best.

Q: Where will the wall be located?

A: This will be along I-70 on the east side of Columbus near the State Route 310 interchange for Pataskala. It will run along the I-70 westbound lane. Again it’s about a 400 foot wall.

Q: Won’t there be cost savings involved with this?

A: That’s what we’re trying to determine. To give you a sense of perspective, right now those concrete and brick sound walls that we build today cost about a million and a half dollars for every mile. We want to see if something like this green wall can be cost effective. But there’s a big difference in how these walls need to be maintained during the year. Typically a concrete wall is erected with very little maintenance needed. A green wall like this is going to require some on-going maintenance. The watering of it. Making sure that whatever grows on it doesn’t grow out of control. So we really will use the two years of study that comes after this wall is constructed to getter a better sense of what are the maintenance needs? How does a green wall like this survive Ohio winters? This really is a research project as part of ODOT’s growing commitment to be a much greener department. All across the state we’ve put in a number of initiatives to try to be more environmentally conscious. Whether it be green noise walls, looking at reducing the amount of herbicides we use, to using solar and wind energy at some of our rest areas. It’s part of an effort by ODOT to be a more green department.

Scott Varner, chief spokesman for the Ohio Department of Transportation.

Experts say that crossover crashes are rare but often tragic because two vehicles collide head-on at high rates of speed. Ohio’s Department of Transportation is wrapping up a pilot program that has studied the effectiveness of cable median barriers to prevent such accidents. ODOT spokesman Scott Varner says cable barriers react differently than concrete dividers when they’re struck by vehicles.

“What our studies have shown is that when a car hits a cable barrier the cable almost catches the vehicle [and] prevents it from – if you were to hit a concrete barrier – bouncing back,” Varner says.

Ohio currently has about 160 miles of cable median barriers in place. More will be added in the next year or two says Varner. But he says cable dividers might not be as effective at preventing the type of accident that occurred near Springfield when a tractor trailer truck crossed the median into oncoming traffic.

“The cable barriers are mostly designed to prevent cars and pickup trucks from crossing the barrier,” Varner says. “Any kind of barrier will help slow down a vehicle. And obviously the bigger the vehicle the much more difficult it is to slow down.”

Varner says ODOT will carefully analyze sections of Ohio roadways that are prone to accidents and determine if cable median barriers should be installed.

“Where it is in place [the cable barrier] we think it does do an incredible job of preventing these crossover crashes,” Varner says.

Rail Development commissioners voted to move the passenger rail application process to its final stage. They’ll ask the Federal Rail Commission for as much as $400 million for the so-called 3C project: a passenger train service connecting Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton and Cincinnati. Ohio Department of Transportation spokesman Scott Varner says the application must be filed by October 2nd.

“We’re in the process of finding the safest most efficient and cost effective route for this service,” Varner says. “We will have a very strong application that we will submit to Washington. If we receive funding you could see these passenger trains running by as early as 2011.”

Ohio faces stiff competition from other states who all want a part of the eight billion federal dollars set aside for rail projects. The Rail Commission also agreed to support a private company’s bid to build diesel powered passenger trains in Gahanna. Helped by federal and state aid, U.S. Railcar LLC says it intends to build a $14 million factory that would employ about 160 people.