"Not as part of this project." That is how the City of Norman's project FAQ begins its answer to whether the 36th Avenue NW reconstruction will add a traffic signal at Carrington Lane. The next sentence says the city will study that intersection after construction to see whether it meets the warrants for a signal.
If you live in Carrington Lakes, at the southwest corner of 36th Avenue NW and West Franklin Road, you may have been hoping for that light. Read the rest of the plan and a different priority comes through. This rebuild slows the road down and makes it easier to cross on foot. The new controls it adds at your corner are built for people walking to Ruby Grant Park, and the light for drivers turning at Carrington Lane is something the city will decide on later.
What the corner gets in place of a light
Norman lists the crossings that come with the project. There will be new signalized intersections with ADA-compliant crossings at Franklin Road and at Indian Hills Road. All Saints Catholic School gets a signalized entrance with an ADA-compliant crossing. Ruby Grant Park gets a High-Intensity Activated CrossWalK, or HAWK signal.
That list holds the key to the whole plan. On the stretch nearest Carrington Lakes, the new intersection signal is at Franklin, which already marks the neighborhood's corner, and the other new control in the area is for pedestrians at the park. Carrington Lane is one of the city's reference points along this road. A September 2025 City Council agenda used it as the dividing line between two segments of the 36th Avenue project. Even so, its signal question waits until the new road is built and the city can count what actually happens at that intersection.
The number that changes your drive
The most important figure in the plan is the speed limit. On the improved 36th Avenue NW corridor, the posted limit drops from 50 mph to 40 mph.
The road layout changes around that new limit. Here is the corridor as the city describes it today, next to what the plan delivers.
| Today | After reconstruction | |
|---|---|---|
| Lanes | Varies; much of the corridor narrows to two lanes with little or no shoulder | Four lanes from just north of Tecumseh Rd. to just south of SW 34th St. in Moore |
| Center lane | A center turn lane in one area only | Two-way left turn lane between Tecumseh Rd. and Franklin Rd. |
| West side walking | Sidewalk between Tecumseh Rd. and south of Franklin Rd. | 5-foot sidewalk for the full length |
| East side walking | Sidewalk only near All Saints Catholic School and Norman Fire Department Station 8 | Continuous 10-foot multimodal trail |
| Drainage | Ditches and drainage culverts | Underground storm sewer, primarily asphalt road with concrete curb and gutter |
| Posted speed | 50 mph | 40 mph |
Look at the second row if your daily drive starts at the neighborhood. The two-way left turn lane runs between Tecumseh and Franklin, which is the side of Franklin that Carrington Lakes sits on. Put together with the lower limit, the plan gives a left-turning driver a lane to wait in, out of the through lanes, while traffic comes at 40 instead of 50. The city's stated goal is to make the corridor "safer and more reliable" for drivers, pedestrians, bicyclists, transit users and emergency vehicles.
How a HAWK crossing behaves
Few Norman drivers have spent much time at a HAWK signal, so the city spells it out. Unlike a standard light on a timed loop, a HAWK signal stays completely dark for drivers when no one is waiting to cross.
- At rest, the lights are dark and traffic keeps moving.
- A pedestrian pushes a button to ask to cross, and that starts the signal.
For anyone driving past Ruby Grant Park, a HAWK means the road only stops when someone is actually there to cross. For anyone walking to the park, it means a crossing they control with a button instead of waiting for a gap in four lanes of traffic.
Where the crossing leads
Ruby Grant Park is the reason that crossing is in the plan. The city's parks page lists the park at 3110 W. Franklin Road, with:
- a dog park
- multi-use trails and a cross-country track
- a disc golf course
- practice fields and five unlit ballfields
- an inclusive playground and exercise course
- a pavilion and a memorial
- a southwest picnic shelter and playground with restrooms, off 36th Avenue
The park already draws organized events. The Finish the Race 5K & Fun Run was held there yesterday, Saturday, October 3, with a 5K, a one-mile run and a free kids' dash.
The trail is the second half of the plan. The 10-foot multimodal path on the east side of 36th Avenue is described as an extension of Legacy Trail. It is also part of a long-range plan to connect trails between Norman, Moore and Oklahoma City. The new sidewalk stays on the west side, the same side as Carrington Lakes, while the trail runs along the east side. A neighbor heading north on the trail would first cross 36th Avenue at one of the new controlled crossings. That makes the HAWK at Ruby Grant Park and the signal at Franklin the links between the neighborhood's side of the road and the trail.
Who is paying, and how much
The money is already in place. In 2025, Norman and Moore applied together for a U.S. Department of Transportation Safe Streets and Roads for All grant and received the maximum award, $25 million. The grant covers up to 80% of construction costs, and each city pays the remaining match for its own section. On the Norman side, city bond funds cover the match, and the project page says current funding is expected to pay for the whole project. When the City of Norman announced the grant on December 29, 2025, it put the total project cost at $39,459,639 for about three miles of road.
The grant program's name, Safe Streets and Roads for All, matches the design. A safety grant pays for most of this road, which helps explain why the plan includes a lower speed limit, a continuous trail and a HAWK crossing.
When the cones arrive
This is the part neighbors will feel first, and the two cities give different dates.
| Source | What it says |
|---|---|
| City of Norman project FAQ | Work between Franklin Road and Indian Hills Road expected to begin by the end of 2026; remaining sections in early 2027, pending final federal funding agreements |
| City of Moore Public Works, update dated 08/19/26 | Approximate start date of summer 2027, with an estimated two years to complete |
Norman's first segment, Franklin to Indian Hills, starts at the Franklin intersection that marks the neighborhood's corner and runs away from the neighborhood. Neither page has posted a detour route or lane-closure schedule. Norman expects construction to take about two years and no more than three overall. It says temporary pavement and traffic-control measures will keep traffic moving as much as possible. Access to dead-end streets will stay open throughout, with temporary drives where needed.
The project team held a public open house on August 18, 2026, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Quest Church, 6450 36th Ave. NW. The city's project page has a comment link for anyone who missed it. That is where to ask whether the post-construction study at Carrington Lane will include input from people who use that intersection every day.
A two-year rebuild at the corner of your neighborhood will come up in your conversations with neighbors, and it will come up when a buyer asks about the road out front. If you're curious how the 36th Avenue NW project might figure into what your Carrington Lakes home is worth now and once the work is done, Alaina Legendre can walk you through it with local context. Get Your Free Home Valuation and we'll take a look together.
